UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS (UNT) PARTNERS WITH FREESTONE RESOURCES, INC. TO DEVELOP A REAL-TIME GAS MONITORING SYSTEM IN FURNACE FOR THE PYROLYSIS OF BIOMASS TO IMPROVE THE PRODUCTION EFFICIENCY OF BIOFUELS AND ACTIVATED CARBON. ADVANCED NOVEL WIRELESS HIGH TEMPERATURE SAW SENSOR TECHNOLOGY WILL BE DEVELOPED TO MONITOR THE MAJOR GASES GENERATED DURING THE PYROLYSIS PROCESS OF BIOMASS INCLUDING CO, CO2 AND H2. WITH KNOWING THE MAJOR GAS TYPES AND THEIR AMOUNTS ON LINE DURING THE PYROLYSIS PROCESS, VOLATILE MODEL AND KINETIC MODEL FOR THE PYROLYSIS PROCESS WITH MORE ACCURATE PREDICTION WILL BE DEVELOPED, THE MECHANISM OF THE BIOCONVERSION OF BIOMASS (SUCH AS SELF-ACTIVATION FOR ACTIVATED CARBON) WILL BE ELUCIDATED, THE PRODUCTION EFFICIENCY WILL BE MAXIMIZED, AND THE PRODUCT QUALITY WILL BE OPTIMIZED. THE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED WILL BE BROUGHT TO LARGE-SCALE TRIALS IN COLLABORATION WITH FREESTONE RESOURCES, INC.THE PROPOSED GAS MONITORING SYSTEM WITH THE NOVEL WIRELESS HIGH TEMPERATURE SENSOR IS A BREAKTHROUGH TECHNOLOGY TO MAXIMIZE THE PRODUCTION EFFICIENCY OF THE PYROLYSIS PROCESS. THIS RESEARCH IS AT THE CUTTING EDGE IN SCIENCE AND WILL BE BENEFICIAL TO THE EDUCATION, TRAINING, AND OUTREACH ACTIVITIES IN THE FIELDS OF FORESTRY AND AGRICULTURE, BIOMATERIALS, ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING, MECHANICAL AND ENERGY ENGINEERING, AND CHEMISTRY. THIS PROJECT WILL STRONGLY ENHANCE INTERDISCIPLINARY EDUCATION AND BROADEN STUDENTS' CAREER OPPORTUNITIES. IN ADDITION, THE CONCEPT, THEORY, AND RESULTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS PROJECT WILL BE USED TO STRENGTHEN EXISTING AND NEW GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE COURSES.THIS PROPOSAL IS SUBMITTED IN RESPONSE TO "BIOPROCESSING AND BIOENGINEERING", PROGRAM AREA PRIORITY CODE A1531.