Schlumberger -Private Chapter II. Biomass energy [615175]

Schlumberger -Private Chapter II. Biomass energy

I.1 Biomass energy provision and use

Biomass commonly referes to organic matter existing in the biosphere, including plants and
animals, as well as those subtances obtained through their natural or artificial transformation.
Different types of bio -fuels (liquid, gas and solid) can be obtained from biomass and used to
generate electrical power and heat according to their properties. The sustainable use of biomass
wastes to produce fuels can be achieved when there is formed a closed cycle of CO 2; in this way
wastes are not disposed in the field, moreover the environment is keept clean and economical
benefits can be generated as well. There are three main types of products that can be generated
from biomass conversion: electrical/heat energy, transport fuel, chemical feedstock.
An overwhelming part of biomass available for bioenergy production comes from plants and
animals . A first classification can be made taking in consideration biomass origin: agricultural
activities, silviculture activities, urban and industrial sector. If consider the nature of biomass, it
can be class ified as:
– Biomass from energy crops
– Biomass from agricultur e or forestry wastes

Biomass from energy crops
Biomass is represented by most of the energy crops

Annual grass crops
Modern agricultural industry is dominated by herbaceous plants such as barley, oat, rye . The seeds
of these cereals play an important role in biomass industry, because of their high starch content
that can be used in technological processes for biofuels and energy production.

Perennial grass crops

Schlumberger -Private Plants from this category that can be used as raw material for the production of bioenergy when
economically viable. Plants such as: stuff and reed which are fast growing species are examples of
grassy crops that can make good use of available nutrients t o increase biomass productivity. On
the other hand, other agronomic features still present weakness, such as floral sterility, prohibitive
costs for setting up the culture, high moisture content of the harvested product and high ash content.
(Ranalli P., 2 010).

Oil crops

Culturile oleaginoase cuprind culturi anuale de semințe oleaginoase și culturi de arbori pereni
oleaginoși.

Crops with oil seeds

From an agronomic point of view, oilseed crops have a different evolutionary history than grain
crops, th erefore they can bring additional benefits as a secondary crop to reduce pathogens in the
soil.
Sunflower and soy are the most representative oleaginous crop from European Union area.
Vegetable oil is tippically extracted by mechanical pressing and is usua lly used in cosmetics, soap
and food industry. Oils in these crops also contain other seed constituents (proteins or starch). The
lignocellulosic part of oleaginous crops, which is traditionally used as mulch or feed, can also be
burned to produce energy or heat, while vegetable oils can be used for higher value bioenergy
applications, especially as a substitute for diesel fuel (Crucible Carbon, 2010) .
Vegetable oils derived from these cultures are modified and commonly named as biodiesel that
can became in the future an alternative fuel.

Culturile de arbori oleaginoși

Currently there are some oil -producing trees such as: coconut, macadamia and palm. Nowadays,
palm oil is used in developed countries to produce edible oil as well as bio diesel. The use o f edible

Schlumberger -Private oil can have negative effects in the developing countries if large area of land are used for this
scope.
The use of inedible vegetable oils when compared to edible oils is very significant in developing
countries because of the huge demand for ed ible oils, which are far too expensive to use as fuel
today. The production of biodiesel from various non -edible oils has been intensively researched in
recent years 2 (Balat M., 2010).
Oil crops with low nutritional value can be a resource for bioenergy a nd, as perennial crops, can
also benefit by "sequestering" the carbon. Non -food crops will not show any cost variations
associated with food insurance and supply issues .

Lignocellulosic cultures

Lignocellulosic cultures include perennial grassy crops and other arboreal crops . Wood species
such as: paulownia, willow, poplar have received increased attention due to their high biomass
production, efficient use of nutrients, their low potential for soil erosion, carbon sequestration and
low fossil fuel input compared to annual crops (Abbasi T. et al, 2009 ).

Biomass from agricultur e, forestry wastes or residues

In developing countries agricultur e and forestry industry have

Biogenetic wastes from the urban and industrial sector

Wastes generated from urban and industrial sector are an attractive source of biomas s that is cheap,
and already collected by the city’s inhabitants. Using o rganic fraction, also called biogenic fraction
from this industries is possible to create bioenergy from biomass, throug h anaerobic digestion.
A special mention have to made for the use of cooking oil for biodiesel production. Biofuel
production from cooking oil for partial replacing of oil is a solution to two of the issue that modern
society is dealing currently: environ mental protection and energy crisis.

Schlumberger -Private Residues and w astes from agriculture industry

In case of Romania, agriculture industry is well developed, almost half of the population living in
the rural area, exploiting land available, therefore high quantities of wastes are generated every
single year. Inteligent use of these wastes can help out country to produce biofuels or bioenergy
that is cheaper and environmental friendly compared with use of fossil fuels.
Major wastes from agriculture sector include vegetable residues, husks, straws and nutshells. Two
types of waste can be distinguished:
– Wastes from the field – material left on the field after harvesting (leaves, seeds).
– Processing wastes – material remaining after harvesting process

Residues and wastes from forestry sector

For people living in developing countries, wood is one of the main resource and is used as the
main fuel for energy production at small scale in rural areas where there is no other enery source.
Wood is a competitor for fossil fuels being used mostly in ru ral areas for cooking and heating, as
well as in industrial and commercial processes . Wastes generated by activities related with forestry
industry , such as: lumber factory, represent an attractive source of biomass that can produce
energy.
Compared with agriculture industry, forestry wastes are considerated to be a better fuel, but their
density lead to high cost of transportation. Another important aspect is that CO2 emission from
forestry residues are lower that those from agriculture, due to fertilizer s and pesticides .

