Biomass Energy Facts

What is Biomass Energy?

Anything that is living is biomass. This means that plants and animals, however, small or big, even if they had life for a second, constitute the biomass. Plants make their food by the process of photosynthesis. During this process they trap sun’s energy and convert it into chemical energy. This energy is obtained by animals when they eat various parts of plants. This energy can be obtained and used by human beings to meet their energy requirements. Though the search for renewable energy resources has picked momentum just a couple of decades ago, one of the interesting biomass energy facts is that human beings have been using right since they learnt to light fire. Wood is biomass. Burning wood to get warmth or to cook food is a way of using biomass energy.

Interesting Biomass Energy Facts

Here are some useful and interesting facts on biomass energy.

• Biomass includes varied organic matter like grass, leaves, wood, wood chips, rice husk, peanut shells, sugarcane fiber, sewage etc.
• Biomass energy is a renewable form of energy as plants can be grown in a short time. In fact it is considered one of the key renewable resources of the future. It already meets 14% of the world’s total energy requirements and 4% of that of the United States alone.
• Scientists are trying to find more efficient ways of using biomass energy as it has greater benefits for the environment than fossil fuels. Biomass energy will help the world cut down on waste production and emission of greenhouse gases.
• Chemically, biomass is made of complex polymers of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. It also contains small amounts of nitrogen and inorganic materials.
• Although fossil fuels also are formed from ancient biomass, they are not included in biomass as the carbon atoms that they are made of, have been out of the carbon cycle for long.
• One of the direct and oldest ways of extracting biomass energy is by burning the sources to get heat. The other non combustible methods are through thermal, chemical and biochemical methods.
• Almost 10% of the biomass energy consumed in the United States comes from garbage which is called municipal solid waste (MSW). The biogenic material like paper, cardboard, food scraps, grass clippings, leaves, leather goods etc. form the source of biomass energy in MSW. This biomass is used to produce electricity.
• Like crude oil processing, research is going on to devise ways by which plant biomass can be fractionated in different parts that can then be separately used to produce fuels, chemicals and other products.
• Biomass can be used to make energy-rich gas called biogas. Biogas is quite like natural gas that we use in the kitchen.
• There is another form of fuel that biomass can be transformed into. Corn and wheat can be transformed into ethanol that is similar to gasoline. Other than this, biodiesel and methanol are other liquid forms of biomass energy.
• The source of biomass energy is mainly found in rural areas. Biomass energy production is a labor intensive activity and hence, can be a good source of employment for rural population.
• One of the important sources of biomass energy are forests. However, transferring wood from forests to the area of biomass production is expensive. From the financial aspect this transfer is possible if only the biomass energy production plant is less than 50 miles away from the forest.
• Biomass energy can be used to produce electricity, heat and steam for the working of refinery.
• One of the biomass energy pros is that it is not considered to contribute to carbon dioxide content of the environment. It is so because biomass is formed from carbon dioxide that is absorbed by plants though the process of photosynthesis which is released back into the air once it is burnt. But then why are fossil fuels considered to add to carbon dioxide content of the atmosphere? It is because while fossil fuels are releasing carbon-dioxide into the atmosphere that was removed thousands of years ago, the removal and addition of carbon dioxide though biomass takes place within a shorter period of time. Due to this the carbon dioxide content of the environment is less disturbed when biomass is used than when burning fossil fuels.
• Biomass sources that are currently being used to produce power and heat in large scale units is solid biomass, biogas, biofuel and biodiesel.

Read more on:

• Biomass Energy Pros and Cons
• Alternative Fuel

Other useful facts about biomass energy are that they provide option to put organic waste to good use. This aids in waste management of urban centers. Moreover, it is an inexhaustible source of energy as it is derived from living things. However, biomass energy facts like it being an expensive process and that burning of ethanol may increase levels of nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere are certain drawbacks of this form of renewable energy that otherwise has immense potential.