Multimedia Reporting (Bradford-Noland)

The leftover grease used at University dining halls could be more useful than you think.

Researchers at the University of Kansas hope to discover a way to implement the waste product to produce biodiesel, a fuel that is safe for the environment but expensive to purchase.

As of now, the University throws away 7,000 gallons of waste oils from the dining services per year. According to Ilya Tabakh, graduate research assistant and member of the Student Senate, the amount of waste product would be enough to produce fuel for all the campus buses, lawnmowers and other campus vehicles.

Traditionally, biodiesel is made from new or used soybean oils or animal fats. Once the fat is filtered, it is heated and mixed with an acid and base. Once let to sit, it is combined with petroleum so that it can be used as fuel.

Because refined oil or new/filtered oil is expensive, the cost of biodiesel is too costly for University use. Instead, KU uses a cheaper, non-environmentally friendly diesel fuel.

The associate professor of chemical and petroleum engineering, Susan Williams, believes it is more economical to look at the used grease from places such as Mrs. E’s or the Underground, which is free, to produce biodiesel. This would ultimately create a fuel that is less expensive and good for the ecosystem.

“Currently the University pays to have the grease hauled off,” Williams said. “It makes sense to put the cheaper feedstock to good use instead of using the expensive refined oil.”

In order to transport grease off-campus, the University must pay thousands of dollars per year. If the cost of transporting grease was taken away, that money could be used to convert on campus grease to biodiesel instead, costing the University a similar cost while being more friendly to the environment.

Williams and her research team began discussing a student-run manufacturing plant three years ago after receiving funding for on-campus work. Before implementing their plan, they knew there needed to be a student interest in the project. Once student senate member Ilya Tabaka approached them with the same idea, they knew they were ready to begin thought processes for the plant.

“When Ilya approached us with his idea, it was the perfect time,” Williams said. “It was the merging of research and student interest.”

Still in what they call “Stage 1,” Williams and her researchers are trying to decide on a budget for a small, on campus building in addition to materials and machines they would need.

The cost of this project is still being calculated, but an estimate is said to be released by the middle of next spring, when they submit a proposal.

For now, Williams and her team receive funding from theCEBC or Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis who provides money for the use of Carbon Dioxide, which increases the reaction, yielding more biodiesel.

“Once we get the proposal out, the rest will come pretty quickly,” Williams said. “It’s the first step to making our dream a reality.”

Tabakh, who is also a member of the Transportation Research Institute, an institute that addresses “contemporary transportation issues and their social and environmental consequences” has talked to the Environmental Advisory Board of Student Senate and has received a gauge of what they could do financially.

“The project has been really well-received so far by the student senate,” Tabakh said. “As far as funding goes, we’re planning to look into sources on campus.”

Tabakh couldn’t release an exact amount of money they would receive for funding, but this year, the Transportation Research Institute received $14.5 million for research in transportation related issues. Williams and Tabakh said they would also turn to student senate for their project funding.

Only two Universities, Clemson (located in South Carolina, approximately 128 miles from Atlanta) and Iowa State, are conducting similar research. As of yet, no one has strived to put a manufacturing on campus.

“There aren’t a lot of people who are doing a full fledged research facility,” Williams said. “This center will be a place to implement new technologies on a smaller scale.”

William’s research group plans to use the new facility to uncover cheaper, more efficient ways to produce biodiesel. With a center on campus, the group could experiment with waste oil to find out if it is as effective as refined oil.

Campus buses currently use B5 fuel or 5 percent biodiesel because it runs about $2.97 per gallon while B100 or 100 percent biodiesel runs about $3.76 per gallon. Although buying B100 in bulk is cheaper, it is not cheap enough. Williams hopes her research will produce less expensive fuel that doesn’t harm the environment.

“We have three goals for this project,” Williams said. “To make the processes more efficient, make the product more economical and make it easier to produce.”

In William’s current research, converting waste oil to biodiesel is a slower process because of the use of a solid acid such as Amberlyst instead of a typical liquid acid, which is toxic such as sulfuric acid. To make the process more efficient, her researchers would experiment ways to make the reaction faster.

