Biomass
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Biomass is organic material from plants and animals. Biomass materials are carbon-based and can contain a mixture of organic molecules such as oxygen, nitrogen, and heavy metals. Biomass contains energy from the sun. When it is burned, chemical energy is released as heat. Biomass can be burned directly for energy or converted into fuels such as biofuels, fuel ethanol, butanol, and biogas.[1][2][3]
Background
When biomass is burned, its energy is released as heat. For example, wood is burned to heat buildings. Biomass can also be converted into fuel: corn and sugarcane are fermented to produce ethanol, a clear, colorless, liquid biofuel that can be blended with gasoline and used as a transportation fuel. Another type of biofuel is biodiesel, a transportation fuel produced from vegetable oils and animal fats.[3][4]
Types of biomass
The following are five types of biomass:
- Virgin wood is lumber and wood processing waste such as bark, wood chips, and pellets.[5]
- Food waste is food residue that is discarded during food production. This waste can include husks, shells, cores, skins, and peels.[6]
- Agricultural residue includes excess agricultural harvest, such as straw, manure, and corn stalks.[7]
- Energy crops are grown for energy purposes. These crops include grasses, wheat, sugar beets, corn, and potatoes.[8]
- Industrial waste can include untreated wood and wood composites, paper pulp, sewage, and textiles.[9]
The map below shows total biomass resources in the United States by county as of August 2014.[10]
Conversion
The four conversion processes used to convert biomass to fuel include thermal conversion, thermochemical conversion, biochemical conversion, and chemical conversion:[11][12][13]
- Thermal conversion uses heat to convert biomass into other forms of energy. This process can include combustion, which is the direct burning of biomass in the presence of oxygen. Thermal conversion typically involves furnaces and boilers, which produce steam used in heating and cooling systems or to power turbines to produce electricity.
- Thermochemical conversion applies heat and chemical processes to convert biomass into fuel. The process involves converting biomass into gas and condensing the gas into oils. The oils are synthesized to produce syngas, a compound containing carbon and hydrogen. The syngas is used to produce ammonia, lubricants, and biodiesel.
- Biochemical conversion involves the use of enzymes, bacteria, and other microorganisms to break down biofuels into liquid fuels such as ethanol. In ethanol production, corn kernels are ground into smaller particles, known as mash. Water and enzymes are added to change the mash's composition so it can be fermented. After mash is cooled and removed from cookers, an enzyme known as glucomalyse is added to convert the liquid starch into sugars. After a period of several days, the mash is heated to produce ethanol, which evaporates into a vapor that is collected, cooled, and condensed into a liquid. After water is removed from the liquid, the ethanol is considered suitable for blending with gasoline.
- Chemical conversion involves the use of chemical agents to convert biomass into liquid fuels. One chemical conversion process is known as transesterification, a chemical reaction in which fatty acids from oils and greases are made less viscous (thick). The process results in biodiesel, glycerin, and soaps.
Production
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the United States produced 4,727 trillion BTUs[14] in wood and wood-derived fuels, biomass waste, and total biomass inputs that were used in the production of fuel ethanol and biodiesel.[15][16][17]
See also
Footnotes
- ↑ U.S. Energy Information Administration, “Glossary, B” accessed January 29, 2014
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "What Is Biomass?" accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Biomass," accessed March 8, 2017
- ↑ Biomass Magazine, "A releases proposed rule to set 2017 RFS RVOs," May 18, 2016
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "Virgin Wood," accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "Agricultural residue," accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "Agricultural residue," accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "Energy crops," accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "Energy crops," accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ National Renewable Energy Laboratory, "Biomass Maps," accessed March 8, 2017
- ↑ Biomass Energy Centre, "Conversion technologies," accessed May 14, 2014
- ↑ Wisconsin Grasslands Bioenergy Network, "Bioenergy conversion technologies," accessed March 8, 2017
- ↑ University of Illinois, "Ethanol: What is It?" accessed March 8, 2017
- ↑ BTU stands for British Thermal Unit, a unit of measure for energy that is equivalent to the amount of energy used to raise the temperature of a pound of water one degree Fahrenheit.
- ↑ Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, "Why is it so difficult to make cellulosic ethanol," 2010
- ↑ U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Annual Energy Outlook 2015 with projects to 2040," May 3, 2011
- ↑ U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Table 10.1 Renewable Energy Production and Consumption by Source," accessed March 8, 2017
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