Biological Sciences
Biomass Energy
Biomass energy refers to energy derived from organic materials, such as plants, agricultural residues, and wood. It can be converted into various forms of energy, including heat, electricity, and biofuels. Biomass energy is considered renewable because the organic materials used to produce it can be replenished through natural processes.
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12 Key excerpts on "Biomass Energy"
eBook - PDF- Adesh Kumar, Rupendra Kumar Pachauri, Amit Kumar Mondal, Vishal Kumar Singh, Amit Kumar Sharma, Surajit Mondal(Authors)
- 2024(Publication Date)
- Wiley-Scrivener(Publisher)
Wood and wood waste typically account for the major- ity of Biomass Energy production (64%), followed by MSW (24%), farm waste (5%), and landfill gases (5%) [7]. Our ecology, economy, and energy security may all be significantly improved by using biomass as a clean, renewable energy source [7]. In contrast to other alternative energy sources, biomass is a diverse resource that may be transformed into energy in a variety of ways. Plant matter, such as trees, grass, agricultural crops, or other living material, is referred to as biomass. It can be used as a solid fuel or transformed into liquid or gaseous forms to create fuels, chemicals, heat, or elec- tricity [8]. Resources made from biomass can be classified as wastes, standing forest, and energy crops. Figure 19.1 shows the resources of Biomass Energy. Biomass Energy Resources Wastes: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Agricultural production waste Agricultural processing waste Crop residues Mill wood waste Urban wood wastes Urban organic wastes Energy crops: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. short rotation woody crops herbaceous woody crop grasses starch crops sugar crops forage crops Oilseed crops Forest Products: 1. 2. 3. 4. Wood logging residue trees, shrubs and wood residues saw dust, bark etc. from forest clearings Aquatic plants: 1. 2. 3. 4. algae water weeds water hyacinth reeds and rushes Figure 19.1 Resources of Biomass Energy. 492 Clean and Renewable Energy Production 19.3 Techniques for Converting Biomass Into Energy The physical, thermal, and biological processes used to transform biomass into energy are considered conventional methods. Different kinds of bio- mass waste can be used as feedstock for these energy conversion processes. Figure 19.2 shows a brief description about techniques used for the gener- ation of Biomass Energy.
eBook - PDF- Frank R. Spellman(Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
Energy Consumption by Energy Source , Environmental Investigation Agency, Washington, D.C., 2007 (http://www.eia. doe.gov/cneaf/solar.renewables/page/trends/table1.html). 167 Biomass/Bioenergy BIOMASS * Biomass (all Earth’s living matter) consists of the energy from plants and plant-derived organic-based materials; it is essentially stored energy from the sun. Biomass can be biochemically processed to extract sugars, thermochemically processed to produce biofuels or biomaterials, or combusted to produce heat or electricity. Biomass is also an input into other end-use markets, such as forestry products (pulpwood) and other industrial applications. This complicates the economics of biomass feedstock and requires that we differentiate between what is technically possible from what is eco-nomically feasible, taking into account relative prices and intermarket competition. Biomass has been used since people began burning wood to cook food and keep warm. Trees have been the principal fuel for almost every society for over 5000 years, from the Bronze Age until the middle of the 19th century (Perlin, 2005). Wood is still the largest Biomass Energy resource today, but other sources of bio-mass can also be used. These include food crops, grassy and woody plants, residues from agriculture or forestry, and the organic component of municipal and industrial wastes. Even the fumes from landfills (which are methane, a natural gas) can be used as a Biomass Energy source. This category excludes organic material that has been transformed by geological processes into substances such as coal or petroleum. F EEDSTOCK T YPES A variety of biomass feedstocks can be used to produce transportation fuels, bio-based products, and power. Feedstocks refer to the crops or products, such as waste vegetable oil, that can be used as or converted into biofuels and bioenergy.
