Biomass
What is Biomass?
Biomass usually refers to living or recently dead plant material that can be used for fuel purposes. Although biomass can be used to mean plants grown specifically for biofuel, or any biodegradable natural waste that is used for fuel. Fossil fuels such as coal and oil are not considered to be biomass as they are not recently dead, nor were they produced especially to become biomass.
Biomass is part of the carbon cycle, where carbon in the air is converted into a biological matter using photosynthesis. Biomass is a renewable source of fuel, as plants or trees specifically grown to produce biomass can be replaced, and don’t take long to grow. Biomass is seen as more environmentally friendly and longer lasting than traditional fossil fuels. Biomass has another significant advantage over fossil fuels in that plants suitable for producing biomass and biofuels can be grown almost anywhere in the world. Fossil fuels like petrol or gas and other traditional fuel types are only produced in certain areas of the world, but biomass can be created anywhere. Using biomass means that fuel production and transportation costs are reduced. As a result of this, countries that are dependent on imported energy may be able to reduce this dependency by using biomass to provide a proportion of their energy and fuel.
Several plants are commonly used for producing biomass, including miscanthus, switch grass, hemp, corn, poplar, willow, sugarcane and palm. The type of plant used is not the most important factor in biomass production, although it is a factor in terms of processing. Whilst the start to finish process of biomass is not quite carbon neutral due to fuel consumption involved in farming and transportation, biomass itself produced much less carbon dioxide than other forms of energy.
Biomass can be burnt for heating. In fact, burning wood on a fire is one of the oldest examples of biomass. Biomass can also be used to provide biofuels, including ethanol, methanol, biodiesel, and methane. Biofuels made from biomass, are seen as a potential replacement for petrol and diesel in vehicles, as they reduce the pollution associated with traditional fossil fuels. Current vehicle engines can be modified to run on fuels produced by biomass, or these fuels can be combined with traditional fuels as an additive. Ethanol produced from biomass can be added to petrol in order lower the pollution, and boost the octane. Biocrude is produced using biomass to convert high organic waste feedstock into a liquid energy product, which is similar to low sulphur crude oil. Using this biomass produced biocrude instead of normal oil will reduce the requirement for fossil fuels, and in turn, reduce the harmful effects on the environment. Composting also utilises the biomass process to produce fertilisers which can then be reused to produce more crops.
As well as fuel and compost, biomass can be used for producing biodegradable plastic bags, clothing, plastics, and structural products for using in the building industry. Biomass is also used to produce electricity, mainly in the pulp and paper industries. Biomass is also used with coke to produce electricity for industry.
Biomass is a very versatile form of renewable energy, and the technology and applications are improving. As interest in global warming, reducing the use of fossil fuels and reducing carbon footprints becomes more significant, biomass will become a more important and widespread form of energy in the future.
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