Williams did not say how much money their product could save the University, but said the absence of cost of refined oil would be a significant savings.

To create biodiesel, the researcher must take animal fats or soybean oil and mix them with an alcohol (methanol) and a base (sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide). From there, the substance is heated and stirred at 50 C. Once it is left to sit, it creates a three layer liquid substance with biodiesel at the top. Un-reacted oil, or oil that did not become biodiesel, lies below the biodiesel with water at the bottom. (see picture)

In order to separate the biodiesel from leftover oil and water, the researcher must extract it using a pipette.

“The problem with the separation process is it is easy to pull out some of the un-reacted oil in the pipette when removing the bio diesel,” Williams said. “If un-reacted oil gets in your gas tank, it will turn into a Crisco-type substance.”

The oil used from university fryers would have to be stripped of all solids before going through the conversion process. Once bio diesel is made, it is combined with petroleum diesel before it is put into cars.

“Eventually we hope to use B100, but as of yet many engines are not warranted for this,” Williams said. “This process is so new; we’re not sure how cars react to this new kind of fuel.”

Not all vehicles can use biodiesel fuel. Any vehicle that is older than mid-90s should have an upgrade on fuel lines in order to use the fuel.

Tabakh believes that if the research facility opens, researchers will work to make biodiesel into a better product with a more effective process. For now, they continue to work with new methods make their methods safer for the environment.

“To accelerate a chemical reaction, a catalyst must be used,” said Jonathan Allison, a senior in Chemical Engineering and research assistant to Williams.

The use of a catalyst ultimately yields more biodiesel, creating fewer waste materials. By making small changes such as these, research assistants can produce a more environmentally safe product.

“It’s really exciting to think we could have a full functioning facility that’s producing,” Williams said. “A center like this on campus would give students a chance to have first hand experience and be able to work with some of their peers who may not be part of the research departments.”

Posted by Laura Evers at 10:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Medical professionals and patients discovered that Exubera, an inhaled insulin treatment for Type II diabetes patients, may be a disappointment for those hoping to get rid of their daily injections. Launched by Pfizer in July, Exubera marketed itself as “an oral diabetes agent” for patients who are “delaying further treatment…for fear of injections.” Although the drug reduces the amount of daily injections, it does not eliminate shots altogether.

According to diabeticsincontrol.com, a Web site that provides current information about the disease for medical professionals, sales for the drug were expected to reach 1.5 billion within a year of its release. Based on current sales, the drug will most likely stabilize at 207 million by the year 2015.

“Exubera is designed for such a niche market,” said Heather Norton, a certified diabetes educator and pharmacist at CVS Pharmacy. “It has a lot of limitations.”

Patients who use the drug cannot smoke due to the risks of insulin reactions, resulting in extremely low blood sugar or hypoglycemia. Also, a patient who smokes is unable to absorb the insulin into their bodies, making the drug useless to them.

“Someone interested in Exubera must quit smoking a full six months before using the drug,” said Ruth Mencl, a registered nurse and manager of the diabetes center at Saint Luke’s Hospital. “Many patients don’t want to tell you that they’ve smoked. We might need to start having them sign a release.”

Diabetes sufferers with pneumonia, lung disease or bronchitis also cannot use Exubera because their lungs are not able to process it.

Other diabetes patients, such as LaVone Daily who has suffered from the disease for ten years, may not find the drug beneficial.

“At this time, I wouldn’t use the drug because I’m used to the needles,” Daily said. “With Exubera, I would still have to inject anyway. It would be a good drug for someone who was afraid to inject.”

Although researchers are working hard to make the inhaler more compact, patients are often turned off by the size of the device. Measuring approximately six inches by seven inches, the device can cause a lot of inconvenience compared to injectable insulin, which takes up very little space. Leland Graves III, a doctor at the University Of Kansas School Of Medicine agrees.

“I don’t have anyone on it,” Graves said. “A patient wants to be as discrete as possible. That is not possible with the drug’s current form.”

Exubera also demands extra work for the patient. The device requires cleanings once a week and part replacements every two weeks.

“If it’s not taken care of, it could have a malfunction,” Mencl said. “When someone comes into the hospital with the device, we always replace it to insure it works properly.”