eBook - PDFEnergy and Society
An Introduction, Second Edition
- Harold H. Schobert(Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
The renewables come closest. INTRODUCTION TO BIOMASS Most materials that contain carbon, or carbon and hydrogen, will burn, and could, at least in principle, be used as fuel. Biomass refers to any type of animal or plant material—that is, materials produced by life processes—that can be converted into energy or used directly as energy sources. Broadly, biomass falls into three categories: wastes (e.g., straw, bagasse, garbage), standing forests (e.g., firewood), and energy crops (e.g., corn grown to produce ethanol). In principle, biomass should be inexhaustible, renewable in the literal sense of the word, provided that we grow a new plant to replace each one harvested for energy. In principle (though not necessarily in practice, as we will see later), biomass should have no net effect on atmospheric CO 2 , because removal of CO 2 by photosynthesis in the growing “replacement” plant should exactly balance CO 2 production when the biomass is consumed. When biomass material is used for energy production it is sometimes called a biofuel. With renewed interest in biomass in the early twenty-first century, it may be easy to lose sight of the fact that, for all but a small fraction of human history, biomass has been the predominant source of fuel, well into the mid-nineteenth century. The most important biomass source was wood. Dried plants, oils extracted from plant parts, dried animal dung, and even animal fat also contributed to domestic heating, light-ing, and cooking needs until the latter part of the nineteenth century. The rise of coal as an important fuel for stationary steam engines and steam locomotives through the nineteenth century and then the increasing importance of petroleum products as transportation fuels in the twentieth century were responsible for displacing biomass as an important energy source. Nowadays, biomass supplies about 15% of the world’s primary energy.
No longer available |Learn more- (Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Library Press(Publisher)
____________________ WORLD TECHNOLOGIES ____________________ Chapter- 3 Biomass and Biofuel Biomass Biomass , a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms, such as wood, waste, (hydrogen) gas, and alcohol fuels. Biomass is commonly plant matter grown to generate electricity or produce heat. In this sense, living biomass can also be included, as plants can also generate electricity while still alive. The most conventional way on how biomass is used however, still relies on direct incineration. Forest residues for example (such as dead trees, branches and tree stumps), yard clippings, wood chips and garbage are often used for this. However, biomass also includes plant or animal matter used for production of fibers or chemicals. Biomass may also include biodegradable wastes that can be burnt as fuel. It excludes organic materials such as fossil fuels which have been transformed by geological processes into substances such as coal or petroleum. Industrial biomass can be grown from numerous types of plants, including miscanthus, switchgrass, hemp, corn, poplar, willow, sorghum, sugarcane, and a variety of tree species, ranging from eucalyptus to oil palm (palm oil). The particular plant used is usually not important to the end products, but it does affect the processing of the raw material. Although fossil fuels have their origin in ancient biomass, they are not considered biomass by the generally accepted definition because they contain carbon that has been out of the carbon cycle for a very long time. Their combustion therefore disturbs the carbon dioxide content in the atmosphere. Chemical composition Biomass is carbon, hydrogen and oxygen based. Nitrogen and small quantities of other atoms, including alkali, alkaline earth and heavy metals can be found as well. Metals are often found in functional molecules such as the porphyrins which include chlorophyll which contains magnesium.
eBook - PDF- Nancy E. Carpenter(Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Chapman and Hall/CRC(Publisher)
Ultimately, biomass is packaged solar energy primarily made up of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen that has been converted into cellulose, lignin, and other organic molecules by photosynthesis, and into proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and other biomolecules by other biochemical processes. The more detailed chemical composition of biomass will be examined in Section 8.2. Where does biomass come from? In terms of renewable energy, we tend to focus on plant matter—trees, grasses, seeds—although animal waste products (e.g., manure, municipal solid waste (MSW), and even waste animal meat) are important biomass resources as well. Crops that are grown for the express purpose of harvest-ing for energy production are energy crops and include plants such as switchgrass, hybrid poplar, and Camelina sativa (Benemelis 2012). Residual plant waste (e.g., rice husks, nut shells, or sawdust) is also a ready supply of biomass. 8.1.4 W HAT A RE B IOFUELS ? Biomass can be considered solar fuel —after all, it is potential energy created by photosynthesis. There are certainly other kinds of solar fuels, for example, the photosynthetic production of hydrogen covered in Chapter 5. Then there are bio-fuels , those being fuels that are derived from biomass. Biofuels include everything from sugars and fats—simple foodstuffs that power organisms—to biomass-derived ethanol and biodiesel. Biofuels have evolved from “first-generation” bio-fuels that compete with food production (e.g., ethanol from corn or biodiesel from soybeans) to “second-generation” biofuels that are derived from lignocellulosic biomass (LCB). Biofuels can also be categorized by their physical properties, much like fossil fuels. Thus, lower-boiling bioalcohols include not only biomass-derived methanol and ethanol but also biobutanol. Bio-oil is primarily obtained from the pyrolysis of biomass; these are larger molecules that retain the characteristics of higher-boiling organic liquids, that is, oils.
