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Sustainable Production > Non-food crops, bioplastics and biofuels > Flashcards

Non-food crops, bioplastics and biofuels Flashcards

1
Q

What is plant biomass?

A

Biomass is organic material that comes from plants and animals, and it is a renewable source of energy. Biomass contains stored energy from the sun.

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2
Q

What is plant biomass used for?

A
  • food and animal feed (73%)
  • remainder is used for energy, and materials with wood as the main raw material (≥26%).
  • Only a very small percentage is used as raw material for chemicals (1% at best).
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3
Q

What does SDS stand for and what is it?

A

Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS).
The IEA’s Sustainable Development Scenario (SDS) outlines a major transformation of the global energy system, showing how the world can change course to deliver on the three main energy-related SDGs simultaneously.

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4
Q

What is a biofuel?

A

fuel that is produced through contemporary processes from biomass, rather than a fuel produced by the very slow geological processes involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as oil.

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5
Q

Biofuel production was recorded in 2018 and was compared to the SDS consumption in 2030
What was the general trend regarding global biofuel production

A
  • Global biofuel production is not increasing quickly enough to meet SDS demand.
  • Output grew 7% year-on-year in 2018 to reach 88 Mtoe (152 billion litres), but average production growth of only 3% per year is anticipated over the next five years.
  • falls short of the sustained annual growth of 10% through to 2030 required to keep pace with the SDS.
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6
Q

Biofuel production was recorded in 2018 and was compared to the SDS consumption in 2030
What major countries are not on track with SDS?

A
  • United States
    36mtoe -> 86mtoe
  • EU member states
    14mtoe-> 44mtoe
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7
Q

What does mtoe stand for?

A

Million Tonnes of Oil Equivalent

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8
Q

What are the most significant non-food applications of crops in both volume and value terms?

A

fuel and energy.

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9
Q

Name a crops that is grown specifically for non-food and non-energy purposes

A
  • Fibre crops

- used in textiles, paper, composites, construction packaging, filters, and insulation.

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10
Q

Benefits of starch from carbohydrate crops?

A
  • feed a range of industrial applications.
  • approx half the starch produced in the EU is used for non-food purposes, principally for paper, board and organic chemicals, but also for a large number of other industrial applications.
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11
Q

How big was the EU non-food starch market?

paper, board, organic chemicals, industrial applications

A

3.6 million tonnes in 2005.

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12
Q

List examples of fibre crops

A

cotton, hemp, jute and flax

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13
Q

What is the most common natural fibre used in fashion?

A

Cotton (boll, or seed covering of Gossypium sp.)

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14
Q

What is the problem with Cotton used in fashion?

A

water intensive and uses a disproportionate amount of pesticides.
Cotton cropping accounts for 3% of cultivated land, but 20% of all pesticide use.

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15
Q

What is the global production of cotton each year?

A

approx 25 million tonnes

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16
Q

What are the benefits of using Jute as a fibre?

A
  • Jute (Corchorus olitorius) is one of the most affordable natural fibers (bast, or phloem fiber)
  • second only tocotton in the amount produced (global production - 3.5 million tonnes
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17
Q

Why is bamboo a suitable alternative to cotton?

What is the drawback however?

A
  • fast growing and sustainable

- extensive chemical treatment is required in processing (viscose rayon).

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18
Q

What is the traditional fibre crop of Europe?

A

Hemp + France is the largest producer.

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19
Q

What is Hemp mainly used for?

A

linen production

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20
Q

Why does Hemp yield low global production?

A
  • made illegal to grow in USA without a specific licence and quality standards
  • illegal in UK, low-scale production has resumed since the 1990s.
    (global production – 68 thousand tonnes)
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21
Q

What could be used as an alternative fibre crop and what suggests this?

