BIO MAS S AS AN

AL TER NATIVE FU EL
By: Justin Lessner
What i s Bi omass?
 Biomass is any
organic matter.
 Including trees,
plants, plant fiber,
and animal wastes.
 Biomass is a
renewable energy
source
What i s Bi oenergy?
 The energy stored in biomass is called
bioenergy.
 Bioenergy is very versatile: It can be used to
provide heat, make fuels, and generate
electricity.
 Many bioenergy sources are replenished
through the cultivation of fast growing grasses,
trees, and agricultural residues like vegetable
oils, wheat straw, or corn.
How Mu ch Bio mass is
Out Th ere ?
 The United States has enough land and
agricultural networks to sustainably
replace half of the nation’s gasoline use
or all of its nuclear energy.
 Millions of tons of unused agricultural
waste, manure, and sawdust has the
potential to generate energy.
Bi oenergy s ources ar e
common thr oughout t he
United s tate s.
Bio mass Sources
 Every year, the agricultural industry produces
millions of tons of waste that could be utilized
for energy production.
 In addition, the forest products industry also
produces countless tons of waste that can be
used as an energy source.
 Energy crops, such as willows and switchgrass
can be grown for the specific purpose of
energy production.
Bio mass Sources
 In the Midwest, farmers grow corn and
soybeans that can be used for ethanol
production
 In the Southeast, hybrid willow trees have been
used as an energy crop.
 In the Northwest and Northeast, the forest
products industry uses its wastes and residues
to make electricity and heat for its own
operations.
Env ir onm en tal
Ben ef its o f
Bio ma ss
No Ne t Increase In
Ca rbon Dioxide
 The burning of fossil fuels releases
carbon dioxide captured by
photosynthesis millions of years ago.
 In contrast, carbon dioxide released
through the consumption of biomass is
balanced by carbon dioxide captured in
the recent growth of biomass
 This results in a far less net impact on
greenhouse gas levels.
En vir onmental Benefits
(cont. )

 Use of waste that would normally go to

landfills. An estimated 350 million tons of
waste that goes to landfills could be used
for energy production
 Encourages the preservation of
agricultural land that would otherwise be
sold for development.
 Encourages sustainable agricultural
techniques for bioenergy crops.
Ec onomic Be nefits o f
Bio mass
Ec onomic Be nefits o f
Bio mass $$$$$$$$$$$$
 Rural economic development and stability: US
spends $50 billion each year on importing oil.
Biomass could replace half of this.
 The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture estimates that
17,000 jobs are generated in the U.S. for every
billion gallons of ethanol produced.
 Defending US access to foreign oil markets is
very costly. Diversification of fuel sources
would cut down on military spending and shift
the focus to domestic welfare.
Bio mass and Th e
Natio nal En ergy Po lic y
 A main goal of George W. Bush’s
National Energy Policy is to increase the
domestic energy supplies of the U.S.
 Biomass and biofuels can be produced
within the United States.
 As a result, the use of biomass directly
supports the National Energy Policy by
reducing US dependence on foreign oil.
De pt. o f En ergy
Bio mass Pro gram
 The Biomass Program operated by the
US Dept. of Energy develops technology
for conversion of biomass to valuable
fuels, chemicals, materials, and power.
 One of the main purposes of the program
is to reduce US dependence on foreign
oil and to reduce greenhouse emissions.
Bio fuels For
Tr ansporta tion
Bio fuels

 Biomass is one of the few renewable

sources for transportation fuels
 Biofuels produce fewer emissions than
petroleum fuels
 The two main types of biofuels are
ethanol and biodiesel
Et hanol
 Also known as ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol.
 Ethanol is made from the starch in certain
grains, such as wheat, corn, or corn
byproducts.
 Ethanol production usually begins with the
grinding up of biomass such as wheat or corn.
 Once ground up, the starch or cellulose is
converted into sugar.
 The sugar is then fed into microbes that use it
for food, producing ethanol in the process.
Et hanol Pr oduction
Facili ty
Et hanol Pr oduction
 The US ethanol industry produced more than
3.3 billion gallons of ethanol in 2004, up from
2.8 billion gallons in 2003.
 As states continue to ban the use of MTBE
(Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) for use in
gasoline, ethanol consumption will continue to
rise.
 As a result, efforts to increase the supply are
necessary to keep up with demand.
New Et hanol
Te chnolo gie s
 Currently, research is being conducted for
making ethanol from the cellulose (fiber)
component in biomass, like municipal solid
wastes and agricultural residues.
 This type of ethanol is called bioethanol.
 The use of bioethanol reduces the emission of
carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons.
Et hanol Use s
 Each year, the US
blends more than 1.5
billion gallons of
ethanol with gasoline
to improve vehicle
performance and
reduce air pollution
Et hanol Use s ( Co nt.)

