The Difference Between Biofuel and Fossil Fuel
The critical difference between biofuel and traditional fossil fuel is the number of years it takes to form. Biofuel is derived from recently dead biological or organic material. Traditional fossil fuel comes from long dead (read: millions of years old) biological organisms. For this reason, biofuel is considered a renewable resource because it can be replenished in a short period of time. Fossil fuel is classified as a non-renewable resource because its reserves are being depleted much faster than it takes to form new reserves.

While biofuel and fossil fuel are carbon-based properties (they both derive from biological matter) biofuel is considered carbon neutral because the energy is derived from plants, which remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Whereas, fossil fuels released carbon dioxide, which has been stored beneath the earth surface for millions of years, into the air. Carbon dioxide emissions are the number one pollutant.

Biofuel comes from a variety of feedstock sources, of which the more common ones are corn, sugar cane, palm, wheat, algae, and jatropha. From these feedstock sources, two popular fuels are produced for transportation and machineries. They are biodiesel and bioethanol. Broken down further, biodiesel is derived from plant oils; bioethanol is derived from fermented starch or sugar crops.

How Are Biofulels Used?
Biofuels can be used in a pure (denoted as B100) or a blended form (denoted as a percentage). Biofuel is the most common fuel used in Europe because European car manufacturers outfit their cars with diesel engines. For most unmodified diesel engines, advocates say blends of up to 20% (B20) are deemed safe. Higher concentrations require modifications to the diesel engine.

Bioethanol is suggested as a substitute for gasoline in vehicles. However, users have to be careful in choosing the proper blend of ethanol. Generally, a 10% blend of ethanol (E10) may be safe to be used in newer cars. Lower concentrations have been used in some older engines without having adverse effects on vehicle fuel lines, but users should consult their car manufacturers to find out if bioethanol is safe for their engines. In some cases, conversions can void the manufacturer warranty.

Proponents Say
Advocates suggest businesses, especially those in the transportation industry will benefit from using biofuels on two fronts: (1) When biofuel prices are more stable than oil prices, companies are in a better position to plan and budget fuel expenditures for the year. (2) Cleaner vehicular emissions may save transportation companies maintenance costs, while helping them meet new government mandated environmental standards.

Opponents Say
Opponents question how governments establish standards, regulations, and mandates and suggest that the underlying motivation for setting certain standards and enforcing mandates is political.

In other words, opponents contend that politicians are showing preferential treatment to their constituents and lobbyists. The end result is that governments, not the economy, are creating winners and losers. If your company or industry falls on the out of political favor side, you may wind up paying higher taxes or incurring higher costs to meet those politically inspired mandates

Car Manufacturer Status
Car manufactures today are being forced to produce more vehicles that are biofuel ready. In addition to using cheaper fuel, both manufacturers and buyers will be given government incentives (in the form of tax credits) to embrace renewable and alternative energy. Studies also suggest that certain types of biofuel (e.g., biodiesel) can make engines last longer when users maintain their cars by using the right biofuel blend.

The Food vs. Fuel Debate
Biofuel does have an underside and has been the subject of a current debate on food vs. fuel. Since biofuel uses plants that are also used in food supply (corn, maize, wheat, sugar cane, and coconut), this raises the question of whether it is appropriate to use food crops to create alternative fuel instead of filling world food demand. The debate has been further intensified as the world experienced what was deemed as a food crisis in 2007. Critics contend that using agricultural land to produce crops to be used in biofuel production led to this crisis.

These issues must be ironed out by policymakers and regulatory bodies to ensure a workable balance between access to energy and all other necessities.

Proponents and opponents come together around environmental and health benefits of going green. Thus the conversion to more biofuels is probably inevitable. Some are very concerned with how that is executed, since the timing of the changes is not clear. Also total direct and indirect costs and what groups benefit and which groups suffer are major concerns. With Congressional leadership dedicated to accelerating greener energy in a way that benefits their constituents and lobbyists (For example, why do tax deductions for trial attorneys help the general public?), there will definitely be winners and losers.

What the biofuels discussion is pointing to is the urgency to begin planning NOW for this inevitability to help protect industries and consumers from rising costs from energy, regulations and taxes.

The Original Post is Located Here: Biofuel for Everyone: Will It Solve the Energy Crisis?

Scientists based at the University of Queensland are working towards one of sustainable energy’s holy grails – harvesting the untapped potential of sugar cane.

Aided by new technologies and an international research network, the Australian team aim to have the first sugarcane genome sequence ready by the middle of next year.

