BIOMASS ENERGY

SETH ANANDRAM JAIPURIA

COLLEGE

REGISTRATION NO. : 224-1121-1690-16

DEPARTMENT : B.COM(HONS)
SHIFT : EVENING
SESSION : 2018-2019
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am thankful to all respected Professors

and Teachers for advice and computations,
with their guidance and supervision I have
been able to complete this project. I am
thankful to my Professor Smt. Munmun
Kundu for giving me this topic. I have been
able to lean a lot about it.

_____________________
Signature of the Teacher
 CONTENTS

 INTRODOCTION
 METHODS OF EXTRACTING
BIOMASS ENERGY
 USES OF BIOMASS ENERGY IN
INDIA
 SOURCES OF BIOMASS
 ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATION
OF BIOMASS ENERGY
 CONCLUSION
& RECOMMENDATION
 REFERENCE
 INTRODUCTION
Biomass is a term used to describe all organic matter produced by
photosynthesis, existing on the earth’s surface. They include all water-
and land-based vegetation and trees, and all waste biomass such as
municipal solid waste (MSW), municipal bio-solids (sewage), and
animal wastes (manures), forestry and agricultural residues, and certain
types of industrial wastes. The world's energy markets have relied
heavily on the fossil fuels. Biomass is the only other naturally occurring
energy-containing carbon resource that is large enough in quantity to be
used as a substitute for fossil fuels. Through the process of
photosynthesis, chlorophyll in plants captures the sun's energy by
converting carbon dioxide from the air and water from the ground into
carbohydrates, i.e., complex compounds composed of carbon,
hydrogen, and oxygen. When these carbohydrates are burned, they
turn back into carbon dioxide and water and release the sun's energy
they contain. In this way, biomass functions as a sort of natural battery
for storing solar energy. The exploitation of energy from biomass has
played a key role in the evolution of mankind. Until relatively recently
it was the only form of energy which was usefully exploited by humans
and is still the main source of energy for more than half the world’s
population for domestic energy needs. One of the simplest forms of
biomass is a basic open fire used to provide heat for cooking, warming
water or warming the air in our home. More sophisticated technologies
exist for extracting this energy and converting it into useful heat or
power in an efficient way. Unlike fossil fuels, biomass is renewable in
the sense that only a short period of time is needed to replace what is
used as an energy resource. Biomass also is the only renewable energy
source that releases carbon dioxide in use. However the release is
compensated by the fact that the biomass grown uses the carbon
dioxide from the atmosphere to store energy during photosynthesis. If
the biomass resource is being used sustainably, there are no net carbon
emissions over the time frame of a cycle of biomass production. Image
1 shows a biomass energy cycle and the way biomass is utilized for
energy generation in an environmentally friendly scheme.

IMAGE 1: BIOMASSENERGY CYCLE.

 METHODS OF EXTRACTING
BIOMASS ENERGY
Biomass energy is created by the burning (combustion) or biochemical
conversion of any organic matter to be used for fuel. Some of the
organic materials used as a source for biomass energy include wood,
sawdust, grasses, corn, sugarcane, farm waste(cow manure), and other
plant life. Biomass can be converted to thermal energy, liquid, solid or
gaseous fuels and other chemical products through a variety of
conversion processes.

1. Direct Combustion
This is perhaps the simplest method of extracting energy from biomass.
Industrial biomass combustion facilities can burn many types of
biomass fuel, including wood, agricultural residues, wood pulping
liquor, municipal solid waste (MSW) and refuse-derived fuel. Biomass
is burned to produce steam, the steam turns a turbine and the turbine
drives a generator producing electricity. Because of potential ash build-
up (which fouls boilers, reduces efficiency and increases costs), only
certain types of biomass materials are used for direct combustion.

2. Gasification
Gasification is a process that exposes a solid fuel to high temperatures
and limited oxygen, to produce a gaseous fuel. The gas produced by
the process as shown in Image 2 is a mix of gases such as carbon
monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, hydrogen, and methane. The gas
is then use to drive a high- efficiency, combined-cycle gas turbine.
Gasification has several advantages over burning solid fuel. One is
convenience – one of the resultant gases, methane, can be treated in a
similar way as natural gas, and used for the same purposes.

