Biomass

Question 1

3 types of Biomass

Answer 1

Traditional, Commercial, Biofuels. Biomass is Semi-Renewable

Question 2

Traditional

Answer 2

collecting wood, animal dung, source of energy for 3 billion people

Question 3

Commercial

Answer 3

electricity and industrial heat, also used by residential and commercial

Question 4

Biofuels

Answer 4

used as a replacement for petroleum for transportation

Question 5

Solar Energy Capture efficiency of Biomass

Answer 5

1 percent%

Question 6

World Energy Supply from Biomass

Answer 6

10%, difficult to measure b/c non-commercial

Question 7

Efficiency and Enviro Impacts of Biomass use

Answer 7

low efficiency + high cost to health and wallet, technology and policies can help

Question 8

Why is Biomass Important? (3)

Answer 8

available, easty to store, 3/4 of biomass production is consumed in developing countries

Question 9

Biomass Direct Burning/Combustion in LDCs #

Answer 9

Indoor air pollution causes mortality and morbidity

Question 10

Wood and Wood Wastes

Answer 10

half of annual worldwide forest harvest is for energy,

Question 11

3 Categories of Wood Fuel

Answer 11

Fuelwood and Wood Residue (81%), Charcoal (7%, 2x as energy dense), Black Liquor (12%, onsite use for heat and process steam)

Question 12

Fuelwood Plantations

Answer 12

3-5yr rotation, Deforestation water use and competition w/crops are key social costs.

Question 13

Bagasse

Answer 13

residue from sugar cane processing (10% of worldwide biomass). 10% of WW power generation (40GW) is from bagasse

Question 14

Commercial-scale manure digesters

Answer 14

Covered Lagoon, Horizontal Plug flow, Mixed Flow. 1 cow per 100 W

Question 15

MSW (4)

Answer 15

municipal solid waste = garbage. 4.4 lbs of material with 1.5 lbs recycled per day per person. 2000 lbs garbage = 500 lbs coal. Only 3 GW potential

Question 16

2 methods of waste-to-energy conversion

Answer 16

allie says burn gas or burning waste. THATS IT

Question 17

Landfill Gas

Answer 17

50% methane, 45% CO2, potent source of CH4 emissions, US>China>Russia

Question 18

Current US Landfill Gas

Answer 18

combined and canditate capacity is 3 GW

Question 19

Waste Gasification instead of Incineration

Answer 19

pyrolysis or gasification. Cleaner than incineration or landfills, no methane leakage

Question 20

Aquatic Biomass

Answer 20

Seaweed (no land/irrigation, subject to wave damge), Algae (no land/irrigation,

Question 21

Peat

Answer 21

not renewable / not fossil, high moisture (35%), 6000 Btu/lb

Question 22

Biofuel Carbon Cycle

Answer 22

biomass contributes less to GHG than do fossil fuels

Question 23

Private cost of Biofuels

Answer 23

feedstock type, conversion type (fermentation, esterification, pyrolysis), fuel type

Question 24

Cost of Biofuels compared to Oil

Answer 24

biofuels are cost competitive (compared to $20 - $70 / bbl)

Question 25

Characteristics of Methanol/Ethanol

Answer 25

High octane, corrosize (due to polarity), subjective to hydration (combines with H20) which makes storage difficult

Question 26

Ethanol is made from

Answer 26

crops high in starch or sugars like corn/sugar cane

Question 27

Methanol made from

Answer 27

nat gas or coal, can be made from wood

Question 28

Global Ethanol Production

Answer 28

US/Brazil Dominate

Question 29

2 pathways of Ethanoly production

Answer 29

corn -> amylase -> glucose -> yeast -> Ethanol /// Biomass -> enzymes/sulfuric acid -> five/six carbon sugars -> genetically engineered bacteria -> ethanol

Question 30

Sugarcane vs cellulosic

Answer 30

higher yield / acre, 1/3 less of energy used to sugarcane / Btu

Question 31

Basic ethanol fermentation (wet vs dry milling)

Answer 31

wet milling (steeped in water to extract other products, then grind), dry milling (grind first, then soak).

Question 32

Cellulosic Biofuels

Answer 32

Cellulose, Hemicellulose, Lignin. Yields 3x as high as conventional ethanol production

Question 33

Advanced Biotech or Gasification

Answer 33

could increase ethanol yield from 35% to 80%

Question 34

Biodiesel

Answer 34

transesterification, soybean oil and yellow grease

Question 35

Biodiesel Variants

Answer 35

B20 can be used without modification, biodiesel burns cleaner than normal diesel

Question 36

Making Biodiesel

Answer 36

taxes, tax credits, legality, vegetable of fuel

Question 37

Biofuel Drivers

Answer 37

Supply, Infrastructure, energy independence. Cost, low emissions

Question 38

Biofuel Barriers

Answer 38

net energy loss, transportation, food prices,

Question 39

US Biofuel Incentrives

Answer 39

VEETC, SETC, stimulus bill

Question 40

Biomass Drivers

Answer 40

Abundant Supply, Reduced waste, rps compliance, clean energy, energy security

Question 41

Biomass Barriers

Answer 41

carbon emitting radiation processes, indoor air pollution, operating costs, transportation costs, air pollution from ethanol, diversion from food supply

Question 42

Biomass Trends

Answer 42

much more used than solar/geothermal, high oil prices leads to biofuels, ethanol is growing, land use requiremennt are high, cellulosic biomass on rise, developing world