The Australian arm of the research project, “Understanding the Sugarcane Genome”, is expected to bolster research into sought-after energy sources and provide future business opportunities for the local sugarcane industry.

Led by Southern Cross University (SCU) and funded by the UQ-based Cooperative Research Centre for Sugar Industry Innovation through Biotechnology (CRC SIIB), the research also involves contributions from the CSIRO.

Head of the research project Professor Robert Henry said sugarcane is recognised as one of the best producers of carbon when compared to other commonly grown agricultural crops, such as corn and wheat.

“Energy canes have been touted, both here and internationally, as one of the most efficient future options for producing plant-based fuels, plastics and many sought-after bio-products,” Professor Henry said.

“It is becoming well known that sugarcane is a perfect candidate for energy production and a potential replacement to petroleum in a wide range of manufacturing processes.

“To date, the plant’s complex genetic structure, and the investment required to generate its sequences, have hindered research efforts of this nature.”

It is expected that Professor Henry and his team will have completed a “draft” of the sugarcane genome sequence by mid 2010.

“Thanks to CRC SIIB support, the Australian sugarcane industry will have a fantastic platform from which to conduct all future research into enhanced cane that produce more sucrose and a vast array of environmentally friendly fuel and bio-based products,” he said.

“This will be an outstanding outcome, and the resulting database will include sought after, significant genetic information.”

The sugarcane analysis at SCU is using new instruments and facilities funded as national research infrastructure by the Federal Government. The analysis lets researchers see precisely where in the sugarcane DNA structure specific cane traits can be found, so these traits can be targeted for specific research down the track.

To encourage international collaboration in the area, a CRC SIIB-funded workshop will take place in Cairns next month including representatives from Brazil, France and South Africa.

“By understanding the biological makeup of a plant, we can be more exact in our research and also identify many more sustainable applications for sugarcane,” Professor Henry said.

Source: TheBioenergySite News Desk

The Original Post is Located Here: Sugarcane Research Aims to Harvest Green Energy

Biomass Schematic

Biomass is the name given to any material which is recently derived from plants that use sunlight to grow, such as wood from forests, material left over from agricultural and forestry processes, and organic industrial, human and animal material. It is sometimes classified as ‘combustible renewables and waste’.

The energy contained in biomass originally came from the sun. Through photosynthesis carbon dioxide in the air is transformed into other carbon containing molecules (e.g. sugars, starches and cellulose) in plants. The chemical energy that is stored in plants and animals (animals eat plants or other animals) or in their waste is called bio-energy.

When biomass is burned it releases its energy, generally in the form of heat. The biomass carbon reacts with oxygen in the air to form carbon dioxide. If fully combusted the amount of carbon dioxide produced is equal to the amount which was absorbed from the air while the plant was growing.

In nature, if biomass is left lying around on the ground it will break down over a long period of time, releasing carbon dioxide and its store of energy slowly. By burning biomass its store of energy is released quickly and often in a useful way. So converting biomass into useful energy imitates the natural processes but at a faster rate.

Provided biomass is not used faster than it can be produced, the energy obtained from biomass is considered a form of renewable energy. Using biomass energy means that the total amount of carbon dioxide in the environment stays reasonably constant, unlike burning fossil fuels which increases the amount of carbon dioxide in the air. Of all the existing renewable energy sources, biomass is the only one that stores solar energy as a convenient solid, liquid or gaseous fuel.

Many crops that are grown for food can also be used to make biofuels. Corn, sugar cane and sugar beet are used to make ethanol because of their high sucrose content. Tiny organisms feed off the sucrose and convert it to a form of alcohol called ethanol. Ethanol is a flammable liquid that can be used to run cars or be added to petrol.

Other crops are processed for their oils, to be used as a fuel. This includes a wide variety of seed crops like linseed, rapeseed, soy bean and jojoba. These oils are used as biodiesel in engines.

Another way of getting energy from plants is by capturing the gases produced as the plant matter decomposes. As plants decay, microbes that live on the decomposing material give off methane gas. If this gas can be collected it can be used as a fuel.

Rubbish dumps, containing such things as household waste or kitchen scraps, produce methane gas. Some local councils collect this gas and burn it to generate electricity that is fed back into the grid. One council uses the gas from an old tip to help heat the local swimming pool.

Capturing methane gas is also very important as it is very a potent greenhouse gas. When methane gas is burned for energy, the CO2 created has less greenhouse impact plus we get to use the power created. Methane is 21 times worse than CO2 for its greenhouse gases content, so converting methane into CO2 is a good thing.

The Original Post is Located Here: What is Biomass?