Although Exubera was proven safe in clinical trials, the drug is too new to show any long term side effects. So far, doctors are cautious to prescribe the drug due to these unknown side effects. Tonya Salyer, a certified diabetes educator, agrees.

“So far, the drug is just not working out,” Salyer said. “The drug has the tendency to cause lung damage among other things.”

Possible side effects include a cough or throat irritation. More severe side effects consist of a possibility of long term lung damage and severe hypoglycemia resulting from inhaling the insulin too soon.

If a meal isn’t consumed within 15 minutes after taking Exubera, the patient’s system won’t contain enough glucose for their cells to absorb, causing them to pull in too much glucose, giving the patient hypoglycemia. This reaction is worse with inhaled insulin then the traditional injectable.

Many health care professionals are concerned about the exact dosage of Exubera that patients will need. Since Exubera is an inhaled substance and not an injectable one, there is worry that the dosage is inexact.

“Some doctors jump on every bandwagon before they know all the effects,” Mencl said. “This is a concern because injectables are measured in units while Exubera is measured in milligrams.”

Another draw back for patients looking to take Exubera is the cost. Currently, inhaled insulin isn’t covered by insurance. At an average price of $175 for a combination pack of 15, deciding to choose an inhaled version instead of the syringe could add up. Exubera is about twice as much as a syringe and vile.

“It could take several months to get it on insurance,” Mencl said. “Medicaid is covering the pens and the injectable insulin, so it’s only a matter of time before Exubera is covered as well.”

Although Exubera replaces the majority of a patient’s daily injections, it does not replace what doctors call the “baseline,” such as Lantis. This shot, usually given at night, gives the patient a spike of insulin to help glucose move to the patients’ cells so that they can have energy for their bodies to function.

The other injections for the day, known as Intermediate Acting Insulin, aid that initial baseline injection. These injections are often needed to help regulate elevated blood sugar after a meal. Exubera replaces these injections before or after meals, allowing the patient to inject only once a day.

“We still don’t know if it’s as effective as the injectable insulin because it’s so new,” Mencl said. “It needs to be used with a lot of patients before we can determine this.”

Despite the downsides of Exubera, Richard Hellman, a doctor from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, is optimistic that Exubera is a great starting point in creating the best care for diabetes patients.

“Eventually we could figure out how to make the devices smaller and easier to handle,” Hellman said. “It’s not perfect, but it’s the first step to creating a better quality of life for our patients.”

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Sitting in a blue recliner at Brandon Woods Retirement Community in Lawrence, Francis Jacobs is nicely dressed in a yellow shirt, black jacket and black pencil-line skirt. Her short grey hair is curled as she wears a black beaded necklace and matching earrings. She is all smiles about her life except when talking about war times.

Francis Jacobs saw many sides of war. Having lived through both World Wars and the Great Depression, Jacobs views the War on Terror as a different kind of war for the American people.

According to CNN’s web site, the United States lost 93 U.S. soldiers and 300 Iraqi allies this month alone. So far, the United States captured two thirds of al Quaida’s senior leadership, prevented future terrorist attacks and, this month, George Bush discussed new ways of “ensuring that Iraq is an ally in the war on terror and does not become a terrorist haven.” Even though our country is involved in a war, for now, Jacobs realizes the war is not affecting American’s lives in ways it did in her time.

“You all don’t even know what wartime is,” Jacobs said. “We couldn’t have sugar. We had to have coupons for sugar and coupons for shoes but somehow we always had enough.”

Born on July 13, 1904 in the small town of Marble Falls, Texas, Elizabeth Francis grew up in a household of love and hard work. The youngest child of Carl and Charlotte Francis, Jacobs acquired an appreciation for piano and organ performance.

“My mother made me practice,” Jacobs said. “Me and my older sisters, Sarah and Irene, could either practice or wash the dishes, so I practiced!”

After years of instruction, Jacobs’s talents helped her family through the aftermath of World War I. At age 15, Jacob’s family, along with the rest of her town, needed alternate sources of income, rationing such necessities as food and gas. To help out, Jacobs began teaching piano in her local neighborhood, a career she pursued for the next 60 years.

