General Introduction

 Biomass energy or "bioenergy“ refers to the energy

from plants and plant-derived materials—since people
began burning wood to cook food and keep warm.

 Wood is still the largest biomass energy resource

today, but other sources of biomass 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 can be used as a

biomass energy source.
 General Introduction…

 Biomass can be used for fuels, power production, and

products that would otherwise be made from fossil
fuels. In such scenarios, biomass can provide an
array of benefits especially, the potential to greatly
reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

 Burning biomass releases about the same amount of

carbon dioxide as burning fossil fuels. However, fossil
fuels release carbon dioxide captured by
photosynthesis millions of years ago—an essentially
"new" greenhouse gas.
 General Introduction…
 Biomass, on the other hand, releases carbon dioxide
that is largely balanced by the carbon dioxide
captured in its own growth.

 The use of biomass can reduce dependence on

foreign oil.

 Unlike other renewable energy sources, biomass can be

converted directly into liquid fuels, called "biofuels," to
help meet transportation fuel needs. The two most
common types of biofuels are ethanol and biodiesel.
 Biofuels
 Ethanol
– Created by fermentation of starches/sugars
– Active research on cellulosic fermentation
 Biodiesel
– Organic oils combined with alcohols
– Creates ethyl or methyl esters
 SynGas Biofuels
– Syngas (H2 & CO) converted to methanol, or liquid fuel
similar to diesel
 Biofuels …
 The main biomass feedstocks for power are paper
mill residue, lumber mill scrap, and municipal
waste. For biomass fuels, the feedstocks are corn
(for ethanol) and soybeans (for biodiesel), both
surplus crops.

 Ethanol is an alcohol, the same as in beer and

wine (although ethanol used as a fuel is modified
to make it undrinkable). It is made by fermenting
any biomass high in carbohydrates through a
process similar to beer brewing.
 Biofuels …
 Ethanol is mainly made from starches and
sugars. Current technology allows it to be made
from cellulose and hemicellulose. Ethanol is
mostly used as blending agent with gasoline to
increase octane and cut down carbon monoxide
and other smog-causing emissions.

 Biodiesel is made by combining alcohol (usually

methanol) with vegetable oil, animal fat, or
recycled cooking grease.
 Biopower
 Biopower, or biomass power, is the use of biomass to
generate electricity. Biopower system technologies
include direct-firing, cofiring, gasification, pyrolysis, and
anaerobic digestion.

 Direct-firing systems: Most biopower plants use direct-

fired systems. They burn bioenergy feedstocks directly to
produce steam. This steam drives a turbine, which turns a
generator that converts the power into electricity. In some
biomass industries, the spent steam from the power plant
is also used for manufacturing processes or to heat
buildings (combined heat and power systems)
 Biopower …
 Co-firing refers to mixing biomass with fossil fuels in
conventional power plants. Coal-fired power plants can
use co-firing systems to significantly reduce emissions,
especially sulfur dioxide emissions.

 Gasification systems use high temperatures and an

oxygen-starved environment to convert biomass into
synthesis gas, a mixture of hydrogen and carbon
monoxide. The synthesis gas, or "syngas," can then be
chemically converted into other fuels or products,
burned in a conventional boiler, or used instead of
natural gas in a gas turbine.
 Biopower…
Block Diagram of Electricity Generation from Biomass
 Biopower …
 Using a similar thermochemical process but different
conditions (totally excluding rather than limiting oxygen, in
a simplified sense) will pyrolyze biomass to a liquid rather
than gasify it. As with syngas, pyrolysis oil can be burned
to generate electricity or used as a chemical source for
making plastics, adhesives, or other bioproducts.

 The natural decay of biomass produces methane, which

can be captured and used for power production. In landfills,
wells can be drilled to release the methane from decaying
organic matter. Then pipes from each well carry the
methane to a central point, where it is filtered and cleaned
before burning to produce electricity.
 Biopower …
 Methane can also be produced from biomass through a
process called anaerobic digestion. Natural consortia of
bacteria are used to decompose organic matter in the
absence of oxygen in closed reactors. Gas suitable for
power production is produced, and possibly troublesome
wastes are turned to usable compost.

