New Opportunities for Interdisciplinary Research and Education in Bioenergy

Abstract- The emergence of a biorefinery industry for manufacturing bioenergy and bioproducts from biomass has created an excellent opportunity to organize interdisciplinary research and educational initiatives. New crops with selected properties need to be developed. This will require the collaborative efforts of engineers, biologists, regulators, and agricultural scientists. Products need to be developed and plants need to be designed. This will require the collaborative efforts of biological, chemical, mechanical, and Industrial engineers. Capital has to be raised, investment has to be made, and biorefinery industry has to be established. This will require the collaboration of economists, business majors, engineers and programmers. Research and educational centers are being set up between different schools and organizations. These centers are creating interdisciplinary educational opportunities for students from different majors. Specific examples of such collaborative activities will be discussed during the presentation. Index Terms – Biomass, bioproduct, bioenergy, engineering