·:[ Environmental News Bits ]:·
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Read the full story in Technology Review.

Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories, in Livermore, CA, have created the first carbon-nanotube devices that can detect the entire visible spectrum of light. Their work might one day find a range of applications, including in solar cells that absorb more light, tiny cameras that work in very low light, and better artificial retinas.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

For the first time, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to set emission limits for formaldehyde, benzene, acrolein, and other air toxics from certain stationary diesel and gas-fired engines, according to a Feb. 27 press release.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

The University of Utah and Headwaters Incorporated have entered into a joint venture to offer carbon management services to carbon dioxide (CO2)-emitting companies, from carbon storage engineering to risk and liability management, according to a Feb. 24 press release.

Read the full story in Environmental Protection.

The Obama administration on Feb. 26 proposed a budget of $10.5 billion for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the largest in the agency’s 39-year history, according to an EPA press release.

The Chronicle of Higher Education reports (subscription) that quite a few colleges that signed the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment (ACUPCC) haven’t submitted their greenhouse gas reports by the deadline.

About 25 percent of the colleges that should have turned in the reports in September are still delinquent. Of the colleges that had a deadline in January, nearly half have yet to file. Many of the colleges are small or two-year institutions that may not have the resources to continue their sustainability efforts in the face of mounting budget problems.

For a list of ACUPCC institutions and their reporting status, see http://acupcc.aashe.org/.

ERDC TR-09-3
(Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program)
Sensitivity Analysis of QSAR Models for Assessing Novel Military Compounds
by Jay L. Clausen, Erin Bennett, and Igor Linkov

Abstract:
Reliable estimates of physical and biochemical properties of novel energetic compounds are essential before making the investment to synthesize, scale-up, and manufacture a new material for use in either military or civilian applications. Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR) software tools are available for predicting the physicochemical properties and environmental impacts of these emerging materials. The uncertainty and variability in melting point, solubility, half-lives, and related properties as a means of determining whether QSAR tools could provide meaningful results were evaluated. In particular, the octanol-water partition coefficient (Kow or log P) was estimated for several pro-posed compounds. Log P was selected both because it typically can be measured with a high degree of certainty and because it correlates highly with water solubility and bioaccumulation. This study tested: 1) the variability in QSAR model predictions resulting from potential structural vari-ants in emerging chemicals; and 2) the uncertainty from six different commercial Kow calculators: KOWWIN, MarvinSketch, ACD/Labs, CLogP, SPARC, and ALOGPs. Analyses were performed on three military com-pounds [hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,