Schlumberger -Private I.2 Environmentally sustainable land use for energy biomass or food
production

At global scale, energy demand substantially increase d, but the way society is trying to support
this growth is not sustainable. So far, biomass energy is considerated the best strategy towards
sustainable development that sees the fastest rate with significant increase of power generation and
biofuels for transport as well.
Agriculture and f orestry industry produce the biggest amout of biomass worldwide, therefore
biomass feedstock have to be produced sustainable in orderd to avoid issues related with food
security, land scaricity and greenhouse gas emissions .
As the result of the increased u se of biomass in both, developed and developing countries, series
of socioeconomic, environment and land -use measures have been adopted to avoid certain
imbalances which can affect society and environment simultaneously. For example, surplus
agriculture la nd in EEC ( European Economic Community) is planned to reach 15 ha in the next
few year, while in USA, 30 ha are already under Conservation Reserve Program.
If compared with other forms of energy, biomass requires land to grow on and therefore topics like
how and by whom, that land should be used have to be managed properly. For this reason, biomass
production can also be considerated problematic, because of its facets and all different areas of
interaction (forestry, agriculture, societal factors).
There have been differentiated two main approaches of how land for biomass production can be
used. So called “technocratic” approach, concentrate on the use of biomass itself, ignoring the
other possibles uses of biomass. This approach follows only the energy n eeds and profit, as the
most of the energy companies which completely ignore the side -effects of biomass plantations as
well as advices from local farmers. Projects implementing the technocratic approch have failed
showing that this is not the right attit ude when comes to biomass production.
The other approach is “multi -uses” and is the one which considers sustainable development first
and how biomass and food production can work together to give the best results.
Land for biomass production is tied up with food production, sustainable development,
environment, therefore this two modern issue are long debated. Food and fuel debate has to be
carefully examinated in t he context of actual situation around the world , because many developing
countries are fac ing both, food and fuel problems. Agriculture practicies have to be actively

Schlumberger -Private encouraged, to develop efficent methods for better utilization of available land, as well as other
resourches in order to meet food and fuel needs.
A concrete case is Brazil. It is very well known that Brazil has a programme ProAlcohol and is
producing important quantities of ethanol fuel, representing 26.1 percent of the world’s total
ethanol used. Food shortages and price increases were associated with this programme, but in
reality governemnt economic policy regarding agriculture was the main problem. It has been
shown that food shortages happened due to government policies biased towards commodity export
crops, currency devaluations, hyper inflation. Any negative effects result ed from this ProAlcohol
programme, is just a small part of the overall problem that Brazil faced with. There were many
social and economic benefits on local and national scale which accured from this programme.
Biomass planatations for bioenergy were successful in countries such as India, Thailanda where
wood plantations are used for constructions and other industrial uses not for biofuel production. In
Malawi, fuel wood is not the principal crop, because there are other crops farmers plant so they
can get profit.
Sustainable land for food production, land availability and energy are the main questions modern
society have to find a sollution in the context of energy and population growth. By the year 2030 ,
world population will increase up to 8 bilion, so this situation raises the problem if they can be
adequately fed. In order to sustain this increase of population , beside increased agricultur e
production, political changes that priotirise the agricluture, change people attitude, provide
incentives and motivate farmers. If government and local authorities, will support more, in the
future farmers, they will definetely find the capacity to produce more food and energy than before.
Programmes for bioenergy production that couple with intergrated farming ar e able to improve
food production, increase energy and income in areas where is needed, everything done in a
environmentally sustainable maner. Involvment of scientific and technological parties are
neccesary to achieve sustainable food production , but the most difficult obstacle may have to do
with politics, economics and sociology.
Nowadays, society is concerned about the land that is suggested to be converted in order to produce
green energy in context where many people around the world are starving, bu the problem lies in
food production and consumption, implying inequality, lack of appropriate credit from government
investments along with infrastructure and political incertitudes ,

Schlumberger -Private I.3 Increasing of energy provision

Cresterea randamentului pentru productia de biomasa. Folosirea
ingrasamintelor pentru a spori productivitatea biomasei. Cu cat la % se poate
creste. Este sau nu rentabil folosirea ingrasamintelor?

