Faculty PI and co-PIs with the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering, University of Minnesota have number of years of industrial and academic experience and expertise in biomass characterization, biomass processing, development and implementation of biomass conversion technologies. Dr. Huajiang Huang, Research Assistant Professor, University of Minnesota has expertise in computer modeling, simulation, optimization, process systems engineering analysis and environmental assessment analysis. All three of the scientists will be working closely with the students, scientists at the analytical characterization and laboratory services facilities at the University of Minnesota and industry partners in the collection, characterization, analysis, development of appropriate conversion technologies and conducting techno-economic analysis and environmental performance assessment. We have a strong team of forest products industry partners and collaborators who will be contributing their expertise and provide advice and guidance on all aspects of the project from initiation to project completion. Please see attached letters of support. 

Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering have well established laboratories with wide ranging capabilities from bench scale to pilot scale. These include various biomass processing and conversion equipment including PARR reactors, M&K digesters, Wiley mill etc. and characterization and analysis including GC, HPLC, Light Scattering unit, DSC, etc. 

In addition U of MN has numerous common purpose, general access laboratories for use by all graduate students and faculty in both the Minneapolis and St. Paul campuses including U of M Characterization Facility (http://www.charfac.umn.edu/), University Imaging Center (http://uic.umn.edu/), Rheology Lab, St. Paul analytical services lab, Biodale, Biotechnology Resource Center, Biofuels and Products Innovation Lab (BIL) and much more. An example of capabilities include spectrophotometers, HPLC, and GPC, freezers, centrifuges, Atomic Force Microscope, Scanning and Transmission Electron Microscope, TEM-Computed Tomography (TEM-CT), X-ray Computed Tomography (X-CT), Serial Block Face SEM, surface and thin-film analysis, Confocal Laser Scanning Raman Spectroscopy (CLSRS), light microscope, and x-ray diffraction and scattering, Mass Spectrometry (including GC-mass, MALDI-TOF and LC-simultaneous ESI and APCI mass spectrometry), Center for Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics and many others. Specific to this project laboratory facilities in the Center for Biorefining, Bioprocessing Lab, Biofuels and products Innovation Lab, Biodegradation and biodeterioration Lab, Composites and Advanced Materials Characterization Lab, Industrial Ecology Laboratory, to name a few, will be fully available to the students. In addition, adequate office and laboratory space is available in the BBE department (both in the BBE north Kaufert Lab and the BBE south BAE Building) for graduate students and other researchers. Computer labs with adequate computing resources including the Minnesota Supercomputing Institute and Digital Technology Center are also available.