Eleven ISU research teams have received grants totaling nearly $1 million from the Grow Iowa Values Fund , the state fund designed to promote economic development throughout Iowa.

In 2005, the Iowa Legislature allotted $5 million per year for 10 years to be shared among the three Regents institutions, with Iowa State’s yearly share totaling $1.93 million. Research projects are to receive a total $1.33 million; $975,773 has been dispersed in the 11 grants so far.

“We’re very pleased to receive this funding. It’s a competitive application process,” said Douglas Stokke, senior lecturer of natural resources ecology and management.

Value Added Agriculture Program Manager Mary Holz-Clause, Program Coordinator Daniel Burden and Stokke were awarded $49,380 to study the use of corn by-products of ethanol production as pellet fuel for heaters.

“We hope to do work that will benefit the economy in Iowa and increase the utilization of agricultural by-products and renewable materials,” Stokke said.

$96,000 was awarded to Richard Larock, professor of chemistry. The grant will fund a project examining the construction of hog feeders with plastic made from corn and soybean oils.

“These natural oils are available on a huge scale and are renewable, as opposed to most current plastic, which is made from petroleum-based products,” Larock said. “They have unique properties that other plastics lack, such as sound and vibration damping abilities. Also, while petroleum-based plastics will likely never break down in a landfill, there is the possibility that we can engineer these materials to be more environmentally friendly.”

Larock said he had been investigating natural oils and bio-based plastics for nearly 10 years and the grant would help greatly with the plastic’s commercialization possibilities. Patents are pending for some of the new composites, which range from pliable and flexible to rigid and strong.

“ISU is in a terrific position to boost the bioeconomy of Iowa through the utilization of agricultural by-products,” Larock said.