IMAGE 2: GASIFICATION PROCESS.

Another advantage of gasification is that it produces a fuel that has had
many impurities removed and could therefore cause fewer pollution
problems when burnt. Under suitable circumstances, it can also
produce synthesis gas, a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen
which can be used to make hydrocarbon (e.g., methane and methanol)
for replacing fossil fuels. Hydrogen itself is a potential fuel without
much pollution which can conceivably substitute oil and petroleum in a
foreseeable future

3. Pyrolysis
In its simplest form, pyrolysis represents heating the biomass to drive
off the volatile matter and leaving behind the charcoal. This process
has doubled the energy density of the original material because
charcoal, which is half the weight of the original biomass, contains the
same amount of energy, making the fuel more transportable. The
charcoal also burns at a much higher temperature than the original
biomass, making it more useful for manufacturing processes. More
sophisticated pyrolysis techniques are developed recently to collect
volatiles that are otherwise lost to the system. The collected volatiles
produce a gas which is rich in hydrogen (a potential fuel) and carbon
monoxide. These compounds are synthesized into methane, methanol,
and other hydrocarbons. The steps involved in this process are
illustrated in Image 3.

IMAGE 3: PYROLYSIS PROCESS

Flash pyrolysis is used to produce bio-crude, a combustible fuel. Heat
is used to chemically convert biomass into pyrolysis oil. The oil, which
is easier to store and transport than solid biomass material, is then
burned like petroleum to generate electricity. Pyrolysis can also convert
biomass into phenol oil, a chemical used to make wood adhesives,
moulded plastics, and foam insulation.

4. Digestion
Biomass digestion works by utilizing anaerobic bacteria.
These microorganisms usually live at the bottom of swamps or in other
places where there is no air, consuming dead organic matter to produce
methane and hydrogen. We put these bacteria to work for us. By
feeding organic matter such as animal dung or human sewage into
tanks, called digesters, and adding bacteria, we collect the emitted gas
to use as an energy source. This process is a very efficient means of
extracting usable energy from such biomass. Usually, up to two thirds
of the fuel energy of the animal dung could be recovered. Another
related technique is to collect methane gas from landfill sites. A large
proportion of household biomass waste, such as kitchen scraps, lawn
clipping and pruning, ends up at the local tip. Over a period of several
decades, anaerobic bacteria at the bottom of such tips could steadily
decomposed the organic matter and emit methane. The gas can be
extracted and used by capping a landfill site with an impervious layer of
clay and then inserting perforated pipes that would collect the gas and
bring it to the surface. The steps involved in this process are illustrated
in Image 4.