A

Nettles

  • Archaeological remains in Denmark and Britain have highlighted the use of nettles as a source of string and cloth in Neolithic times.
  • Drag nets for fishing were made from nettle fibre in Britain down to post-medieval times
  • First world war, Britain controlled 90% of the world’s cotton trade. Nettles were developed as an alternative, and were used to make uniforms for German troops. The end of the war and the development of synthetic fibres meant that nettle cloth never took off, but it remains a forgotten sustainable alternative.
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22
Q

Why is cultivating nettles for textile fibers a much more sustainable alternative to cotton?

A

its growth rate and low-maintenance qualities mean it requires minimal amounts of water and no pesticides

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23
Q

Why is Hemp much more sustainable than cotton?

A

Hemp is much more resistant than cotton. It is hypoallergenic and non-irritating to the skin. In fact, hemp is one of the most environmentally friendly fabrics currently available. The plant is very naturally resistant to pests and growth requires little water.

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24
Q

Is cotton sustainable?

A

Cotton is sustainable, renewable, and biodegradable

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25
Q

Where is nettle used to weave in the world?

A

Nepal - weave fabric!
For centuries the Rai people have extracted these fibres by boiling and beating the bark of the stems then spinning them to weave sacks, bags, straps and jackets or to knot fishing nets for use in their homes or to barter trade.

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26
Q

What percentage of chemicals are bio-based?

A

only approx. 5%

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27
Q

In the chemical industry, what market volume is by far the largest?

A

Plastics

- many developments towards taking the step from petrochemical to renewable raw materials

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28
Q

Is it possible to replace plastic?

A

From a chemical perspective, nearly all building blocks for plastics can be made using renewable raw materials, but not every process is commercially feasible.

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29
Q

Where can we see a big shift to change chemical industry to be more sustainable??

A

Holland intends its entire chemical manufacturing industry to be bio-based by 2050.

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30
Q

What are bioplastics?

A

Bioplastics are plastic materials produced from renewable biomass sources

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31
Q

What are the benefits of bioplastics?

A
  • carbon neutral

- can be recycled, don’t need to biodegrade!

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32
Q

What biomass sources are used to make bioplastic?

A

vegetable fats and oils, corn starch, straw, woodchips, sawdust, recycled food waste

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33
Q

How are bioplastics carbon neutral?

A

Carbon is derived from photosynthesis so when subsequently released into atmosphere by biodegradation or energy from waste, it will not cause a net increase in GHGs.

34
Q

Why don’t bioplastics have to biodegrade?

A

Durables like polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) can be made from plants and are identical to their petrochemical counterparts – they can be processed using the same machinery and can be recycled.

35
Q

What does it mean for something to be biodegraded?

A

decomposed by bacteria or other living organisms

36
Q

List examples of bioplastics

A
  • PLA (Poly or polylactic acid or polylactide )
  • Bio-based PET
  • Bio-based PE
  • Bio-based PP
  • PHAs – Polyhydroxyalkanoates
37
Q

What is PLA?

A

Poly or polylactic acid or polylactide is a biodegradable thermoplastic aliphatic polyester derived from renewable resources, such as corn starch, tapioca roots, chips or starch, or sugarcane. (100,000 tonnes per annum)

38
Q

What is bio-based PET?

A

Bio-based PET - Polyethylene Terephtalate (PET) resin manufactured from the same petro-sourced element as normal PET – terephtalic acid – but this time from bio-sourced ethlylene glycol. Here the ethylene glycol is obtained from plants such as sugar cane and sugar beet

39
Q

What is bio-based PE?

A

Bio-based PE – Polyethylene manufactured from ethanol from renewable resources.

40
Q

What is bio-based PP?

A

Bio-based PP – Polypropylene manufactured from ethanol from renewable resources.

41
Q

What are PHA’s?

A

PHAs – Polyhydroxyalkanoates, are produced from bacterial fermentation of sugar or lipids.

42
Q

Why are PHA’s gaining increasing attention in the biodegradable polymer market?

