Biofuel: Tomorrow´s Fuel

Biofuel can be broadly defined as solid, liquid, or gas fuel consisting of, or derived from biomass. The definition used here is narrower: biofuel is defined as liquid or gas transportation fuel derived from biomass. Biomass can also be used directly for heating or power. One type of biomass is wood, which is frequently used in industry, either by itself to create energy or with other combustible matter (such as coal) to burn and create heat.
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.
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. Today, ethanol is made from starches and sugars, scientists are developing technology to allow it to be made from cellulose and hemicellulose, the fibrous material that makes up the bulk of most plant matter. 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. It can be used as an additive (typically 20%) to reduce vehicle emissions or in its pure form as a renewable alternative fuel for diesel engines.
Biofuel is considered a means of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing energy security by providing an alternative to fósil fuels.
Biofuels are used globally: biofuel industries are expanding in Europe, Asia and the Americas. The most common use for biofuels is in automotive transport. Biofuel can be produced from any carbon source that can be replenished rapidly e.g. plants. Many different plants and plant-derived materials are used for biofuel manufacture.
Both biodiesel and ethanol are clean, grow-your-own fuels that can be made on-site in villages or local communities from renewable.
These fuels are among a wide range of sustainable local energy options. Others are methane (biogas) digesters that turn livestock, crop and food wastes into cooking and heating gas, solar energy, charcoal and fuelwood (good fuels unless overharvesting destroys the trees themselves), wind power, water power.
Usually the answer is in a mix of technologies. Biofuels can be used to power small-scale farm and local workshop machinery and electricity generators as well as vehicles.

The Advantages of Using Biodiesel Fuel

  • Biodiesel is diesel than can power up your car that is made from vegetable oils and other natural sources. It does not come from the regular crude oil that usually has to be imported from oil-producing countries.
  • Biodiesel can be considered a new technology, taking into account all the years consumers have had to settle for traditional diesel.
  • Biodiesel is not harmful to the environment. Unlike its counterpart, a car using biodiesel produces fewer emissions. If a vehicle uses traditional diesel, the vehicle emits black, stinky smoke. With biodiesel, the smoke becomes very clean indeed.
  • Biodiesel may not require an engine modification. Some cars can take advantage of biodiesel without the need to undergo engine alterations. Some mix 20% biodiesel with regular diesel. Doing so enables the car to benefit from the good points of biodiesel without the hassle.
  • Biodiesel is cheap. You can even make biodiesel in your backyard. If your engine can work with biodiesel fuel alone, then you really need not go to the gas station to buy fuel. You can just manufacture some for your own personal use.
  • Biodiesel can make the vehicle perform better. It is noted that biodiesel has a cetane number of over 100. Cetane number is used to measure the quality of the fuel’s ignition. If your fuel has a high cetane number, you can be sure that what you get is a very easy cold starting coupled with a low idle noise.
  • Biodiesel can make your car last longer. Because of the clarity and the purity of biodiesel, you can be sure it will not have too many impurities to harm your car. It is actually more lubrication. A car’s power output is unaffected by this type of diesel.
  • Biodiesel reduces the environmental effect of a waste product. Because biodiesel is made out of waste products itself, it does not contribute to nature’s garbage at all. Biodiesel can be made out of used cooking oils and lards. So instead of throwing these substances away, the ability to turn them into biodiesel becomes more than welcome.
  • Biodiesel is energy efficient. If the production of biodiesel is compared with the production of the regular type, producing the latter consumes more energy. Biodiesel does not need to be drilled, transported, or refined like petroleum diesel. Producing biodiesel is easier and is less time consuming.
  • Biodiesel is produced locally. A locally produced fuel will be more cost efficient. There is no need to pay tariffs or similar taxes to the countries from which oil and petroleum diesel are sourced. Every country has the ability to produce biodiesel.
  • Biodiesel is surely a viable fuel alternative. Moreover, it is also a sustainable fuel. Using biodiesel not only helps maintain our environment, it also helps in keeping the people around us healthy.

Biomass

We have used biomass energy or “bioenergy”—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 (which are methane, a natural gas) can be used as a biomass energy source.

Benefits of Using Biomass

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. For example:
The use of biomass energy has 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. Biomass, on the other hand, releases carbon dioxide that is largely balanced by the carbon dioxide captured in its own growth (depending how much energy was used to grow, harvest, and process the fuel).
The use of biomass can reduce dependence on foreign oil because biofuels are the only renewable liquid transportation fuels available.
Biomass energy supports U.S. agricultural and forest-product industries. 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. In the near future agricultural residues such as corn stover (the stalks, leaves, and husks of the plant) and wheat straw will also be used. Long-term plans include growing and using dedicated energy crops, such as fast-growing trees and grasses, that can grow sustainably on land that will not support intensive food crops.

Sources: Nrel, News BBC

Related Posts