IMAGE 4: DIGESTION
5. Fermentation
For centuries, people have used yeasts and other microorganisms to
ferment the sugar of various plants into ethanol. Producing fuel from
biomass by fermentation is just an extension of this process, although a
wider range of plant material from sugar cane to wood fiber can be
used. For instance, the waste from a wheat mill in New South Wales is
used to produce ethanol through fermentation. Ethanol is then mixed
with diesel to produce diesehol, a product used by trucks and buses
Technological advances will inevitably improve the method. For
example, scientists in Australia and the U.S. have substituted a
genetically engineered bacterium for yeast in the fermentation process.
The process has vastly increased the efficiency by which waste paper
and other forms of wood fiber is fermented into ethanol.
Biofuels: Biomass is converted into transportation fuels such as
ethanol, methanol, biodiesel and additives for reformulated gasoline.
Biofuels are used in pure form or blended with gasoline.
Ethanol: Ethanol, the most widely used biofuel, is made by fermenting
biomass in a process similar to brewing beer.
Methanol: Biomass-derived methanol is produced through gasification.
The biomass is converted into a synthesis gas (syngas) that is processed
into methanol.
Biodiesel: Biodiesel fuel, made from oils and fats found in micro-algae
and other plants, is substituted for or blended with diesel fuel.
 USES OF BIOMASS ENERGY IN
INDIA
India is an ideal environment for Biomass production given its tropical
location and abundant sunshine and rains. The countries vast
agricultural potential provides huge agro-residues which can be used to
meet energy needs, both in heat and power applications. According to
IREDA "Biomass is capable of supplementing the coal to the tune of
about 260 million tonnes", "saving of about Rs. 250 billion, every year."
It is estimated that the potential for biomass energy in India includes
16,000 MW from biomass energy and a further 3,500 MW from
bagasse cogeneration. Biomass materials that can be used for power
generation include bagasse, rice husk, straw, cotton stalk, coconut
shells, soya husk, de-oiled cakes, coffee waste, jute wastes, and
groundnut shells and saw dust. India has a potential of about 16 GW of
energy from Biomass. Currently, about 32% of total primary energy
used in India is derived from Biomass. More than 70% of the country’s
population depends upon biomass for its energy needs. India has 5+
GW capacity biomass powered plants: 83% are grid connected while
the remaining 17% are off-grid plants. The off- grid plants are divided
between cogeneration plants that do not utilize bagasse, biomass
gasifiers for rural applications and biomass gasifiers for thermal
applications in industry.
Various Types of Agro field/Industrial resideus
Type of agro Quantity(Million
residues Tonnes/annum)
Straws of various 225.50
pulses & cereals
Bagasse 31.00
Rice Husk 10.00
Groundnut shell 11.10
Stalks 2.00
Various oil stalks 4.50
Others 65.90
Total 350.00
 SOURCES OF BIOMASS

Here are various biomass sources, which are a great source of energy
that can be used for various applications:

Wood and waste wood:

Wood is the most commonly used type of biomass. Since the earliest
days the fuel being used for cooking and heating is the wood. Even at
present wood as the biomass material is major source of energy in a
number of developing countries. Wood as a biomass can be used in
various forms like large wooden blocks obtained from the trees,
wooden chips, and saw dust. The wasted wood and wooden scrap are
also the source of biomass.

Leaves of the plants:

In the densely planted places lots of leaves fall from the trees. These
can be dried, powdered and converted into small pieces, which can be
used as the biomass fuel to generate heat used usually for cooking food
Agricultural waste:
Lots of waste materials obtained from the farms are a great source of
biomass materials. Livestock waste can also be used to generate
methane gas.

Garbage:
The garbage, also called as municipal solid waste is another source of
biomass. The garbage can be in the form of food scrap, lawn clippings,
waste paper, fallen leaves etc all mixed together or collected
individually.

Human waste:
The human wastes are also considered to the source of biomass. These
can used to generate methane gas which is the major component of
natural gas.

Waste paper:
Tons of waste paper is produced every day. These can be burnt to
produce lots of heat. The paper is manufactured from the plants, so it
is considered to be biomass material.

Broken branches and twigs of the trees:

No part of the plant goes wasted when it leaves the main body of the
tree. Large and small branches and even all the small twigs are the
source of biomass energy.

Mill Residues:
Mill residues are a much more economically attractive fuel than
forestry residues, since the in-forest collection and chipping are already
included as part of the commercial mill operations. Biomass facilities
collocated with and integral to the mill operation have the advantage of
eliminating transportation altogether and thus truly achieve a no-cost
fuel. Mill residues have long been used to generate steam and
electricity.
 ADVANTAGES AND LIMITATION
OF BIOMASS ENERGY

ADVANTAGES OF BIOMASS ENERGY:

Some of the advantages of using biomass as a source of energy are

illustrated below.
1. Biomass energy is an abundant, secure, environment friendly, and
renewable source of energy. Biomass does not add carbon dioxide to
the atmosphere as it absorbs the same amount of carbon in growing as
it releases when consumed as a fuel.
2. One of the major advantages of biomass is that it can be used to
generate electricity with the same equipment or in the same power
plants that are now burning fossil fuels.
3. Biomass energy is not associated with environmental impacts such as
acid rain, mine spoils, open pits, oil spills, radioactive waste disposal or
the damming of rivers.
4. Biomass fuels are sustainable. The green plants from which biomass
fuels are derived fix carbon dioxide as they grow, so their use does not
add to the levels of atmospheric carbon. In addition, using refuse as a
fuel avoids polluting landfill disposal.
5. Alcohols and other fuels produced by biomass are efficient, viable,
and relatively clean burning.
6. Biomass is easily available and can be grown with relative ease in all
parts of the world.
7. Biomass used as a fuel reduces need for fossil fuels for the
production of heat, steam, and electricity for residential, industrial and
agricultural use.

