Chemistry: New method for making biofuels
Simple sugars can be turned into a new, potentially useful biofuel, thanks to an approach.Although some challenges remain for commercial applications, this process may help decrease our dependence on petroleum in the near future.
James A. Dumesic and co-workers have developed a catalytic process that converts the simple sugar fructose into 2,5-dimethylfuran. Compared with ethanol, the only renewable liquid fuel currently produced in large quantities, 2,5-dimethylfuran has an energy density 40% higher and is less volatile. It's also insoluble in water, making it easier to obtain in its pure form.
Fructose can be obtained directly from biomass or derived from glucose, another simple sugar. With diminishing fossil fuel reserves and ongoing concerns about global warming, hopes are high that renewable energy sources, such as biomass, will provide a significant contribution to the world's energy needs.

CONTACT
James A. Dumesic (University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA)
Tel: +1 608 262 1095; E-mail: dumesic@engr.wisc.edu

Lanny D. Schmidt (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA) N&V author
Tel: +1 612 625 9391; E-mail: schmi001@umn.edu



Liquid mirror made for the Moon
Scientists have successfully coated an ionic liquid with silver, an achievement that may one day find use as a liquid mirror in a lunar telescope.
The surface of the liquid is smooth and the silver coating remains stable for months, Ermanno F. Borra and colleagues reports. The ionic liquid underneath the silver does not evaporate in a vacuum and remains liquid down to a temperature of around 175 kelvin.
These features mean the device may be well suited for use inside a Lunar Liquid Mirror Telescope, a concept that is under consideration. An optical telescope with an aperture of 20 to 100 metres located on the Moon would be able to observe objects 100 to 1,000 times fainter than the proposed next generation of space telescopes. And a Lunar Liquid Mirror Telescope may prove easier and cheaper to build than its conventional equivalent.

CONTACT
Ermanno F. Borra (Universite Laval, Quebec, Canada)
Tel: +1 418 656 7405; E-mail: borra@phy.ulaval.ca

Robin Rogers (The Universiy of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA) N&V author
Tel: +1 205 348 4323; E-mail: RDRogers@Bama.ua.edu