“When wartime hit, everyone had to get a job,” she said. “There were times my brother and sisters and I had to work more than one job just to make ends meet.”

During her time as an instructor, Elizabeth’s pupils called her Miss Francis. Not long after, Elizabeth’s last name evolved into her first name, allowing even her closest friends to call her Francis.

The extra money from teaching helped her financially. Jacobs managed to attend two universities in Texas including Baylor, a small all-girls college in Belton and Southwestern in Georgetown. There, Jacobs studied the piano and organ. After two years, Jacobs quit school due to financial problems and moved to San Antonio.

In San Antonio, Francis continued to teach while working at a music store. The job proved grueling for Francis as she played music on the piano for the many teachers in order for them to know how it sounded.

“I got sick of it,” Jacobs said. “I quit because they had big boxes full of music and I’d have to pull them down and play the pieces for them.”

In 1928, she moved to Sonora, Texas to teach music. Still only 24 years old, Jacobs worked as a nanny to earn extra money in addition to her teaching job. The family lived on a sheep-herding ranch and entrusted Francis to the care of its three children. After discovering oil on their property, the family became multi-millionaires and soon gave Francis a much needed raise.

“They were very good to me,” Jacobs said. “It was a very interesting part of my life. In those times, you take all that you can get.”

Only a year after she began working for the family, the stock market crashed in 1929. The Great Depression proved devastating for Jacobs.

“It was hard just living,” Jacobs said. “My dad lost all the money in the depression. I was on my own by then, but I had to make money for my family.”

Life took an unexpected turn for the better, one day, when Francis took her daily walk to work. Robert W. Jacobs, owner of three newspapers in Southwest Texas and University of Missouri graduate, pulled up in his car and asked if she needed a ride. Francis accepted the ride and invited him to attend choir practice.

Soon after, Robert asked Francis on a date. The couple married in 1934 after the end of the depression. Francis never did persuade her husband to be passionate about music. It never mattered to Francis though. Her true love of music continued, but her priorities changed when her son Bud was born in 1944, eight years after moving to Marfa, Texas.

“My happiest moment was when our son was born,” Jacobs said. “I can’t do anything without him.”
Although Francis’ love for music never ceased, her son grew to realize his father’s lack of musical ability.

“My father couldn’t carry a tune,” said their son, Bud Jacobs. “He was never a singer.”

As Francis continued to teach piano and organ lessons, her husband’s stress level from his independently run newspaper got to him. At the age of 48, Robert suffered a heart attack. Doctors warned staying in his profession would kill him within a year, so he gave up journalism and bought an office supply store instead. He died in 1984 from heart failure. He was 83.

Today, Jacobs continues to stay active and independent, despite moving out of her apartment and into a nursing home just two years ago. She moved out of her house in 1990.

“She’s pretty strong,” said Carrie Abbott, a nursing aid at Brandon Woods who has cared for Jacobs since January. “She always helps her roommate Irene with the door.”

Almost every Sunday Jacobs attends church in Brandon Woods and plays the piano for the small congregation.

“Her accomplishments are truly amazing for all that she’s been through,” said senior Gennie Kautz, one of Francis’ many visitors. “I don’t think we have really wrapped our mind around the idea of war. For us, it’s something we hear about on the internet or TV. It’s not a reality.”

When asked if she would change anything if she could do it all over again, she replied with strong “yes!”

“I would change the way I did everything,” she said. “I was too ornery.”

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As Halloween approaches, local retailers on Massachusetts Street are beginning to prepare for one of the biggest holidays of the year.

BIGresearch, an online marketing research web site, predicted last year that consumers would spend $3.29 billion on Halloween alone, with an average sale of $50.75 per person. According to Kyle Billings, owner of the toy and costume store Fun and Games, average sales were around $40.

“Half of our yearly business comes from Halloween,” Billings said. “My wife and I have owned this store for six years and it grows 10-20% every year.”

Philip Chiles, owner of the vintage store Wild Man Vintage, has seen a similar increase in sales during Halloween season.

“We’re like a toy store around Christmas,” he said. “We need to be constantly restocking. We are 75% bigger during the month.”