 Most gasoline blends contain about 10

percent ethanol and 90 percent gasoline.
 All vehicles are equipped to handle this
mixture.
 Such a mixture reduces greenhouse
gases by up to 4 percent.
E8 5 Fuel

 Fuel containing 85 percent gasoline and

15 percent ethanol can be used in
flexible fuel vehicles.
 The use of E85 fuel reduces the
emission of greenhouse gases by up to
37 percent.
 E85 is considered an alternative fuel
under the Energy Policy Act of 1992.
E8 5 Fuel

 Vehicles that run on E85 are called

Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFV).
 Many vehicle manufacturers offer FFVs.
 Ford, GM, Chrysler, and Mercedes all
offer FFVs.
 Each year car makers produce more
than 700,000 flexible fuel vehicles.
Ex amp le s o f FFVs
 Many popular SUV’s
and luxury vehicles
can use E85 fuel with
little or no additional
cost.
E8 5 Be nefits
 E85 is easy to use and handle- Fueling
equipment for E85 is only slightly
different then equipment used for
petroleum.
 Reduces Petroleum Consumption-
Using E85 reduces dependence on
foreign oil markets.
 Environmental Benefits- E85 reduces
greenhouse gas emissions by 37
percent.
 FFVs are available and affordable.
Vario us in tere st g ro ups throughout
the st ate and c ountr y are a ctively
involved in p romo tin g th e benefits o f
ethanol
Bio die se l
 Biodiesel is a
domestically
produced renewable
fuel that can be
made from vegetable
oils, animal fats or
recycled restaurant
greases.
Hist ory of Bio die se l
 Dr. Rudolf Diesel actually invented the diesel
engine to run on a myriad of fuels including
vegetable oil.
 In 1911, He stated: “the diesel engine can be
fed with vegetable oils and would help
considerably in the development of agriculture
of the countries which use it.”
 He added: “the use of vegetable oils for engine
fuels may seem insignificant today but such
oils may become in course of time as important
as petroleum and the coal tar products of the
present time.”
Be nefits o f Bio diese l
 A 2001 study completed by the U.S.
Dept. of Agriculture found that an
average annual increase of 200 million
gallons of soy based biodiesel demand
would boost total crop cash receipts by
$5.2 billion by 2010.
 The same increase in consumption
would increase the price for a bushel of
soybeans by 17 cents.
Bio die se l To day
 Like ethanol, biodiesel is primarily used as a
fuel blend. Most diesel blends are comprised
of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent
petroleum diesel.
 No additional modifications need to be added
to a vehicle that runs on this biodiesel mixture.
 In addition, higher blends, even pure biodiesel
can be used in many engines built since 1994
with little or no modifications.
How i s Bio die se l
Ma de?
 Fats and oils are chemically reacted with
methanol to produce chemical
compounds known as fatty acid methyl
esters. Biodiesel is the name given
these esters when they’re intended for
use as a fuel.
 Currently, there is enough feedstock to
supply 1.9 billion gallons of biodiesel.
Bi odi esel Productio n
- Much of the inf rast ruct ure for the
producti on
of bi odi esel i s al ready i n pl ace.
Em is sions From
Bio die se l V ehic les
Emission B100 B20
Carbon -47% -12%
Monoxide
Hydrocarbons -67% -20%
Particulates -48% -12%
Nitrogen +10% +2%
Oxides
Air Toxics -60%-90% -12%-20%
Mutagenicity -80%-90% -20%
Illin ois Cle an Sc hool
Bu s Gr ants
 On September 14, 2004 Governor
Blagojevich gave 19 school districts in
Illinois grants for clean school buses.
 These grants funded a total of 114
school buses that will use biodiesel fuel.
EPA Cle an Sc hool Bus
Gra nts
 The Environmental Protection Agency offers
grants to school districts throughout the United
States to encourage the use of biodiesel.
 The Olympia School District in Illinois received
such a grant in 2002. Currently, all 33 of its
buses use biodiesel fuel.
 The buses in Olympia School District travel
more than 600,000 miles per year.
Bio powe r

 Biopower is the process of using

biomass (plant and organic matter) to
generate electricity.
 Biomass has been used for lighting,
cooking, and heating ever since humans
first discovered fire.
 Today, hundreds of US power plants use
biomass resources to produce 65 billion
kilowatt-hours of electricity each year.
Bio powe r

