Posts Tagged ‘College of Business’
NMSU’s Arrowhead Center Teams With WSMR on Business Development Opportunities
Release courtesy of NMSU News Center
Writer: Justin Bannister, 575-646-5981, jbannist@nmsu.edu
Contact: Dawn Hommer, 575-646-5213, dhommer@nmsu.edu
New Mexico State University’s Arrowhead Center has agreed to work with White Sands Missile Range to pursue potential business development opportunities in the fields of national security, space and aerospace, alternative energy initiatives and technologies with both military and civilian applications.
“This agreement between NMSU and White Sands Missile Range will not only allow collaboration between two of the largest economic development engines in Southern New Mexico, but also establish the groundwork for new and exciting economic development opportunities,” said Garrey Carruthers, NMSU’s vice president for economic development and dean of the College of Business.
The memorandum of understanding will help the Arrowhead Center and WSMR work in concert in pursuit of potential business development opportunities. The goal is to complement assets, expertise and capabilities of both entities. The collaboration will support the Arrowhead Center’s mission of economic development and WSMR’s mission of research, development, testing and evaluation.
The Arrowhead Center specializes in accelerating economic development within New Mexico, providing enhanced directed learning experiences for students and diversifying the funding base for NMSU. Since its inception in 2004, the Arrowhead Center has completed more than 200 business research projects involving more than 300 graduate and undergraduate students.
NMSU and WSMR have informally worked together for the past few years. This move allows that relationship to continue more effectively.
NMSU Wins Funds to Study Algae-Based Jet Fuel
By Justin Bannister, University Communications for the Las Cruces Sun-News
Photo courtesy of Darren Phillips, NMSU
The U.S. military wants New Mexico State University to find improved ways to turn algae into a sustainable source for jet fuel. The research project is part of a $2.346 million grant funded by the Air Force where NMSU will study better ways to grow algae and refine its oil while working with the University of Central Florida to determine the effects of algae-based fuel on jet engines.
“Demand for petroleum will eventually outpace the supply,” said Shuguang Deng, a chemical engineering professor at NMSU and the lead researcher on the project. “The use of petroleum-based jet fuel is not sustainable and negatively impacts the environment. That’s a national security issue.”
Deng said the U.S. Department of Defense consumes 4.6 billion gallons of jet fuel each year and all airplanes globally consume approximately 80 billion gallons of jet fuel yearly. He believes with that level of consumption, the sustainable use of biofuels for aviation has the potential to create far-reaching military and commercial development opportunities.
The researched outlined by the grant is meant to develop the technologies needed to establish a viable algal biofuel alternative for replacing petroleum-based jet fuel in the U.S. military. The main tasks focus on cultivating algae, extracting its oils and developing other useful products during this process. Researchers will also study the effects of biofuels on engine operations, the process for scaling-up operations and the overall economics of the algae production process.
Deng said the project will combine the strengths in research programs at NMSU and UCF to develop sustainable biofuels for aviation, train engineers in the field and potentially develop new business opportunities in both New Mexico and Florida.
“Algal biofuels look very promising, but there are a lot of technical issues,” Deng said. “Algae have the highest energy content of plants. Only algae can meet the demand for a renewable energy source. I expect that in five to 10 years, we’ll start seeing algal biofuels on the market.”
Deng said researchers must increase the biomass weight of algae, increase the lipid content and focus on harvesting and extraction techniques. The work is being done as part of NMSU’s newly created Algal Bioenergy Program, a centralized effort to coordinate research and economic development opportunities related to fuels made from algae.
New Mexico is recognized as an ideal location for growing algae because it has lots of high-intensity sunshine, relatively few cloudy days and access to brackish water supplies, which can be used to grow algae.
Other NMSU researchers involved in this project include Nirmala Khandan and Hongmei Luo in the College of Engineering; Jiannong Xu and Wayne Van Voorhies in the College of Arts and Sciences; Shannon Ivey and Tanner Schaub in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences; and Meghan Starbuck in the College of Business.
July Business on the Border Forum Features Local Economist
The July meeting of the MVEDA Business on the Border Forum will be held on Tuesday, July 6, 2010 from 11:30 AM until 1:00 PM at the Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces, 705 S. Telshor. The meeting will begin with a hot entree buffet followed by a brief update by MVEDA staff.
Christopher A. Erickson, Ph.D.
Dr. Christopher Erickson will be the featured speaker at the luncheon. In his “Update and Outlook for the Las Cruces Economy” he will discuss the outlook for Las Cruces next year and beyond. He will also discuss the outlook for the state and national economy.
Dr. Erickson has served on the faculty of the NMSU Department of Economics and International Business since 1987. He is a frequent speaker on financial economics, macroeconomics and the border economy. His primary teaching interest is money and banking. He is the author or co-author of numerous articles on financial economics, including supplemental money and banking text that has been adopted on more than 100 college campuses. He is the Executive Editor of the New Mexico Business Outlook, the e-newsletter of the College of Business at New Mexico State University.
Luncheon cost is $20.00 per person, payable by cash, check or major credit card. Due to space limitations, reservations are required. Please confirm your attendance no later than Thursday, July 1st by clicking the button below or by calling the office at (575) 525-2852. The meeting is open to the public.
