Eastern Regional Research Center

Dr. Paul Sebesta, Acting Center Director
Eastern Regional Research Center, NAA, ARS, USDA
600 East Mermaid Lane, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania  19038
Phone:  (215) 233-6400   FAX:  (215) 233-6777

In the Spotlight ERRC Participates in Bioenergy Awareness Day in Washington, DC, June 10-20, 2008   Click here to view more photos! ___________________________________   Congratulations to Dr. Akwasi Boateng on being Elected a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Dr. Akwasi Boateng has been elected a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.  The Fellow grade of membership recognizes exceptional engineering achievements and contributions to the engineering professtion.  Dr. Boateng was recognized for his pioneering research on combustion and related thermochemical processing technologies. Congratulations Dr. Boateng!!! ___________________________________   Biofuels Journal Highlights ERRC Biodiesel and Barley Ethanol Research in March/April Issue Click here to read all about it! __________________________________   Congratulations to Dr. Kevin Hicks as this year's NAA Senior Research Scientist of the Year! Dr. Hicks is honored for his "Outstanding research accomplishments during his entire research career and for outstanding leadership of a very productive ARS Research Unit for the last twenty years." ___________________________________ Protecting U.S. Troops with Fireproof Wool Biopolished wool, developed at the ARS Eastern Regional Research Center in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania, is displayed as an army neck gaiter.  A new ARS-developed polymer can be added to this fabric to make it flame retardant. (D1125-1) Though natural, untreated wool is scratchier than synthetic fabrics, wool is less susceptible to burning.  This makes it an ideal fabric for uniforms worn by members of the military, firefighters, and others whose occupations expose them to fire. “Wool burns with a self-extinguishing flame and produces a soft ash that dissipates and will not lodge in open wounds,” says Jeanette M. Cardamone, a chemist at the ARS Eastern Regional Research Center (ERRC) in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania. “Synthetic materials, on the other hand, form hot, molten beads that can drip into a wound and cause trauma.” Read more about the research in the May 2008 issue of Agricultural Research Magazine. _______________________________________ 2008 Career Day at ERRC On April 24 and 25, the Eastern Regional Research Center's annual Career Day will take place.  It is expected that approximately 600 Philadelphia area students will attend this year.  With over a dozen scientific exhibits for the students to visit it is our hope that some of these students will be inspired to enter scientific careers and perhaps someday work for the USDA. http://www.arserrc.gov/careerday __________________________________ National Corn Growers Association visit ERRC Dr. David Johnston discusses new energy saving enzymatic methods to produce starch and ethanol from corn. Members of the National Corn Growers Association's Research and Business Development Team visited the Eastern Regional Research Center on March 20 to learn about the research being conducted to produce food and fuel (as well as feeds and fibers) from corn and corn stover.  The NCGA members were given a research tour of ERRC's state-of-the-art laboratories and pilot plants to see the latest advances in research on fuel ethanol, biodiesel, pyrolysis and gasification-derived fuels, and the many food and feed type coproducts produced during biofuels processes.  ERRC is conducting research for the sustainable production of biofuels from agricultural feedstocks so that we do not overuse food crops or harm the environment from biofuels production.  Click here for more photos. _____________________________________ Science Update:  Food Safety Help for Processors A new Internet resource could be invaluable to food processors—especially, to smaller meat and poultry processing companies. The information it provides can answer food safety questions and help food processors make science-based decisions to produce safe and wholesome products for consumers. Called the Predictive Microbiology Information Portal, or PMIP, it offers information on research, regulations, and resources related to Listeria monocytogenes in ready-to-eat foods. Soon it will be expanded to include other pathogen and food combinations. To help ensure the safety of food processing methods, a searchable database allows users to find information that can be used to develop plans for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point inspection. Developed in collaboration with Rutgers University and Decisionalysis Risk Consultants, Inc., of Ottawa, Ontario, the portal includes a tutorial with instructions on using and interpreting predictive models. It links to the ARS Pathogen Modeling Program and ComBase, which provide diverse resources associated with databases, regulatory requirements, and food safety principles. The PMIP Web address is www.ars.usda.gov/naa/errc/mfsru/portal. Vijay K. Juneja, USDA-ARS Microbial Food Safety Research Unit, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania; phone (215) 233-6500. _____________________________________ ERRC Participates in the 2008 Pennsylvania Farm Show ERRC's Victor Wyatt provides information to a Farm Show visitor on FOAC's biodiesel research.  Looking on are (from L to R) Sue Reed, Marshall Reed, and Dan Solaiman David Fink of Green Renewable Energy (back to camera) discusses renewable fuel research with ERRC's Neil Goldberg with Charles Mullen nearby.  Victor Wyatt answers scores of questions about biodiesel for local school children who were very interested in ERRC's work. ERRC and its employees participated in this year's PA Farm Show, January 5-12, in Harrisburg, PA.  ERRC was featured in the special Renewable Energy Section where Center Scientists and Engineers fielded questions and explained ERRC's research on biodiesel, fuel ethanol, and renewable fuels derived from pyrolysis and gasification to hundreds of visitors.  Governor Rendell and Agricultural Secretary Dennis Wolf stopped by ERRC's booth on Saturday, January 5, to thank ERRC for pioneering research on renewable energy and for networking and collaborating with so many Pennsylvania companies, universities, producers, and the State Government Agencies.

Upcoming Events      July 23 - Annual Safety Training:  Lab Personnel, 10 AM, Auditorium August 5 - Seminar:  "Separation and recovery of natural products from biomass" presented by Dr. Ronald Holser, Richard Russell Research Center, Athens, GA, to be held in Room 2006 at 10 am 10 Most Recent Publications Additional Publications - We have 5600+ publications online that you can view and print. The following publications are not yet online.  To request a reprint, please email Patti.Durkin@ars.usda.gov with your name, address, and reprint number.   REPRINT TITLE AUTHOR 7964 Airborne ultrasonics for nondestructive evaluation of leather quality C.-K. Liu, N.P. Latona, V.F. Godinez-Azcuaga, D. Ozevin, and M. Hanson 7963 The identification and quantification of steryl glucosides in precipitates from commercial biodiesel R.A. Moreau, K.M. Scott, and M.J. Haas 7962 Enzymatic hydrolysis of steryl ferulates and steryl glycosides L. Nystrom, R.A. Moreau, A.-M. Lampi, K.B. Hicks, and V. Piironen 7961 Increasing the value of hominy feed as a coproduct by fermentation V. Sharma, R.A. Moreau, and V. Singh 7960 Phytosterol distribution in fractions obtained from processing of distillers dried grains with solubles using sieving and elutriation R. Srinivasan, R.A. Moreau, K.D. Rausch, M.E. Tumbleson, and V. Singh 7959 Microbial quality of fresh-cut iceberg lettuce washed in warm or cold water and irradiated in a modified atmosphere package K.T. Rajkowski and X. Fan 7958 The survival of Shigella sonnei in frozen media and after ultraviolet treatment of ice and inoculated fish samples K.T. Rajkowski 7957 Elimination of Listeria monocytogenes on hotdogs by infrared surface treatment L. Huang and J. Sites 7956 Government scientists find new uses for rendered products R.A. Garcia and D.K.Y. Solaiman 7955 Keratin transamidation J.M. Cardamone

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