Biomass as an energy source: opportunities and problems

Rumen Popov

Abstract: The biomass is a transformed form of solar energy, contained in the vegetal and animal organisms. It serves people as a direct source of food, energy, building materials etc. By its nature the biomass is one of the most important accumulators of solar energy and its total composition is determined by the capacity of transformation of this energy through the photosynthesis in the plant world. There are numerous forms of biomass forms, which could be used for energy purposes: wood and wood waste, energy-saturated crops, agricultural waste, straw, corn stalks, liquid waste from livestock breeding, etc., sludge from treatment plants. The biomass types are: bioenergy resources; agricultural crops; oilseed crops; exudates (chemical materials from plants); household and animal waste. About 10% of the world energy needs were satisfied through the biomass, especially in the Third World countries. At the same time the forests alone could assure an energy potential bigger than the necessity of the all mankind. We should consider that the use of the different biomass parts as an energy source faces different contradictions, namely: a contradiction with food producers; the use of non-agricultural lands has weak effect; the resistance from fuel manufacturers, etc. Different ways of biomass processing have been elaborated – fuel production from plant and animal waste, including technological decisions, biodiesel, thermochemical technologies for biomass use – various plants and wastes, pyrolysis and gasification. The use of the biomass for energy aims could give a new starting point for the mankind development. But it requires solutions allowing the overcoming of not easy problems – the first of these is the rise in food prices, mainly for developing countries. Secondly, the strong increase of bio-crops does not give a complete solution of the threat of environmental damage – it does not necessarily lead to an automatic reduction of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The target of this article is to give a general characteristic of the biomass and of existing technological solutions for its realisation for energy needs and on this base, to make conclusions for its use from the point of view of nourishing the world’s population and protecting the environment. The research was carried out by various methods such as comparative analysis, quantitative and qualitative analysis, statistical and expert evaluations.

Keywords: biodiesel; bioenergy; biomass; technological decisions; thermochemical technologies

Date published: 2020-04-04