 Biomass is the single largest source of

non-hydro renewable electricity.
 The majority of electricity produced from
biomass is used as base load power in
the existing electrical distribution system.
 More than 200 companies generate
biomass power in the U.S.
Bio powe r
 The wood and paper
industries generate
and use about two-
thirds of this power.
 Biomass is the single
largest source of
non-hydro renewable
electricity.
En vir onmental Benefits
of Bi opowe r
 Although biopower production results in
increased particulate emissions, they are
cleaner than coal fired power plants because
they do not release sulfur dioxide.
 Additionally, bioenergy systems are carbon
dioxide neutral because the plant material
absorbs as much carbon dioxide during its life
as released when it is burned to produce
electricity.
Typ es of Bio power
syst ems
 There are three different types of
biopower systems: direct-fire, co-
firing, and gasification.
Dir ect-Fire
 Direct firing involves burning biomass directly
to produce steam. This steam is then captured
and directed to spin a turbine that produces
electricity.
 This system is very similar to conventional
power production that produces electricity.
 Most of today’s biopower plants use a direct
combustion system
Dir ect –fir e plant
Co -F ir ing

 Co-firing is similar to direct firing except

for the fact that biomass materials are
burned in combination with a fossil fuel,
most often coal, in a high efficiency
boiler.
 Utility companies use this approach to
reduce overall air pollution emissions,
most notably sulfur dioxide.
Gasi fic ation
 Gasification systems are quite different from
the other two methods.
 Gasification involves using high temperatures
in an oxygen starved environment to convert
biomass into a gas.
 This gas can then be used to fuel a combined-
cycle gas turbine.
 Gasification is the preferred method given that
combined gas-turbines are the most efficient of
all power conversion technologies.
Gasi fic ation Plant
Future Pr osp ects of
Bio energ y
 Bioenergy is generally cost competitive with
fossil fuel generated electricity when biomass
residue prices are very low or negative.
 Transportation costs are key to the price so
biomass power plants must be sited near an
ongoing, reliable biomass source.
 Most analysts believe that the economics of
bioenergy will improve with higher efficiencies.
Bio refinery

 A biorefinery is a facility that breaks

down biomass into fuels, power, and
chemicals than can be used for human
use.
 By producing many different products, a
biorefinery can take advantage of the
differences in biomass components and
maximize the value derived from
biomass.
Bio refinery Co ncept
Bio refinery

To be cost effective, a biorefinery would

have to be located near a specific
biomass resource, like a cornfield.

Biorefineries are closely modeled after

petroleum refineries. A lot of the
technology for an efficient biorefinery has
already been developed.
Bio based Pro ducts
 Biomass can also be used to make everyday
products that are usually produced using fossil
fuels
 Any product that we can make from fossil fuels
can be identically made from biomass.
 Moreover, biobased products most often
require less energy to produce than petroleum
based products.
Bio based Pro ducts
 The U.S. already produces more than 300
billion pounds of biobased products each year,
not including food.
 Examples of biobased products include:
plastics, cleaning products, natural fibers,
natural structural materials, and industrial
chemicals.
 Biorefineries can be used to produce a variety
of products that can be made from biomass.
As a result, many people predict that
biorefineries could become commonplace.
Bio based Pro ducts
 DuPont has recently developed a
biobased method that uses corn instead
of petroleum based processes to
produce a polymer platform for use in
clothing, carpets, and automobile
interiors.
 Additionally, Cargill Dow has a
biorefinery in Blair, Nebraska that is
currently producing polymers from corn
sugar.
Local Bio mass
Initia tive s
 The Great Lakes Biomass State
Regional Partnership consists of Illinois,
Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota,
Ohio, and Wisconsin.
 The Partnership was established by the
Dept. of Energy and is designed to
encourage greater production and use of
biomass for energy generation.
The Great Lake s Bi omass
State Regi onal
Partners hip
 A grant is awarded annually to each state
in the partnership to promote the use of
biomass and retain a project leader
knowledgeable about biomass energy on
the staff of each state energy office.
 These state offices perform resource
assessments, demonstration projects,
and provide technical assistance.
Bio mass and th e
Future
 More research is being conducted to improving
technologies for making electricity and fuels
from biomass.
 Some oil companies and petrochemical
industries have begun to explore biomass
energy.
 The biggest challenge is the cost of bioenergy:
As long as fossil fuels remain cheaper than
bioenergy, people will be hesitant to invest in
this technology.
Bio mass and th e
Future
 The ability to cost effectively collect, store, and
transport biomass presents many challenges.
 Infrastructure will have to be built to ensure a
safe and efficient supply system for biomass.
 Currently, the Idaho National Engineering and
Environmental Laboratory is conducting R&D
in how to develop infrastructure for biomass
energy.