 Gasification, anaerobic digestion, and other biomass power

technologies can be used in small, modular systems with
internal combustion or other generators. These could be
helpful for providing electrical power to villages remote
from the electrical grid—particularly if they can use the
waste heat for crop drying.
 Gasification

 Biomass heated with no oxygen

 Gasifies to mixture of CO and H2
– Called “Syngas” for synthetic gas
 Mixes easily with oxygen
 Burned in turbines to generate electricity
– Like natural gas
 Can easily be converted to other fuels, chemicals,
and valuable materials
 Pyrolysis

 Heat bio-material under pressure

– 500-1300 ºC (900-2400 ºF)
– 50-150 atmospheres
– Carefully controlled air supply
 Up to 75% of biomass converted to liquid
 Tested for use in engines, turbines, boilers
 Currently experimental
Biomass Pyrolysis Schematic
 Carbon Rich Platform
 Natural plant oils such as soybean, corn, palm, and
canola oils
– In wide use today for food and chemical
applications
 Transesterification of vegetable oil or animal fat
produces fatty acid methyl ester
– Commonly known as biodiesel.
 Biodiesel an important commercial air-emission
reducing additive / substitute for diesel fuel
– could be platform chemical for biorefineries.
 Biomass Resources
 Energy Crops
– Woody crops
– Agricultural crops
 Waste Products
– Wood residues
– Temperate crop wastes
– Tropical crop wastes
– Animal wastes
– Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)
– Commercial and industrial wastes
Bioenergy Conversions
MSW Power Plant
 Sugar Platform

1. Convert biomass to sugar or other fermentation

feedstock
2. Ferment biomass intermediates using biocatalysts
• Microorganisms including yeast and bacteria;
3. Process fermentation product
• Yield fuel-grade ethanol and other fuels,
chemicals, heat and/or electricity
 Anaerobic Digestion

 Decompose biomass with microorganisms

– Closed tanks known as anaerobic digesters
– Produces methane (natural gas) and CO2
 Methane-rich biogas can be used as fuel or as a
base chemical for biobased products.
 Used in animal feedlots, and elsewhere
Ethanol Production Plant
 Ethanol Production

 Corn kernels are ground in a hammermill to expose the

starch           
 The ground grain is mixed with water, cooked briefly and
enzymes are added to convert the starch to sugar using a
chemical reaction called hydrolysis.           
 Yeast is added to ferment the sugars to ethanol.            
 The ethanol is separated from the mixture by distillation
and the water is removed from the mixture using
dehydration
 Ethanol Production

 Energy content about 2/3 of gasoline

– So E10 (10% ethanol, 90% gasoline) will cause
your gas mileage to decrease 3-4%  
 Takes energy to create ethanol from starchy sugars
        
– Positive net energy balance
– Energy output/input = 1.67           
 Cellulosic Ethanol

 Ethanol produced from agricultural residues,

woody biomass, fibers, municipal solid
waste, switchgrass
 Process converts lignocellulosic feedstock
(LCF) into component sugars, which are then
fermented to ethanol
 Other Platforms
 Biogas Platform
 Carbon-Rich Chains Platform
 Plant Products Platform
– Selective breeding and genetic engineering
– develop plant strains that produce greater
amounts of desirable feedstocks or chemicals
– even compounds that the plant does not naturally
produce
– getting the biorefining done in the biological plant
rather than the industrial plant.
 Summary
 Biomass is any living organism, plant, animal, etc.
 The major sources of biomass are woods, crops, and waste.
 Biomass Application Options:
o Direct Combustion
– Burn biomass to create steam
o Co-Firing
– Mix biomass with coal in coal plants
– Economically attractive
o Gasification
o Pyrolysis
o Anaerobic Digestion
 BioPower Generation

o Direct Combustion
 Burn biomass to create steam
o Co-Firing
 Mix biomass with coal in coal plants
 Economically attractive
o Gasification
o Pyrolysis
o Anaerobic Digestion