NCERC

The National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (NCERC at SIUE) has welcomed Visiting Research Fellow Brad Smith.

Funded by the Illinois Corn Marketing Board, the nine-month Fellowship Program is intended to provide training and hands-on experience to prepare the next generation of engineers and scientists for work in mid-to high-skill jobs in the bioeconomy. 

A Smithton native, Smith earned a bachelor’s in mechanical engineering from SIUE i...

The National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (NCERC at SIUE) has added Aimee Dillenberger as its new public policy and business development specialist.

Dillenberger, of Waterloo, earned a master’s in business administration last month from the University of Mississippi, where she also earned a bachelor’s of public policy leadership in 2019 and minored in Spanish.

 “With the onset of COVID-19, and the subsequent downturn in the...

A dozen Southwestern Illinois-based entrepreneurs and their innovative business concepts have been selected to move into the second round of the 7th annual Southern Illinois University Edwardsville Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Metro East Start-Up Challenge (MESC) business plan competition.

More than 25 entrepreneurs expressed interest in the regional competition this year, according to Jo Ann Di Maggio May, Metro East SBDC director and MESC coordinator. About half of the individuals...

Entrepreneurs and new business startups are invited to compete in the 2020 Metro East Start-Up Challenge (MESC), Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s 7th annual regional business plan competition.

The MESC is organized by the Illinois Small Business Development Center (SBDC) for the Metro East at SIUE. The purpose of the MESC is to identify, encourage and support entrepreneurs and business startups across the SBDC’s service area, including Calhoun, Jersey, Madison, ...

The NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Executive Director John Caupert hosted the Illinois Agricultural Leadership Program Class of 2020 meeting in late August.

The Illinois Agricultural Leadership Foundation (IALF) oversees the premier leadership program in Illinois, and has provided for and strengthened agricultural leadership since its founding in 1981. Candidates, aged 25 to 49, are selected based on demonstrated leadership activities and potential, commitment to learnin...

Throughout the past decade, the NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has spearheaded the establishment of the nutritional profile of distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and their impact on animal feed.

NCERC Director of Research Yan Zhang, PhD, and SIU Carbondale Assistant Professor of Aquaculture Karolina Kwasek, PhD, are leading a new collaborative research project with the Center for Fisheries, Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences (CFAAS) at SIUC, a world-class rese...

The NCERC at SIUE Executive Director John Caupert hosted Congressman Mike Bost (IL-12) in late August as part of a congressional visit and to participate in a student research project.

Bost toured the NCERC’s demonstration plant and laboratories, noting significant upgrades to the Center's pilot plant in light of a recent client trial, and interacted with NCERC plant operators.

Bost has been an unwavering supporter of both the agriculture and ethanol industries, and an avid supporter of ...

Congressional staff from across the nation visited the NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville as part of the AgMazing Congressional Tour in late August. 

Sponsored by the St. Louis AgriBusiness Club, the AgMazing Congressional Tour highlighted agricultural progress and collaboration in Missouri and Illinois. The St. Louis region is vital to meeting the food, fiber and fuel needs of a growing world. The three-day tour allowed Congressional staff to learn about and see the heartl...

The NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville presented two exhibits at the Farm Progress Show in Decatur Tuesday-Thursday, Aug. 27-29.  

In the Illinois Corn Growers Association (ICGA) tent, NCERC showcased renewable products made from corn to exemplify new uses in order to increase demand for the U.S. grown feedstock. Meanwhile, in another tent hosted by SIU Carbondale, NCERC highlighted its collaborative aquaculture project in partnership with the Center for Fisheries, Aquacult...

The NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville is now offering an 18-month, accelerated apprenticeship program as part of an effort with the Madison County Employment and Training Department.

The apprenticeship is designed to provide participants with the classroom skills and hands-on experience needed to succeed in a process operations industry, which includes biofuels and bioprocessing, petroleum refineries, food and beverage manufacturers, and chemical production industries. Employer...

He is Republican. She is Democrat. He is white. She is African American. He is from Illinois. She is from Delaware. However, that does not mean the representatives cannot work together for the good of the country. U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (IL-13^th District) and U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (DE-at-large) ended their bipartisan tour of Davis' district Wednesday, May 29 at the NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.   

SIUE Chancellor Randy Pembrook, PhD, and NCERC Execu...

The St. Louis American Chemistry Society (ACS) Mass Spectrometry Discussion Group and Chromatography Discussion Group hosted a joint regional meeting Thursday, April 25 at the NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

Alexander Giachetti, a forensic toxicologist with the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner’s office, explained how his team utilizes Shimadzu products in their laboratory. Shimadzu is a global, leading manufacturer of analytical instrumentation. Shimadzu offers a uni...

For the second year in a row, an NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville student staff member was honored with scholarships from the agriculture and ethanol industries. NCERC Graduate Assistant Krista Russell was recognized twice in February, receiving the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) National Ethanol Conference scholarship, as well as the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) William C. Berg Academic Excellence in Agriculture award.

A Jerseyville native, Russell’s acad...

The National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center (NCERC) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville has received INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine’s Inspiring Programs in STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) Award that recognize colleges, universities and organizations for programs that are improving access to STEM fields for students from underrepresented groups. 

The award is presented to institutions whose programs inspire a new generation of young people to consi...

Passersby can’t help but notice the 12-foot tall corn growing in front of The NCERC at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s University Park. SIUE students are working the “Feedstock Diversity Showcase” that features not only corn, but also grain sorghum and sweet sorghum. These three feedstocks represent conventional biofuels production, advanced biofuels production and cellulosic biofuels production.

“This is the only ‘Feedstock Diversity Showcase&#82...