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From The Times ..A must read for for every US voter and concerned citizen.. challenges the reader to explore new possibilities and new mindsets that will ultimately be required if the world is truly ready to make a change.. amazon.com US only
November 4, 2009
Vital research hit in drive for renewable fuels
Fears over loss of food crops threaten efforts to cut transport emissions
Alan Copps
The furious debate about whether biofuels compete with food production and encourage destruction of the rainforests is stalling research that could prove vital if Britain and Europe are to meet their obligations to use more renewable road fuels, said Dr Jeremy Woods, lecturer in bioenergy at Imperial College London.
He believes that the development of bioenergy and biofuels can complement food production rather than compete with it. "There is not much thinking going on about how we are going to ensure that future crop yields can be maintained for food, if fossil fuels run low," he said. "Agriculture is heavily dependent on fossil fuels for transport and fertilisers and those made from hydrocarbons are big emitters of greenhouse gas.
"We have to turn land from being a source of CO2 into being a sink for CO2. That can be part of a real solution to climate change.
"Biofuels are absolutely sustainable, cheaper and easier to produce than fossil fuels. We have to work out very quickly how to get industry to produce enough biofuel. In Europe this effort has stalled." This is delaying research into new biofuels using waste materials or wood as feedstock.
Under the EU's Renewable Energy Directive, 10 per cent of all energy used for road transport must come from renewable sources by 2020. Imperial College last month did a peer review and approved the conclusions of a report from the Renewable Energy Association that said 80 per cent of that target could be met from within the EU without increasing the amount of land under cultivation for arable crops. The report added that although alternatives such as electric vehicles and biogas would make a contribution, the only way the target could be met would be through substantially increased use of biofuels.
Clare Wenner, head of renewable transport for the association, which represents renewable fuel producers, said there was potential for bioethanol production in Britain to increase twentyfold by 2020 and for biodiesel production to triple. "This review shows that biofuels can make a major contribution without adversely affecting the environment or food chain."
Under the UK's Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation introduced last year, a target of 5 per cent of transport fuel from renewable sources was set for next year. But, as the controversy over biofuels grew, this was put back to 2013. The present level is about 3.25 per cent.
In response to concerns about food production and habitat destruction a number of oil companies, including Shell and BP, have introduced policies to ensure that their biofuels are drawn only from sustainable sources. Exxon, which owns Esso, is investing $600 million (£366 million) in research into biofuels from algae.
However, a recent Greenpeace report quoted concerns of Holly Gibbs, a researcher at Stanford University's Woods Institute for the Environment, who analysed satellite images to track deforestation and climate change. Between 1980 and 2000 more than 80 per cent of new crop land came from rainforests, most from intact forests, "contrary to what some biofuel proponents have suggested", she said.
She added: "This is a major concern. If we run our cars on biofuels produced in the tropics, we are effectively burning rainforests in our gas tanks."
Professor Martin Tangney, director of the Biofuel Research Centre at Edinburgh Napier University, said development of the industry has been hindered by political uncertainty in Britain. He believes that with a general election pending it is unlikely to be resolved in the short term. By contrast, he noted that in Scotland, with strong government support, 25 per cent of power comes from renewable sources, including wind and Britain's largest biofuel plant near Motherwell. The plant produces biodiesel from waste cooking oil and tallow, which is mixed to form 5 per cent of diesel fuel.
"What happens at Copenhagen will have a big impact on public perception," Tangney said. Once the public can be satisfied that biofuel production does not need to compete with food production, the way will be open to generate it from whatever feedstock is abundant, he believes.
Tangney recently returned from Brazil, where more than half of transportation fuel now comes from bioethanol derived from sugar cane.
How to go organic
A biofuel is made by processing biomass, or organic matter. This feedstock can be crops such as sugar cane or oil palm, by-products from agriculture such as straw, fast-growing woods such as willow, or organic wastes from agriculture and industry — even household refuse.
Although biofuels are burnt in conventional internal combustion engines, and thus produce CO2 emissions at the point of use, they are regarded as carbon-neutral because the biomass has absorbed an equivalent amount of CO2 during its growth. Some biofuels, such as biodiesel, are cleaner to burn than mineral-derived oils because they do not emit sulphur and other toxic residues.
There are several forms of biofuel including:
Bioethanol The most widely used biofuel, usually in a mixture of about 15 per cent with conventional fuel. It is a form of alcohol produced by fermentation and distillation of sugars and starches, usually from sugar cane, beet or cereal crops.
Biobutanol Produced from similar feedstocks by a bacterial fermentation process. It is easier to blend with petrol than ethanol but production is more expensive.
Biodiesel Produced from animal or vegetable fats and oils through a chemical reaction that separates out glycerine, leaving a usable liquid fuel. Usage is increasing in many parts of the world especially for heavy vehicles. Waste cooking oil is a popular feedstock.
Biogas A mixture of methane and carbon dioxide produced by the bacterial decay of organic matter in the absence of oxygen, the process known as anaerobic digestion. This leaves a residue that can be used as fertiliser. The gas produced can be burnt to generate electricity or used in vehicles.
