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Washington State University
The Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering

WSU Researchers Develop Inexpensive Waste Cleanup System for Rural Areas

Haluk Beyenal
Haluk Beyenal
A team of researchers at Washington State University (WSU) has successfully tested a microbial fuel cell that collects electrons from microbes during the biological processes that occur in agricultural wastewater lagoons and then converts that to small bursts of electricity that can power an aerator. In tests, this self-powered system improved some measures of lagoon efficiency by more than 50 percent.

The research team is led by Haluk Beyenal, Ph.D., a professor in WSU’s Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering. The researchers recently published their findings, “Self-powered wastewater treatment for the enhanced operation of a facultative lagoon,” in the Journal of Power Sources.

View the entire story at The Magazine of the American Society of Civil Engineers ↗

Jean-Sabin McEwen Receives Grant to Improve Biofuel Production

Jean-Sabin McEwen
Jean-Sabin McEwen
PULLMAN, Wash. – A researcher at Washington State University has received a three-year $450,000 federal grant to develop computer models for using iron to more efficiently refine bio-oils and make better biofuels.

Jean-Sabin McEwen, assistant professor in the Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering, will collaborate on the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy Sciences grant with colleagues at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

View entire story at WSU News ↗