eBook - PDFEnergy Resources
Availability, Management, and Environmental Impacts
- Kenneth J. Skipka, Louis Theodore(Authors)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
261 18 Biomass Energy Introduction Fuels from biomasses encompass several different forms, including wood and alcohol fuels. Wood is still a major fuel in some developing countries, and high oil prices have caused a resurgence of interest in wood in some industrialized countries. Approximately one-half of the households in Vermont, for example, are estimated to heat with wood. Biomass gets its energy from the sun; all organic matter contains stored energy from the sun. During a process called photosynthesis, sunlight gives plants the energy they need to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxy-gen and sugars. These sugars, called carbohydrates , supply plants and the ani-mals that eat plants with energy. Foods rich in carbohydrates are also a good source of energy for the human body. Until the mid-1800s, wood provided the United States with 90 percent of the energy used in the country. Today, biomass provides about 4 percent of the total energy consumed since biomass has largely been replaced by the three major fossil fuels: coal, natural gas, and petroleum. Almost half of the biomass used today comes from burning wood and wood scraps such as saw dust. More than one-third is from biofuels, principally ethanol, used as gasoline additives; the remainder comes from crops, garbage, and landfill gas [1]. Industry is the biggest user of biomass; over 51 percent is used by indus-try. Electric utilities use 11 percent of biomass for power generation; biomass produces 0.7 percent of the electricity. Transportation is the next biggest user of biomass; almost 24 percent of biomass is used by the transportation sector to produce ethanol and biodiesel. The residential sector uses 11 percent of the biomass supply. About 1/10 of American homes burn wood for heating, but few use wood as the only source of heat. Most of these homes burn wood in fireplaces and wood stoves for supplemental heat [1].
eBook - PDF- John E. Smith(Author)
- 2004(Publication Date)
- Cambridge University Press(Publisher)
The current ‘energy crisis’ that is reverberating throughout the world has focused attention on the finite nature of fossil-fuel reserves. Taken in associa- tion with the dramatic increase in industrialisation in many developing coun- tries, this has generated growing economic and trade pressures for cheaper and reliable supplies of energy. The only alternative regenerable supply of feed- stocks for the chemical industry will be from the products of photosynthesis, i.e. sugar, starch and lignocellulose. Biomass can be considered as a renewable energy source, and can be converted into either direct energy or energy-carrier compounds by direct combustion, anaerobic digestion systems, destructive distillation, gasification, chemical hydrolysis and biochemical hydrolysis. 6.2 Sources of biomass There are three main directions that can be followed to achieve biomass sup- plies (Fig. 6.1): 104 Biological fuel generation Fig. 6.1 Options for the conversion of biomass to energy. (1) cultivation of so-called ‘energy crops’ (2) harvesting of natural vegetation (3) utilisation of agricultural and other organic wastes. Many woody crops such as alder, willow and birch, which can be readily coppiced, can be grown to offer direct fuel sources to be used in power sta- tions. Some success has already been achieved in Scandinavia. In other parts of Europe with considerable redundant farmland resulting from reductions in cereal cultivation, this land could be used for the cultivation of woody perennials or coppiced trees for fuel-energy production. The conversion of biomass to usable fuels can be accomplished by biological or chemical means or by a combination of both. The two main end products are methane or ethanol, although other products may arise depending on initial biomass and the processes utilised, e.g. solid fuels, hydrogen, low-energy gases, methanol and longer-chain hydrocarbons.