Second-generation biofuels Future development is focusing on feedstocks rich in cellulose, such as wood products that do not compete with food production, and algae. The challenge is to develop enzymes to break down the cellulose and reduce production costs.
He believes that the development of bioenergy and biofuels can complement food production rather than compete with it. "There is not much thinking going on about how we are going to ensure that future crop yields can be maintained for food, if fossil fuels run low," he said. "Agriculture is heavily dependent on fossil fuels for transport and fertilisers and those made from hydrocarbons are big emitters of greenhouse gas.
"We have to turn land from being a source of CO2 into being a sink for CO2. That can be part of a real solution to climate change.
"Biofuels are absolutely sustainable, cheaper and easier to produce than fossil fuels. We have to work out very quickly how to get industry to produce enough biofuel. In Europe this effort has stalled." This is delaying research into new biofuels using waste materials or wood as feedstock.
Under the EU's Renewable Energy Directive, 10 per cent of all energy used for road transport must come from renewable sources by 2020. Imperial College last month did a peer review and approved the conclusions of a report from the Renewable Energy Association that said 80 per cent of that target could be met from within the EU without increasing the amount of land under cultivation for arable crops. The report added that although alternatives such as electric vehicles and biogas would make a contribution, the only way the target could be met would be through substantially increased use of biofuels.
Clare Wenner, head of renewable transport for the association, which represents renewable fuel producers, said there was potential for bioethanol production in Britain to increase twentyfold by 2020 and for biodiesel production to triple. "This review shows that biofuels can make a major contribution without adversely affecting the environment or food chain."
Under the UK's Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation introduced last year, a target of 5 per cent of transport fuel from renewable sources was set for next year. But, as the controversy over biofuels grew, this was put back to 2013. The present level is about 3.25 per cent.
In response to concerns about food production and habitat destruction a number of oil companies, including Shell and BP, have introduced policies to ensure that their biofuels are drawn only from sustainable sources. Exxon, which owns Esso, is investing $600 million (£366 million) in research into biofuels from algae.
However, a recent Greenpeace report quoted concerns of Holly Gibbs, a researcher at Stanford University's Woods Institute for the Environment, who analysed satellite images to track deforestation and climate change. Between 1980 and 2000 more than 80 per cent of new crop land came from rainforests, most from intact forests, "contrary to what some biofuel proponents have suggested", she said.
She added: "This is a major concern. If we run our cars on biofuels produced in the tropics, we are effectively burning rainforests in our gas tanks."
Professor Martin Tangney, director of the Biofuel Research Centre at Edinburgh Napier University, said development of the industry has been hindered by political uncertainty in Britain. He believes that with a general election pending it is unlikely to be resolved in the short term. By contrast, he noted that in Scotland, with strong government support, 25 per cent of power comes from renewable sources, including wind and Britain's largest biofuel plant near Motherwell. The plant produces biodiesel from waste cooking oil and tallow, which is mixed to form 5 per cent of diesel fuel.
"What happens at Copenhagen will have a big impact on public perception," Tangney said. Once the public can be satisfied that biofuel production does not need to compete with food production, the way will be open to generate it from whatever feedstock is abundant, he believes.
Tangney recently returned from Brazil, where more than half of transportation fuel now comes from bioethanol derived from sugar cane.
How to go organic
A biofuel is made by processing biomass, or organic matter. This feedstock can be crops such as sugar cane or oil palm, by-products from agriculture such as straw, fast-growing woods such as willow, or organic wastes from agriculture and industry — even household refuse.
Although biofuels are burnt in conventional internal combustion engines, and thus produce CO2 emissions at the point of use, they are regarded as carbon-neutral because the biomass has absorbed an equivalent amount of CO2 during its growth. Some biofuels, such as biodiesel, are cleaner to burn than mineral-derived oils because they do not emit sulphur and other toxic residues.
There are several forms of biofuel including:
Bioethanol The most widely used biofuel, usually in a mixture of about 15 per cent with conventional fuel. It is a form of alcohol produced by fermentation and distillation of sugars and starches, usually from sugar cane, beet or cereal crops.
Biobutanol Produced from similar feedstocks by a bacterial fermentation process. It is easier to blend with petrol than ethanol but production is more expensive.
Biodiesel Produced from animal or vegetable fats and oils through a chemical reaction that separates out glycerine, leaving a usable liquid fuel. Usage is increasing in many parts of the world especially for heavy vehicles. Waste cooking oil is a popular feedstock.
Biogas A mixture of methane and carbon dioxide produced by the bacterial decay of organic matter in the absence of oxygen, the process known as anaerobic digestion. This leaves a residue that can be used as fertiliser. The gas produced can be burnt to generate electricity or used in vehicles.
Second-generation biofuels Future development is focusing on feedstocks rich in cellulose, such as wood products that do not compete with food production, and algae. The challenge is to develop enzymes to break down the cellulose and reduce production costs.
[Ends]
[This was part of a series in association with Shell at http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/related_reports/the_future_of_energy/]
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/related_reports/the_future_of_energy/article6903095.ece
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Biofuels are a wide range of fuels which are in some way derived from biomass.
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