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Biofuel
Biofuels Some of the most common biofuels include :
1 . Ethanol . The most common biofuel , produced through the fermentation of sugar and starches and cellulose ( second generation ). It can be blended with gasoline . An important producer is Brazil , where ethanol is made from cellulosic biomass such as bagasse .
2 . SAF . Sustainable aviation fuels are a viable solution for aircraft , where electrification is a very limited option . It can be produced from waste oils , agricultural residues and CO 2 captured from the atmosphere . United , Delta and Lufthansa are among the airlines committed to using SAF , and Shell and BP are building facilities to produce it .
3 . Biodiesel is produced from oils or fats using the chemical reaction transesterification . Along with LNG and hydrogen , it is a promising candidate fuel for HGVs and large ships . It can be blended with traditional diesel . In 2002 , West Central ( later Renewable Energy Group ) opened one of the world ’ s biggest continuous-flow processing plants for processing soybean oil into biodiesel fuel .
4 . Biogas ( biomethane ) is a mixture of methane and CO 2
. Its feedstock is normally waste or agricultural residues , and one of its most common uses is in waste to energy ( WtE ). Bacteria break down the feedstock in the absence of oxygen ( anaerobic digestion ) to produce biogas , which can be injected into the gas grid or used to generate heat and / or electricity ( combined heat and power ). A byproduct of
How district heating works : ( 1 ) Waste is combusted to heat water , which ( 2 ) is circulated in the district via insulated pipes ( with inner lining made from stainless steel ); ( 3 ) in each building a substation receives the hot water , which then passes to a heat exchanger . ( 4 ) A secondary circuit inside each building distributes heating and hot water to each residence within the building . Photo : James Chater , from a poster announcing a project in Le Mans , northern France .
the process , called digestate , is a good natural fertilizer .
5 . Syngas , or synthetic gas , consists of hydrogen and carbon monoxide , often with some CO 2 and methane . It can replace gasoline and is also used to produce ammonia or methanol .
Pros and cons The main argument in favour of bioenergy is that it decarbonizes the production of energy by relying on feedstock that is self-renewing : the CO 2 absorbed by plants as they grow offsets some of the CO 2 emitted during the manufacture process . ( In addition , Bioenergy Carbon Capture and Storage – BECCS – can be applied .) The case for biofuels is especially powerful for heavy-duty transport systems where the prospects of electrification are limited : jet aircraft , large ships , HGVs , heavy industry ( Outokumpu , for example , is building a pelletizing plant that will allow it to replace fossil coke with biomass in its stainless-steel production ). A third advantage of bioenergy is the opportunity to cut waste and advance the circular economy . Waste-to-energy ( WtE ) in combination with district
Pipelaying for district heating in Le Mans , France . Photo : James Chater .
“ Weed ” to energy
Hemp has the potential to be a rich source of ethanol / methanol and biodiesel . Research is not yet far advanced , but initial tests of hemp fuel suggest they are less carbon-intensive and cheaper to produce , while burning them emits up to 80 % less greenhouse gases than traditional gasoline . The feedstock in question is industrial hemp ( Cannabis sativa L .), which is similar to but not identical with the psychoactive plant known as marijuana ( 2 ) . www . heat-exchanger-world . com Heat Exchanger World February 2025
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