eBook - PDF- Gopal Shukla, Sumit Chakravarty, Gopal Shukla, Sumit Chakravarty(Authors)
- 2018(Publication Date)
- IntechOpen(Publisher)
2. Using forest biomass as an alternative energy source 2.1. State of the art Forest biomass is a renewable, domestic fuel, which can be used for energy production. Sustain-able use of forest biomass does not permanently increase the amount of carbon in the biospheric cycle, in contrast to fossil fuels, as the carbon in forest biomass comes from the atmosphere and not from the lithosphere. However, the difference between carbon sequestration rates by tree growth (commonly a slow process) and carbon releasing rates by biomass burning (a quick Figure 2. Three parameters can influence the sustainability of forest management: (A) different recovery rates can make a management plan sustainable in one ecosystem but not in another one; (B) human intervention frequency can be too high to allow for ecological recovery; (C) human intervention intensity can be too high to allow for ecological recovery; (D) sustainability should be framed for a given period of time and considered as the maintenance of a dynamic equilibrium of the target ecosystem condition over time. Forest Biomass and Carbon 86 process) means that careful planning must be done to avoid the “ carbon debt, ” i.e., increasing carbon in the atmosphere [6]. Current concerns regarding climate change and rising energy costs have noticeably increased the interest in the use of renewable and alternative energies. There is an increasing demand for biomass to be used for energy, and the use of forest biomass as an energy resource is growing as a result of increased energy costs and a desire to reduce the greenhouse emissions responsible for climate change. Forest biomass is currently used to gener-ate electricity and heat, combined heat and power, liquid fuels and others.
eBook - PDFBiomass as a Sustainable Energy Source for the Future
Fundamentals of Conversion Processes
- Wiebren de Jong, J. Ruud van Ommen(Authors)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Wiley-AIChE(Publisher)
Regard- ing the second aspect, bioenergy as part of a sustainable energy mix is dealt with in this book. At present, biomass is again valued as an important contributor to secure and clean energy supply and is expected to form a substantial part of the (near) future energy mix. Types of biomass sources and their potential are discussed. In addition, aspects of economy, social context, and environmental impact of biomass for energy supply are illustrated and discussed. KEY CONCEPTS Primary energy demand, different scenarios Population development Relevant emissions from energy conversion processes Global warming Greenhouse gas effect GHG emission mitigation strategies Sustainability (economics, social aspects, and environmental impact) criteria Trias Energetica Biomass availability Biomass source types Conversion processes SHORT-ANSWER QUESTIONS 1.1 How can modern biomass-to-energy conversion technologies mitigate poverty as compared to traditional biomass processing (heating/cooking)? 1.2 Which factors limit the RP ratio as a factor to predict how long a fossil energy will be available? 1.3 Explain in your own words the greenhouse effect and the human contribution to it. 1.4 Why is CO 2 the most important anthropogenic source of all greenhouse gases? 1.5 Explain why naturally occurring fires to some extent contribute to carbon sequestration. 30 INTRODUCTION 1.6 What are the main sources of methane emissions? What can be done to reduce these? 1.7 What are the main sources of N 2 O emissions? What can be done to reduce these? 1.8 In which ways can mankind adapt to climate change impacts, and which roles can biomass play in such adaptations? 1.9 Are there also natural sources that lead to acidification of water? 1.10 Show, by means of a chemical reaction equation, how marble is attacked chem- ically by acid rain caused by SO x emissions. 1.11 Particulate matter (PM) emitted by combustion processes is of concern to both health and climate.
- Donald L. Klass(Author)
- 1998(Publication Date)
- Academic Press(Publisher)
In this chapter, the concept of virgin and waste biomass as an alternative source of supply for energy and fuels is examined and the potential of Biomass Energy and its market penetration are evaluated. 11. BASIC CONCEPT The terminology “renewable carbon resource” for virgin and waste biomass is actually a misnomer because the earth’s carbon is in a perpetual state of flux. Carbon is not consumed in the sense that it is no longer available in any form. Many reversible and irreversible chemical reactions occur in such a manner that the carbon cycle makes all forms of carbon, including fossil carbon resources, renewable. It is simply a matter of time that makes one form of carbon more renewable than another. If society could wait several million years so that natural processes could replenish depleted petroleum or natural gas deposits, presuming that replacement occurs, there would never be a shortage of organic fuels as they are distributed and accepted in the worlds energy markets. Unfortunately, this cannot be done, so fixed carbon-containing materials that renew themselves over a time span short enough to make them continuously available in large quantities are needed to maintain and supplement energy supplies. Biomass is a major source of carbon that meets these requirements. The capture of solar energy as fixed carbon in biomass via photosynthesis, during which carbon dioxide (0,) is converted to organic compounds, is the key initial step in the growth of biomass and is depicted by the equation C02 + H 2 0 + light + chlorophyll+ (CH20) + 0 2 . Carbohydrate, represented by the building block ( CH20), is the primary or- ganic product. For each gram mole of carbon fixed, about 470 kJ (112 kcal) is absorbed. Oxygen liberated in the process comes exclusively from the water, according to radioactive tracer experiments.
