Bioenergy
World Energy Prospects
Population
(billion)
World's Population
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
10
6.7
Increase in
Population
2008
2050
Year
Source:
•CIA's The World Factbook
• World POPClock Projection, U.S. Census Bureau
• Energy Sources, 26:1119-1129,2004
60%
Energy demand
63160%
Why a Crisis?
Continued increase in consumption of
fuels.
Pollution
Climate change
Resource depletion
Here’s a little video that will put into perspective why we need
more and more energy all the time:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLBE5QAYXp8
Why Do We Need Energy?
Energy
Energy
Energy
Energy
Energy
Energy
produces light.
produces heat.
produces motion.
produces sound.
produces growth.
powers technology.
Measuring Thermal Energy
The energy contained in gasoline, wood, or other
energy sources can be measured by the amount
of Btu’s it can produce.
A Btu (British thermal unit) is the amount of
thermal energy needed to raise the temperature
of one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit.
A wooden match, if allowed to burn completely,
would give off about one Btu of energy.
One ounce of gasoline contains almost 1,000
Btu’s of energy.
Every day, the average American uses about
890,000 Btu’s.
Measuring
Electrical
Energy
 Volts—the pressure that pushes electrons through a
circuit. It measures the strength of the current.
 Current—electrons flowing between two points,
measured in amps.
 Amps—One amp, or ampere, is 6.25 x 1018 electrons
per second passing through a circuit.
 Watt—A watt is a standard unit of power. For electrical
power, one watt is equal to one ampere of current per
second. A kilowatt is a thousand watts.
 A 100 watt bulb left on 24 hours a day for a year will use 876
kW.
 Ohms—An ohm is a unit of electrical resistance.
 Kilowatt hour--One kilowatt hour is the amount of
energy that would be used by a device with a power of
1 kilowatt which was left to operate for 1 hour.
Alternatives to Fossil Fuels
Wind
Solar
Hydro
Dams for electricity
Hydrogen from water as fuel
Nuclear
Biofuels from biomass
Geothermal
What Is Biomass?
Biomass is biological material derived
from living, or recently living organisms.
In the context of biomass for energy
this is often used to mean plant based
material, but biomass can equally apply
to both animal and vegetable derived
material.
Current Bio Sources Used
for Energy
Corn
Canola
Sorghum (milo, cane)
Grasses
Waste materials from crops
Algae
Manure
Garbage
What in Biomass Is Used for Energy?
 Carbohydrates
 Contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen
 Includes sugars and starches and cellulose
 Carbs already have O2 bonds so it doesn’t release as much energy
as broken bonds of hydrocarbons
 Lipids
 aka “fats”
 Contain mostly carbon and hydrogen chains (long molecular
bonds)
 C-H bonds are more difficult to break, thus releasing more energy
when they do. That’s why we like fossil fuels!
 Proteins
 Proteins are not commonly used for energy
 They do not burn well and convert to toxic chemicals when
combusted.
Renewable Energy Sources
Summary of energy resources consumption in United States, 2004
It is estimated by 2030 bio-energy will be 15-20%
of our energy consumption
Source: USDA-DOE, 2005, http://www.eere.energy.gov/biomass/publications.html.
Global Biomass Energy Flows
Carbon Lifecycle
http://www.greatlakesbioenergy.org/20
09/07/14/life-cycle-assessment-ofbiofuel-energy/
http://www.greatlakesbioenergy.org/20
09/08/19/life-cycle-assessment-ofcarbon-in-biofuel-production/
Overview
Bioenergy history
Ag wastes and other biomass
Biomass to Bioenergy
Conversion processes
Pros & Cons
Applications
Biofuels
Bioheat
Bioelectricity
Some U.S.
Bioenergy History
Bioenergy is not new!
1850s: Ethanol used for lighting
(http://www.eia.doe.gov/
kids/energyfacts/sources/renewable/ethanol.html#motorfuel)
1860s-1906: Ethanol tax enacted (making it
no longer competitive with kerosene (a fossil fuel
for lights)
1896: 1st ethanol-fueled automobile, the
Ford Quadricycle
(http://www.nesea.org/greencarclub/factsheets_ethanol.pdf)
More Bioenergy
History
(photo from http://www.modelt.org/gallery/picz.asp?iPic=129)
1908: 1st flex-fuel car, the Ford Model T
1919-1933: Prohibition banned ethanol unless
mixed with petroleum
WWI and WWII: Ethanol used due to high oil costs
Early 1960s: Acetone-Butanol-Ethanol industrial
fermentation discontinued in US
Today, about 110 new U.S. ethanol refineries in
operation and 75 more planned
Ag wastes and
other biomass
Waste Biomass
Crop and forestry residues, animal
manure, food processing waste, yard
waste, municipal and C&D solid wastes,
sewage, industrial waste
New Biomass: (Terrestrial & Aquatic)
Solar energy and CO2 converted via
photosynthesis to organic compounds
Conventionally harvested for food, feed,
fiber, & construction materials
Agricultural and Forestry Wastes
Crop residues
Animal manures
Food / feed processing residues
Logging residues (harvesting
and clearing)
Wood processing mill residues
Paper & pulping waste slurries
Municipal garbage & other
landfilled wastes
Municipal Solid Waste
Landfill gas-to-energy
Pre- and post-consumer residues
Urban wood residues
Construction & Demolition wastes
Tree trimmings
Yard waste
Packaging
Discarded furniture
Biomass to Bioenergy
Biomass:
renewable energy sources coming
from biological material such as plants, animals,
microorganisms and municipal wastes
Bioenergy Types
Biofuels
Liquids
Methanol, Ethanol, Butanol, Biodiesel
Gases
Methane, Hydrogen
Bioheat
Wood burning
Bioelectricity
Combustion in Boiler to Turbine
Microbial Fuel Cells (MFCs)
Advantages of Biomass
Widespread availability in many parts of the
world
Contribution to the security of energy
supplies
Generally low fuel cost compared with fossil
fuels
Biomass as a resource can be stored in large
amounts, and bioenergy produced on
demand
Creation of stable jobs, especially in rural
Environmental Benefits
Drawbacks of Biomass
Generally low energy content
Competition for the resource with food,
feed, and material applications like
particle board or paper
Generally higher investment costs for
conversion into final energy in
comparison with fossil alternatives
Applications
Biofuel Applications: Liquids
Ethanol and Butanol:
can be used in gasoline engines
either at low blends (up to
10%), in high blends in Flexible
Fuel Vehicles or in pure form in
adapted engines
Biodiesel: can be used, both
blended with fossil diesel and in
pure form. Its acceptance by car
manufacturers is growing
Process for cellulosic ethanol (ethanol made
from cellulose, the fibrous material in plants)
 http://www1.eere.energy.gov/biomass/abcs_biofuels.html
References

