Derek Lovley, Distinguished University Professor, and Kelly Nevin Lovley, Research Assistant Professor, have developed and licensed a new technology, microbial electrosynthesis, which led the University of Massachusetts to record 62 patents in 2015 which is a record-high for the University. Read more...
Microbial electrosynthesis is a process that harnesses leftover renewable solar energy and feeds it to microorganisms to produce transportation fuel and pre-plastic materials, among other products. The process, which took seven years to develop and license, is an artificial form of phytosynthesis and more efficiently converts solar energy into useful products.
Department of Microbiology