eBook - PDF- David Pimentel Ph.D., Marcia H. Pimentel M.S., David Pimentel Ph.D., Marcia H. Pimentel M.S.(Authors)
- 2007(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
277 20 Biomass: Food versus Fuel David Pimentel, Alan F. Warneke, Wayne S. Teel, Kimberly A. Schwab, Nancy J. Simcox, Daniel M. Ebert, Kim D. Baenisch, and Marni R. Aaron Biomass resources (fuelwood, dung, crop residues, ethanol) constitute a major fuel source in the world (Hall et al., 1985; Pimentel et al., 1986a; Hall and de Groot, 1987). Biomass is a prime energy source in developing nations, where it meets about 90% of the energy needs of the poor (Chatterji, 1981). Each year 2.5 billion tons of forest resources are harvested for a variety of uses, including fuel, lumber, and pulp (FAO, 1983a). About 60% of these resources are harvested in developing nations; of this amount, about 85% is burned as fuel (Montalembert and Clement, 1983). Fuelwood makes up about half (1.3 billion tons) of the 2.8 billion tons of biomass consumed annually worldwide; the remaining half consists of crop residues (33%) and dung (17%) (Pimentel et al., 1986b). High fossil fuel prices and rapid population growth in developing countries have made it necessary for the people there to rely more on biomass in the form of fuelwood, crop residues, and dung for energy (Dunkerley and Ramsay, 1983; OTA, 1984; Sanchez-Sierra and Umana-Quesada, 1984). Estimates are that the poor in developing nations spend 15%–40% of their income for fuel and devote considerable time and energy to collecting biomass for fuel (CSE, 1982; Hall, 1985). BIOMASS RESOURCES The use of biomass for food and energy in the United States, Brazil, India, and Kenya is compared here. These countries were selected because they represent different economic, social, and environmental conditions. U NITED S TATES The United States, with 917 million ha of land and a human population of 256 million (Table 20.1), is the largest of the four countries in land area and the second largest in total population. It has the lowest rate of population growth but the largest per capita GNP (gross national product) (Table 20.1).
eBook - PDFApplied Energy
An Introduction
- Mohammad Omar Abdullah(Author)
- 2012(Publication Date)
- CRC Press(Publisher)
The success is due mainly to the efficient sugarcane cultivation technology, which uses modern equipment and cheap sugar cane as feedstock, while the residual cane-waste is used to process heat and power. This results in a very competitive price as well as high useful energy balance, that is, energy output per energy input. Now, in regard to soil quality, according to Somerville et al., several hundred years of experience with sugar cane production and recent studies of the effects of sugar cane cultivation on soil carbon indicate that the sugarcane crop can be grown sustainably and can in fact improve terrestrial carbon sequestration [30]. ∗ 9.2.2 Biomass Energy Classifications Biomass Energy in the form of biomass fuel includes those of domestic and industrial applications. Classification 1 : Based on fuel application type. They can be essentially divided into a few categories as follows (see Figure 9.15): • Biomass-derived fuel. The domestic sector is the main user of biomass-derived fuel, particularly for cooking and space heating. • Industrial process energy. The industries include: agricultural and food processing, metal processing, and mineral-based activities (e.g., brick making, ceramics, and foundry; and forest products and textile process industries (e.g., timber drying, paper making, silk and their textiles). • Ethanol production • Biodiesel production Classification 2: Based on process type. This general classification is based on the processes for Biomass Energy production (see Figure 9.16). The processes are divided into 2 groups, namely wet bioconversion process and dry bioconversion process. The wet bioconversion process includes extraction, digestion, and fermentation, whilst the dry bioconversion process includes gasification, pyrolysis, combustion and liquifaction.
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