Due to the massive demand for Halloween merchandise, some stores are setting up earlier than they had in previous years.

“They’re ready before I am,” said Leslie Ahlert, the owner of Stitch on Needlework Shop, Inc. “We sell a lot of Halloween fabrics as early as May and people are asking for Halloween decorations around Christmas.”

For the majority of Halloween retailers, business doesn’t pick up until closer to Halloween as customers search for the perfect costume right before the holiday.

“We begin to really set up for Halloween around the first of October,” said Corey Sievers, manager of Arizona Trading Co. “We already have a small rack of possible Halloween costumes.”

Because of the increased business, some retailers opt to lengthen their hours in order to serve more customers in the few weeks leading up to Halloween.

“During the last two weeks of October, we stay open two extra hours to accommodate everyone,” Billings said. “We literally have people coming in non-stop.”

According to Kathy Barland, owner of Sarah’s Fabrics and More, a store that contains Halloween Costume rentals in its basement, women tend to rent much earlier than men when it comes to Halloween costumes.

“Men are more needy,” she said. “They usually come in at the last second and want something right away.”

Although businesses prefer to be prepared for a holiday as big as Halloween, some vendors like Chiles don’t like to shop for merchandise too early.

“Because this is a vintage shop, finding something for Halloween might mean it has to go in storage until Halloween season. That means no profit for months off of that item,” Chiles said.

Once stores start selling their Halloween merchandise, they quickly accommodate to the age range of customers.

“We do the best with an older crowd,” Chiles said. “Everyone comes into our vintage store wanting to be a ‘70s person. All they would need are polyester pants and shirt. The older parents always brag to their kids that they used to own all of this stuff.”

Other stores, like Fun and Games, see a total mixture of customers from infants to children to University students to parents.

Despite the availability of other alternatives, the classic Halloween costumes prove to be the most popular during the holiday season.

“You’ll always have the normal witch costume every year,” Billings said. “Other costumes are always determined by popular movies and political events.”

Billings doesn’t predict that the big box office movies will influence this year’s costume choices as much as they have in the past.

“In past years, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ sparked a lot of people to look for pirate costumes,” Billings said. “But now, I think that pirates will only be really popular for the younger kids. The older crowd is kind of over the idea.”

When deciding where to get the most unique costumes, Lawrence consumers have a wide variety of options. These include vintage, trade/sell shops, costume shops, or rental shops. Ahlert works with customers who go to fabric stores to make their own.

In the months leading up to Halloween, Ahlert says that customers are always asking her for supplies to make their own costumes. These include leopard fabric, fabric for wings and fairy fabric.

If customers would rather buy a costume already made, Fun and Games has a wide selection to choose from.

“The selection is unusual here,” Billings said. “You can start here and finish here. We have over 600 costumes with a knowledgeable staff that’s very helpful so you won’t wander aimlessly around the store.”

Renting is also an option for the consumer who wants a new elaborate costume every year without paying a lot of money.

On average at Sarah’s Fabrics and More, a single rental costs $35.

“We’ve had to raise our prices slightly due to the increased cost of dry-cleaning and upkeep,” Barland said. “We just want the best possible product for our clients.”

With increasing sales, sales clerks also benefit from the Halloween rush.

“We always have to hire more people during Halloween season,” Billings said. “All employees get bonuses. It’s a fun time of year. We always bring in family friends to help with the Halloween rush.”

Ahlert said she finds satisfaction in the feel of the season.

“It’s a fun time of year. I love to watch people get so excited by it. It makes them happy. I think this season is an escape. It’s just fun therapy.”

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Lawrence public schools are discovering the secret to academic success.

In just over a year, the new program entitled “Whatever it takes, learning for all” is showing significant advancement of grades for students through one-on-one attention and individual learning plans.

Still in its beginning stages, the program is improving with the help of Board of Education members and teachers. Last month, the program went district wide.

“Our mission is to have learning for all,” said Board of Education vice president Linda Robinson. “We no longer ask ourselves, ‘Did we teach it?’ Instead, we ask ourselves, ‘Did they learn it?”

According to Child Trends Data Bank, 10 percent of students dropped out of high school in 2004, leaving them with minimal skills to function in today’s job market. Instead of following the trends, Lawrence schools started a new system dedicated to the success of every student.