A

due to their promising properties such as high biodegradability in different environments.

43
Q

How can all biomass material can be used to produce energy?

A

Energy is stored in chemical bonds of products of photosynthesis. (Plants)

44
Q

Give examples of solid fuels

A

heat and power (electricity)

45
Q

Give examples of liquid fuels

A

transport fuels – biodiesel and bioethanol

46
Q

What is the primary energy supply globally? (2016)

A

Oil

47
Q

What are the benefits of oil?

A

high energy density (small amount of oil can produce a large amount of energy)
versatility (supplying energy to power industry, heat homes and provide fuel for vehicles and aeroplanes)

48
Q

What country uses the most oil?

A

The United States - consumed 18.5 million barrels of oil per day (mbd) in 2012, which accounted for nearly 20% of the world’s total oil consumption per day.

49
Q

How much of global oil consumption is used to enable transportation systems?

A

approximately 71%

50
Q

Can biofuels be used in transportation?

A

Transportation fuels are made from biomass through biochemical or thermochemical processes.
Ethanol can be used in its pure form (neat), as a blend with gasoline, or as a fuel for fuel cells.
Also use methanol, biodiesel, biocrude, and methane

51
Q

How has transport biofuel production expanded?

Has it reached SDS of 2030?

A

Transport biofuel production expanded 7% year-on-year in 2018, and 3% annual production growth is expected over the next five years.
Falls short - 10% output growth per year needed until 2030 to allign with SDS

52
Q

How can we advance biofuel consumption of transport?

A

Stronger policy support + innovation to reduce costs

53
Q

What are the different types of biofuels and how are they characterised?

A
  • 1st, 2nd and 3rd generation biofuels.
  • characterized : sources of biomass
    limitations as a renewable source of energy
    technological progress.
54
Q

What is an important source of biodiesel in tropical and subtropical areas of the globe?

A

Jatropha curcas (Barbados or Purging Nut (High oil production – 2800 l/ha/year)

55
Q

What are first generation biofuels?

A

The first generation biofuels refer to the fuels that have been derived from sources like starch, sugar, animal fats and vegetable oil.

56
Q

List popular types of first generation biofuels

A

Biodiesel
Vegetable Oil
Biogas
Bioalcohols (Ethanol - alcohols produced by the use if enzymes and micro organisms through the process of fermentation of starches and sugar)

57
Q

What are second generation biofuels?

A

Second generation biofuels are biofuels produced from sustainable feedstock

58
Q

Give examples of second generation biofuels?

A

biohydrogen, biomethanol

59
Q

What is the difference between traditional ethanol production and cellulosic ethanol?

A

Feedstock : cellulosic feedstock
Traditional ethanol - grinds corn kernels to release the starch, which is then fermented.
Cellulosic ethanol - starts with the biomass or plant materials and breaks down the cell wall to release the starch or sugars in the plants leaves and stems.

60
Q

What are cellulosic feedstocks?

A

composed : cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin

non-food based and include crop residues, wood residues, dedicated energy crops, and industrial and other wastes.

61
Q

Why is cellulosic ethanol more sustainable?

A
  • contributes little to the greenhouse effect
  • five times better net energy balance than corn-based ethanol.
  • as fuel, cellulosic ethanol releases less sulfur, carbon monoxide, particulates, and greenhouse gases.
62
Q

What are third generation biofuels?

A

microbiological processing (algae)

63
Q

List biofuels we can get from algae (3rd generation)

A 
Biodiesel
Butanol
Gasoline
Methane
Ethanol
Vegetable Oil
Jet Fue
64
Q

What are the benefits and disadvantages of using algae to make biofuels?