Ezeji, T., N. Qureshi, H.P. Blaschek. 2007. Butanol production from agricultural residues: Impact of
degradation products on Clostridum beijerinckii growth and butanol fermentation. Biotechnol.
Bioeng. 97, 1460-1469.

Jeanty, P.W., D. Warren, and F. Hitzhusen. 2004. Assessing Ohio’s biomass resources for energy
potential using GIS. OSU Dept of Ag, Env., and Development Economics, for Ohio Dept of
Development.
http://www.puc.state.oh.us/emplibrary/files/media/biomass/bioenergyresourceassessment.pdf

Klass, Donald L. 1998. Biomass for Renewable Energy, Fuels, and Chemicals. Academic Press.
ISBN: 9780124109506.

Perlack et al. 2005. Biomass as feedstock for a bioenergy and bioproducts industry: The technical
feasibility of a billion-ton annual supply. USDOE-USDA.
http://www.puc.state.oh.us/emplibrary/files/media/biomass/BiomassFeedstock.pdf

Rabaey, K., Verstraete, W. 2005. Microbial fuel cells: Novel biotechnology for energy generation.
Trends. Biotechnol. 23:291-298.

Rismani-Yazdi, H., Christy, A. D., Dehority, B.A., Morrison, M., Yu, Z. and Tuovinen, O. H. 2007.
Electricity generation from cellulose by rumen microorganisms in microbial fuel cells. Biotechnol.
Bioeng. 97, 1398-1407.

Skrinak, N. 2007. OSU Microbial Fuel Cell Learning Center
<http://digitalunion.osu.edu/r2/summer07/nskrinak/index.html>

USDOE Biomass Program. ABCs of Biofuels
<http://www1.eere.energy.gov/biomass/abcs_biofuels.html>. Accessed April 2008.