LIMITATION OF BIOMASS ENERGY:

1. Biomass is still an expensive source of energy, both in terms of
producing biomass and converting it into alcohols, as a very large
quantity of biomass is needed.
2. On a small scale there is most likely a net loss of energy as a lot of
energy must be used for growing the plant mass; biomass is difficult to
store in the raw form.
3. One of the disadvantages of biomass is that direct combustion of
biomass can be harmful to the environment as burning biomass
releases carbon dioxide, which contributes to the warming of the
atmosphere and possible climatic change. Burning also creates soot and
other air pollutants.
4. Over-collecting wood can destroy forests. Soils bared of trees erode
easily and do not hold rainfall. Increased run- off can cause flooding
downstream.
5. When plant and animal wastes are used as fuel, they cannot be
added to the soil as fertilizer. Soil without fertilizer is depleted of
nutrients and it produces fewer crops.
6. Biomass has less energy than a similar volume of fossil fuels.
7. Research is needed to reduce the costs of production of Biomass
based fuels.
8. Some Biomass conversion projects are from animal wastes and are
relatively small and therefore are limited
 CONCLUSION
Biomass-based power systems are unique among non-hydro renewable
power sources because of their wide range of applicability to a diverse
set of needs. Biomass systems can be used for village-power
applications in the 10-250 kW scale, for larger scale municipal
electricity and heating applications, for industrial application such as
hog-fuel boilers and black- liquor recovery boilers, in agricultural
applications such as electricity and steam generation in the sugar cane
industry, and for utility-scale electricity generation in the 100 MW
scale. Biomass-based systems are the only non-hydro renewable source
of electricity that can be used for base-load electricity generation.
The innovation (biomass industry) has advantages and disadvantages.
Biomass industry is renewable and harmless to living things. A biomass
industry is able to produce a lot of energy with a small amount of
biomass material.
Although biomass industry will be expensive it can be a very big step in
protecting the resources in the world and reducing greenhouse gases
that affect the environment greatly. Even though biomass industry will
be releasing emissions into the atmosphere, but will be much less than
any other industry as the innovation will be using the emissions also to
produce energy.
I think by building biomass industries with this concept, it will
overcome the challenge of the depletion in energy resources in India
because the electricity generated will be with a renewable resource and
will be able to power the homes in India. The issue of depleting fossil
fuels will surely be controlled and electricity problem can be resolved,
if more people get inspired and more eco-friendly industries are built.
 REFERENCES

[1] An Introduction to Biomass Energy a Renewable Resourceby

Donald Klass, (www.bera1.org)
[2] The Michigan Biomass Energy Program,
(www.michiganbioenergy.org)
[3] BERA Biomass Energy Research Association, (www.bera1.org)
[4] U S Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy (www.eere.org)
[5] S. C Johnsons Associates Inc (www.scjai.com).
[6] NREL, Clean Energy Basics: Introduction to biomass electricity
production, (www.nrel.gov/energy)
[7] Biomass-The Growing Energy Source, (www.science. org.au/ nova)
[8] www.bchydro.com
[9] Lessons learned from Existing Biomass Plants,(www.nrel.gov/
docs/fy00osti/26946.pdf)
[10] Overview of Biomass Power Generation in South East Asia
www.asem-greenippnetwork.net
[11] Rural Energy in India, www.indiasolar.com/bio.ht
[12] Www.Wikipedia.com
[13] www.Google.com
[14] www.Slideshare.com