Bioeconomy

In collaboration with researchers from the University of Tübingen scientists from the Tübingen-based biotechnology company Novis GmbH have now evaluated a biological leaching method that can be used to recycle valuable resources from incineration slag using bacteria. Funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of the Environment Climate Protection and the Energy Sector the experts from Tübingen are studying the possibility of using this method in…

Article - 14/12/2009

Marvel GmbH – ecological materials with a sophisticated design

Marvel GmbH, based in Bad Teinach, has set itself the goal of combining innovative materials with sophisticated design and where safety, fire protection and acoustic properties go hand in hand with attractiveness, high-quality design and sustainability. The company uses its own innovative biomaterial called “Marvel Bioresin”.

Article - 22/09/2014

Heike Frühwirth brings engineering methods into the hype about algae

Heike Frühwirth is not terribly taken by the euphoria surrounding the potential of algae. She knows better as she has become aware of the potential pitfalls from her own personal experience. Frühwirth was born in the Austrian city of Graz where she also studied process engineering. She has been in charge of process engineering under the industrial biotechnology study programme at Biberach University of Applied Sciences since 2012. She specializes…

Article - 12/11/2012

HANDTE Umwelttechnik GmbH – a system provider of energy-efficient exhaust air purification solutions

The purification of exhaust air, a classical technology for end-of-pipe environmental protection, is commonly used in cases when industrial processes result in malodorous exhaust air or air contaminated with hazardous substances. HANDTE Umwelttechnik GmbH started specialising in such solutions way back in 1889.

Article - 19/03/2012

Goal: online glucose sensor for bioreactors

Microorganisms and sensitive cells that are grown in bioreactors need a well-regulated environment and a food supply in order to do what they are supposed to do: grow and produce biomass and metabolites. Many fermenters are equipped with sensors that continuously measure critical bioprocess parameters, including temperature, pH value and oxygen. Online glucose and ethanol sensors are not yet used in regulated bioreactors, even though they would…

Article - 11/11/2013

Little support for beetle legs thanks to cuticular folds

Dr. Bettina Prüm Dr. Holger Bohn and Prof. Dr. Thomas Speck from the Botanic Garden of the University of Freiburg have discovered the mechanisms that prevent beetles from sticking to specifically structured leaf surfaces. In cooperation with the Freiburg Centre for Interactive Materials and Bioinspired Technologies FIT the researchers are now planning to apply natures smart strategy to the design of structures that help prevent insect pests from…

Article - 29/05/2009

ITV Denkendorf – Hi-tech think tank for textiles

The Institute of Textile Technology and Process Engineering Denkendorf ITV Denkendorf is Germanys largest and oldest textile research centre. Research is carried out in specialised laboratories and technical centres covering the entire range of textiles from raw materials to the final product both in basic as well as applied research.

Article - 12/03/2012

Marker pens to prevent bird deaths from collisions with windows

It is estimated that millions of birds die each year as the result of collisions with windows and other reflecting and transparent glass panes. Dr. Roland Kolbe, a researcher from the Baden-Württemberg city of Eningen unter Achalm has addressed this problem with the development of two products to prevent such collisions. The products are based on the differences in the physiology of vision between birds and human beings. Both products alert birds…

Article - 03/10/2010

LimCo International - innovative methods to assess water pollution

LimCo International has developed the Multispecies Freshwater Biomonitor a unique continuous early warning system that enables the fully automated detection of water contamination. The companys GamTox toxicity test can be used to assess the ecological situation of flowing waters.

Researchers from the University of Freiburg have just shown that plant embryo decide already at the two-cell stage which cells will later become the shoot and which the roots. Experiments suggest this might be affected by the distribution of auxin.

Article - 01/09/2009

POLYFEA – a strong partner in compostable plastics

The company POLYFEA Polymer- und Produktentwicklung, based in the southern Black Forest (Germany), offers consulting for and contract development of polymer-based materials and products. Using the biodegradable material system CAPROWAX P, the company has successfully developed an innovative product.

Article - 13/09/2010

Molecules adapted to the environment

For many years Prof. Dr. Klaus Kümmerer from the University Medical Centre Freiburg has been investigating how the chemical structures of drugs and other chemicals can be modified in order to enable them to be degraded more quickly in rivers and soils. There has to be a new way of thinking said Kümmerer going on to add the appropriate methods are already in place.