Schlumberger -Private I.4 Actual contribution of biomass to world energy supply

Currently , biomass resource used for energy generation is the main contributor to renewable
energy at global scale, with more than 10% of the total energy consumption which corresponds
with 25 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (mboe/day) (= 45EJ). Globally, energy supplies
are dominated by fossil fuels (388 EJ/yr), while nuclear power (26 EJ/yr) and hydropower (28
EJ/yr) have smaller contributions compared with biomass which by far is the most important
renewable energy source used at this time.
In most of th e developing , countries biomass is used in the form of heat, while bioenergy
consumption is done in the traditional way. Overall, woody biomass ensures about 90% of the
primary energy annually sourced from all types of biomass. For developing countries bio mass
appears to be the most important source of energy, about 35%, but there are also industrial
countries where energy is obtained from biomass: USA 4% and Sweden 14% , aiming to increase
bioenergy production in the future.
An important fact that needs to be taken in consideration is that by 2050 , nearly 90% of the world’s
population will reside in developing countries , so biomass will always be available, for this reason
biomass energy production technologies and delivery systems have to be improved in order to
offer people the energy needed for their activities.
Biomass energy from forest and agricultural wastes is estimated at about 30 EJ/yr, compared with
world -wide energy supply demand of over 400 EJ. In the future, biomass demand will be higher,
compared to these days, so cultivation of energy crops on fallow and marginal land will be required
in order to sustain the energy demand. Scientiest estimated that, by 2050, half of the necessary
energy consumption growing energy demand, around 400 EJ/yr could be met by biomass and more
than 60% of the electricity required , could be supplied by renewab les sources, of which biomass
plyas an important role . (Price, 1998).
In UK, government target is to produce 10% (60 GW/yr) of the electricity need from biom ass
sources, because it is abundant and the effects upon the environment are smaller compared with
fossil fuels.

Schlumberger -Private

Schlumberger -Private I.5 Modern uses of biomass and its b asic economics and policy

Biomass energy is considerated as a low quality fuel that can not win the “fight” against fossil
fuels in modern developed economies nowadays. Most of the current energy comes from fossil
fuels which is not a renewable source of energy and have a negative impact on the environment,
because of the GHG emisions. Nevertheless, biomass is the renewable source that can replace
fossil fuels in the future, being able to be converted to electricity via turbines , liquid fuel via
ethanol and for heating generation. In the future, biomass is seen as an attractive feedstock for the
chemical industry via synthesis gas or ethanol. Another sector in which biomass served as an
important raw material for many years, producing cosmetics and soap.
Many countries adopted policies in order to reduce the traditional uses of biomass, because of the
high rate of deforestation, health and social issues, however encouraged the modern uses as a part
of the future plan with low carbon energy system. Differ ent types of conversion devices are also
available on the market from small domestic boilers, ovens and stoves to large scale boilers even
power plants.
World -wide are over 2 billion tonnes of wood and agricultural residues availabe which is a vast
quantity from wchich energy can be extracted every year , if processing technology would be
modernized . A very important aspect lies in the way global residues could be economically and
sustainably recovered , because it can ensure about 10% of the global electric ity (10 000
TWh/year). Programs of planting vast areas with trees are also taken in consideration (100 million
ha) beacause could rise the supply to world energy to 30%.
For most of the industrialized countries with modern appplication of biomass, governm ent is the
is the principal factor that drives the market and is vital to remain so in next couple of years. Many
countries consider biomass as a sustainable alternative option for reduction of fossil fuels use
which dominate the markets of power generatio n. In the future energy biomass can be put together
and form a system of energy supply that is environmentally sustainable and could also create
employment. If compared to conventional fossil fuels, overall , energy obtained from biomass
seems to have small impacts at local scale than , whereas fossil fuels effects are more large and
distributed.

Schlumberger -Private But biomass energy still faces many barriers economic, social, institutional and technical. Biomass
energy sources are very large and varied in nature, and technol ogies for exploiting them span a
very diverse range in terms of scale, stage of development, and development, requirements to be
able to provide resonably good understanding of the subject. While traditional biomass energy -use
has long been with us, the fu ture chalange is to focus on more economically justifible, and
environmentally sound, advanced biomass systems, while assuring at the same time that traditional
production and use is as efficient as possible and also sustainable.

Both directly and indirec tly, biomass policies also play a role in international climate negotiations,
for several reasons. Firstly, because modern uses of biomass provide promising GHG mitigation
routes that might also contribute to rural development in developing countries and s timulate the
agricultural and forestry sectors in industrialised countries – and if more sustainable trade is
assumed, also in developing countries and emerging economies. However, increased use of
biomass for energy can also lead to deforestation as a res ult of uncontrolled biomass production
practices and may thus also have a negative impact on global and regional GHG mitigation
capacities. While many countries using biomass thus see the benefits of biomass policies, in
countries with underdeveloped susta inability governance, negative impacts may prevail.

Over the past decades, the modern use of biomass has increased rapidly in many parts of the world.
In the light of the Kyoto GHG reduction targets, many countries have ambitious targets for further
bioma ss utilisation. Oil price increases have also increased the level of interest in bioenergy.

Modern bioenergy (commercial energy production from biomass for industry, power generation,
or transport fuels) makes a lower, but still very significant contribution (some 7 EJ per year in
2000), and this share is growing. It is estimated that by 2000, 40 GW of biomass -based electricity
production capacity was installed worldwide (producing 0.6 EJ electricity per year) and 200 GW
of heat production capacit y (2.5 EJ heat per year) [WEA, 2000]. B