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UK doctoral student collaborates with adviser to write key primer on hydrocarbon biofuels 

By Richard LeComte 

portrait of a doctoral student

Great C. Umenweke

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- “Hydrocarbon Biofuels” will not top the New York Times’ best-seller list for nonfiction books, but for Great C. Umenweke, it’s quite an opportunity, and one that could help humans turn waste into renewable energy. 

Umenweke, a doctoral candidate in chemistry in the University of Kentucky’s College of Arts and Sciences, has published the primer along with his adviser, Eduardo Santillan-Jimenez, Ph.D., adjunct assistant professor of chemistry and associate director of UK’s Center for Applied Energy Research. The e-book is published by the American Chemical Society (ACS) as part of its In Focus series of digital primers.  

“I’m most grateful for the opportunity and assistance ACS offered to produce this primer as well as to have co-authored the latter with Great, who led the writing effort” Santillan-Jimenez said. 

“The book stands as a gateway for graduate students leaping into the study of hydrocarbon biofuels as well as for policymakers and other stakeholders who want to learn more about this topic,” Umenweke said.   

“Hydrocarbon biofuels are renewable fuels that are chemically similar to petroleum-based fuels but made from biomass sources like vegetable oils and animal fats,” said Umenweke, who’s close to defending his dissertation. “This primer presents an overview of the production, chemistry and properties of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel derived from biological resources in general and fats, oils, and greases in particular.” 

Umenweke created the e-book as an offshoot of his dissertation, which also focuses on the production of hydrocarbon biofuels. In line with the primer, Umenweke’s dissertation addresses the conversion of oleaginous biomass into fuels. He notes that such waste when landfilled can generate methane, so finding other uses for that waste is essential.  

"It’s very much connected to what we do,” said Umenweke, who holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the Federal University of Technology in Owerri, Nigeria. “So it's like killing two birds with a stone. If I write a new e-book, I'm also writing a dissertation chapter, which is actually very important to me.” 

In addition to being a primer, the e-book may lead to more interest and research into biofuels, a topic of great interest to people who want to expand markets for renewable energy. “I think it's a way of creating awareness, to let people understand the importance of biofuels in particular and bioenergy in general,” he said.  

Umenweke has held a deep interest in biofuels since his student days in Nigeria. "For my undergraduate projects, I worked on biodiesel, and that was the very first experience I had with biofuels,” he said. “It drew my attention to how we can actually make fuels from waste. I was making biofuels from cooking oil, and it was really intriguing for me that we can combat trash by turning it into something useful and valuable. Oleaginous biomass includes brown grease, which is a type of waste oil,” he said. “We aim to convert this waste stream into renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel, which is essentially the focus of my graduate research”  

More information on the book can be found here: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/book/10.1021/acsinfocus.7e8011