Article - 01/12/2009

Ralf Takors – a bio-engineer

Multidisciplinary talent, people who can combine biological knowledge in an outstanding way with engineering, is in great demand. Ralf Takors, who has been head of the Institute of Bioprocess Engineering (IBVT) at the University of Stuttgart since July 2009, is one such talent.

Article - 14/01/2013

Novel bioreactor and sponges that thin out light

Microalgae are veritable treasure troves. The cosmetics food and chemical industries already use algal metabolic products for various applications. In future the green unicellular organisms might also be grown on a large scale in photobioreactors installed on fallow land where they will be used as regenerative sources of energy. Mark Fresewinkel from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology KIT is involved in a cooperative project aimed at…

Article - 11/11/2013

Pesticides and their effect on the environment

Ecotoxicologists from Tübingen are calling for new interdisciplinary approaches in order to improve investigations into the effect of pesticides on the living environment. They expect that a more effective and more frequent combination of field work and laboratory analyses will provide them with a clearer picture of the overall situation. This knowledge will enable all stakeholders involved in solving environmental issues to draw the right…

Article - 31/05/2013

Research in Biberach – does the bioeconomy have a purple future?

Rhodospirillum rubrum bacteria have long attracted the interest of biotechnologists due to their ability to produce large quantities of pigments. Microbiologist Hartmut Grammel from Biberach University of Applied Sciences and scientists from the Magdeburg-based Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems are studying the bacterias suitability for the fixation of CO2 with the distant objective of producing organic materials with…

Article - 22/10/2009

On the track of fascinating diatoms

Diatoms make a considerable contribution to the production of oxygen and biomass in the worlds oceans and aquatic ecosystems. However up until now little is known about the molecular biology and chemistry of these eukaryotic algae. Prof. Peter Kroth and his team at the University of Constance are hoping to shed more light on these algae. The team has recently been involved in the deciphering of the Phaeodactylum tricornutum genome research that…

Article - 28/02/2008

The continent of 'trunk' animals

Molecular phylogenetic analyses have led to the radical rearrangement of mammalian systematics. Afrotheria a clade of mammals including elephants and shrew-like animals are nowadays regarded as the largest group of placental mammals.

Article - 19/09/2011

Uwe Ludewig and the future of agricultural crops

Prof. Dr. Uwe Ludewig has been head of the Department of Nutritional Crop Physiology at the University of Hohenheim for around a year now. Physicist by training and specialist in electrophysiology, Prof. Ludewig now works mainly on transport processes in plants. He plans to use molecular relationships to enhance the potential of agricultural crops, reduce the use of fertilisers and make agricultural plants fit for climate change.

Prof. Dr. Michael Wink is coordinating the Molecular Evolution research project at the University of Heidelberg which deals with topics such as evolutionary research biodiversity and systematics as well as molecular ecology. Modern DNA analysis methods have shed new light on the relationships between birds of prey.

Article - 13/12/2010

The chemical industry cannot be ignored

Urbanisation, changing climate and population explosion along with increasing energy requirements – the chemical industry needs to come up with effective contributions to finding solutions to issues of future relevance. During a guest lecture at the University of Konstanz, Dr. Andreas Kreimeyer, Executive Research Officer of the world’s largest chemical company, BASF SE, spoke about future research issues and the solutions that he believes can…

Article - 11/03/2013

Trenzyme – optimal expression of recombinant proteins

Trenzyme GmbH in Konstanz offers services and products in the fields of genomics and proteomics. The company specialises in contract research and custom R&D services and is also working on new and improved products and processes. The company recently developed a new method for the rapid identification of optimal expression conditions for recombinant proteins.

Article - 04/07/2011

Stefan Rensing investigates the evolutionary transition from algae to land plants

The biologist Prof. Dr. Stefan Rensing from the University of Freiburg has been involved in introducing the use of computers to the life sciences from the very beginning. His analyses of the moss genomes now help to close an important gap in evolutionary research how did algae become land plants?

Article - 01/02/2010

Succinic acid – producing a green platform chemical with biotech

Fermentative Production of Succinic Acid is the title of one of the projects being worked on by the BiopolymersBiomaterials cluster in Baden-Württemberg. Researchers from BASF SE one of the project partners have isolated a bacterium with highly promising properties including the ability to use glycerine a waste product of biodiesel production as substrate for the efficient production of succinic acid.

Article - 11/10/2010

University of Konstanz – crystallinity is key

Renewable resources not only provide the field of biotechnology with interesting possibilities for the development of new materials. Scientists from the Department of Chemical Material Science at the University of Konstanz have now succeeded in chemically synthesising a new type of plastic from plant oils.