A

Benefits : can use a diverse array of carbon sources.
algae might be tied directly to carbon emitting sources (power plants, industry, etc.) where they could directly convert emissions into usable fuel. This means that no carbon dioxide would be released from these settings and thus total emissions would be reduced substantially.
deal breaker : Algae, even when grown in waste water, require large amounts of water, nitrogen and phosphorus to grow. So much in fact that the production of fertilizer to meet the needs of algae used to produce biofuel would produce more greenhouse gas emissions than were saved by using algae based biofuel to begin with.
- cost of algae-base biofuel is much higher than fuel from other sources

65
Q

What is the ideal biomass crop?

A 
High outputs (yield)
- Early canopy closure
- Long growing season
- High rates of photosynthesis
- High harvest index
Low inputs
- Fertilizer - High nutrient use efficiency
- Water - High water use efficiency
- Management – Perennial crop, few pests and diseases etc.
66
Q

What are Perennial grasses?

A

fundamental components of lawns, meadows and pastures because they return year after year without the labor and expense involved in preparing soil and sowing seed.

67
Q

Why are perennial grasses considered the ideal biomass crop?

A
  • high resource-use efficiency
  • high-productivity
  • good environmental qualities
  • wide range of end uses.
  • high rates of soil carbon sequestration
  • enhanced biodiversity and soil stabilisation.
  • naturally colonise marginal areas of land (little value), which often impose severe restrictions on the growth of vegetation.
68
Q

What do marginal conditions comprise of?

A
  • poorly drained soils
  • soils with high salt concentrations
  • sites prone to severe cold and frost stress and drought prone sites.
69
Q

Give an example of a perennial grass

A

Miscanthus of East Asia origin - produces g2 biofuel

70
Q

Why is Miscanthus good biomass?

A

High potential productivity
High nutrient use efficiency
High water use efficiency
High carbon sequestering potential
Huge resource of breeding material in Asia
Huge range of end uses – combustion and construction materials

71
Q

Why hasn’t miscanthus ‘taken off’ yet in Ireland?

A

Establishment of fields expensive.
Losses after planting.
Optimum harvesting methods and timing not established.
No existing power station to combust biomass.
No power purchase agreements or contracts.
Uncertainties about agricultural subsidies.
Alternatives, particularly wind power, better marketed.

72
Q

How come miscanthus plants are high yielding?

A
  • are propagated commercially using rhizomes which are planted in rows and allowed to grow up each year before harvesting.
  • can produce commercial yields for 15–20 years before they need replanting.
73
Q

What is the species of miscanthus used in europe?

A

hybrid Miscanthus giganteus

74
Q

What are important characteristics of miscanthus?

A
  • rhizomatous
  • C4 - photosynthesis
  • Lodging resistance, Tough stems
75
Q

How does miscanthus have a higher potential efficiency of light?

A

C4 photosynthesis
C3 photosynthesis produces a three-carbon compound via the Calvin cycle while C4 photosynthesis makes an intermediate four-carbon compound that splits into a three-carbon compound for the Calvin cycle

76
Q

What are the benefits of c4 photosynthesis?

A

no photorespiration (enzyme RuBisCO oxygenates RuBP, wasting some of the energy produced by photosynthesis)
CO2 fixation is resistant to heat and drought
higher water use efficiency

77
Q

What is lodging?

A

Lodging is the bending over of the stems near ground level of grain crops, which makes them very difficult to harvest, and can dramatically reduce yield.

78
Q

How is Miscanthus lodging resistant?

A

Good lodging resistance requires short, strong stems and a sturdy root system to anchor the plant in the soil.

79
Q

How can lodging occur in plants?

A
  • higher N application
  • higher wind speed
  • excessive soil moisture
  • soil density
  • storm damage
  • sowing date or over plant population
80
Q

What are the environmental costs of growing miscanthus?

A
  • Increased GHC emissions from cultivation.
  • Increased GHG emissions from land use change.
  • Increased Invasiveness.
  • Biodiversity loss.
81
Q

Why must miscanthus be propogated?

A

M. giganteus is a sterile hybrid so it produces no seed - rhizome fragments

Sustainable Production (7 decks)

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