Improving Roads with Ethanol Co-products

An Iowa State University research team is studying how lignin, the glue that holds plant fibers together and a co-product of cellulosic ethanol production, could improve soil strength under roads. The team -- left to right, Sunghwan Kim, a post-doctoral research associate; Halil Ceylan, an assistant professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering; and Kasthurirangan Gopalakrishnan, a research scientist -- will test lignin's ability to strengthen soils in Iowa State's soils engineering laboratory. Credit: Bob Elbert/Iowa State University