“If our staff takes the extra mile, kids will understand that they’re there to succeed,” said Board of Education member John Mitchell. “That is why we created ‘Measures of Academic Progress.’”

Measures of Academic Progress or M.A.P. are online assessments of each student’s advancement throughout an academic year. The system allows students to answer a series of questions on a computer.

With each correct answer, the following question becomes more difficult. If a problem is answered incorrectly, the next question is easier.

Identifying each child’s weak points allows a teacher to recognize what they need to focus on for the student individually, instead of looking at a class as a whole. If a child continues to have difficulty, they are tested at a more frequent basis to identify the problem.

“I’m so excited because you can look at a 10th grader who only reads at a fourth grade level and by the end, they are reading across the curriculum,” Robinson said.

Current reading levels and growth of each student for M.A.P. are measured using Lexiles. After a student completes a M.A.P. assessment, they are placed into one of three categories.

When a student receives a score of 1000 and above, they are placed into the standard curriculum. A student whose score is below1000 is required to take a supplemental language arts class in addition to a developmental reading class. If scores fall below these two levels, students take a communication skills class that immerses them fully in literacy.

“This system is such an improvement from before when we relied solely on grade level,” said Suzie Micka, certified reading specialist and literacy coach for Lawrence High School. “There is such an overlap in children’s reading levels. This system gives us much more information.”

The developmental reading instruction class is based on the book “Yellow Brick Roads” by Janet Allen. The course gives students below the required level additional practice in read alouds, fluency, writing, and shared, guided and independent reading.

“If we want students to be successful, they have to be able to read,” Micka said. “The class allows us to give additional instruction for students who need support.”

Lawrence faculty has also created a system to help the children who perform above the curve. For each of these students, labeled “gifted,” an I.E.P. or Individual Education Plan is created.

Every student placed in this program will meet, along with their parents, with the gifted education teacher and principle to set goals for themselves and start the child thinking about future career aspirations. The school then works on giving the child real-world experience to further them in their path.

“I.E.P. allows instructors to present the same textbook to students at different levels,” Robinson said. “This way, every child will be challenged, no matter what level they are at.”

Currently, administrators for the Lawrence public schools are working on the possibility of creating and I.E.P. for every student, not just gifted students.

At the moment, new ideas are stirring to make it easier for gifted students to attend higher level classes. As it stands now, junior high students are required to travel to the high school to go to the courses they need.

“For years we didn’t want to label kids, but it’s hard to address everyone’s individual needs in the classroom,” Robinson said. “Research has proven that methods such as these raise the success of kids on the lower side of the grading scale while allowing the high flyers to fly higher.”

Talks are ongoing on how to provide the same higher education, without forcing the child to go to another school.

Sue Morgan, Board of Education president endorses the idea of a virtual school. With this method, students who failed a class can retake the course faster. A benefit of this is graduation isn’t delayed.

“The virtual school measures what the student has mastered and only re-teaches what they were missing,” Morgan said. “Kids aren’t all the same and should be allowed to move at a pace they’re comfortable with.”

In addition to Individual Education Plans and Measures of Academic Progress, Lawrence public schools are incorporating ways to improve teaching techniques as well.

Every Tuesday, students are released from school 90 minutes early. In this time, instructors meet to discuss particular students in their classes that experience difficulty. These meetings allow the teacher to receive feedback on how to better the academic progress of the student.

“It’s a collaborative process,” said Robinson. “Teachers can work together to discuss two or three students per week and come up with a solution.”

Overall, the new system has seen drastic advances in academic success in a year’s time. The old system, closed spring 2004, required struggling students to attend an alternative high school, located in a separate facility.

“Students just weren’t succeeding and were falling behind on credits,” Morgan said. “The one-on-one help these kids needed wasn’t being provided.”

Oftentimes students in need of help were placed on extensive waiting lists to enter the program, leaving them at a standstill. The service was discontinued in an attempt to provide aid to all students, not just a select few.

“The feedback we’ve received is amazing,” Robinson said. “This new program separates us from other school districts and gives Lawrence a real edge.”

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