Purdue-designed biorefineries headed to Iraq

Some thing I saw via The Indianapolis Business Journal that I have not seen elsewhere: Purdue-designed biorefineries headed to Iraq.

"The Army is preparing to deploy to Iraq two 4-ton biomass refineries designed to turn piles of trash into electricity. Each can run for 20 hours on a ton of trash, producing enough power to light a small village."

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But first the machines, dubbed "tactical biorefineries" by the military, must perform well during their six-month test in a combat zone. They'll face windblown dust and grit, 120-degree temperatures and the risk of breakdowns when they arrive in the Baghdad area in early May.

"We want to put them under those kinds of stresses and see how they do. We want commanders to say, 'This thing is really worth looking at,'" said Jerry Warner, CEO of chief contractor Defense Life Sciences LLC of McLean, Va.