Making a more efficient biofuel may be part of the solution to tackling climate change. Biofuels are essentially carbon neutral, first capturing carbon dioxide through the plant photosynthesis process which is then released when the fuel is burnt. But processing the plant biomass sugars to a fuel that can be used is an inefficient process that can perhaps be improved upon.
Michael Adams, a Professor in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Georgia, is researching micro organisms that live near deep ocean volcanic vents, in particular Pyrococcus furiosus, or "rushing fireball," This little single celled anaerobic critter feeds on carbohydrates in the super-heated ocean waters near geothermal vents at temperatures around 100C. It has proven adept at carrying out many basic chemical processes with it's enzymes stable at the high temperatures of it's environment.
Pyrococcus furiosus is a member of the hyperthermophilic Archaea family of creatures and was only discovered relatively recently by Karl Stetter in 1986 in deep sea vents and volcanic marine mud off the coast of Italy.
