Biohydrogen: the next green alternative fuel
Hydrogen has a high energy content (120-142.9 MJ/kg); it is a clean energy carrier and can replace fossil fuels. Hydrogen is already a fuel of choice for space programs; it guarantees environmental quality and mitigates climate change. However, the presently used commercial methods for its production are not environmentally friendly; they require a major energy
Bioenergy: fine, if from side streams
Why cannot we lift all barriers for the use of bioenergy? Because the energy sector is much larger than the food sector. The 20 billion tons of fossil fuels that mankind uses each year, is equivalent to 40 billion tons of biomass; whereas our yearly harvest for food is 9 billion tons, of which 3
Limits to biomass use
Since the turn of the century, there is a discussion raging on the limits to biomass use for energy purposes, in order to control man-made CO2 emissions. After having been greeted with enthusiasm at first, bioenergy is now met with many more restrictions. How do we look upon this after all these years? This is
First generation bioethanol deserves revaluation, says nova-Institute
European biofuel policy is being revised. November last year, the new draft renewable energy directive (RED II) has been proposed, and decisions on it will be taken in the coming months. The main difference with RED I is a further reduction of the amount of first generation biofuels. Nova-Institute reviewed the underlying scientific evidence and
Drop-ins lead the biobased economy astray
Earlier this year, German nova-Institute published another thoughtful document on the biobased economy. It starts out from the observation that ten years of European policy making have not been very successful. The amount of biomass used in the European chemical and plastics industry has stagnated. The only sectors showing growth are the bioenergy and biofuel
Thermocatalytic reforming makes most of biomass
The German start-up Susteen Technologies GmbH will come to the Netherlands with its thermocatalytic reforming process (TCR®), an improved pyrolysis technology. Its customers will locally transform various kinds of biomass into synthesis gas, charcoal and oil of diesel quality, to be used as a fuel or for further processing. This will enable them to use
Biorenewables key to reduce CO2 emissions, says macroeconomic study
The launch of a new macroeconomic scenario study marked the opening of the ECO-BIO conference in Rotterdam today. Biorenewables fulfil a key role in climate policy and in future economic development, says the LEI/Copernicus report, concentrating on the Netherlands. In the words of Luuk van der Wielen (Director BE-Basic, one of the supporting organisations): ‘The
Cellulosic ethanol: feedstock costs predominant, sugar cane cheapest
Cellulosic ethanol costs vary greatly among the six units now in operation across the world, according to Lux Research. The single most important factor contributing to the cost differences is feedstock costs. Sugar cane straw costs are half those of corn stover. Price differences indicate that innovation is needed in several relevant areas, says Lux.
