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THE Biofuel Thread pt 6

Discussions of conventional and alternative energy production technologies.

Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Fri 30 May 2014, 20:34:03

EIA: U.S. wood pellet exports double in 2013

Wood pellet exports from the United States nearly doubled last year, from 1.6 million short tons (approximately 22 trillion Btu) in 2012 to 3.2 million short tons in 2013. More than 98% of these exports were delivered to Europe, and 99% originated from ports in the southeastern and lower Mid-Atlantic regions of the country.

Wood pellets are traditionally manufactured from wood waste (including sawdust, shavings, and wood chips) that results from wood processing activities, but they can also be produced from unprocessed harvested wood (generally at a higher cost). Wood pellets are primarily used as a residential heating fuel in the United States, but wood pellets can also be used for commercial heating and power generation applications. As recently as 2008, the U.S. Forest Service estimated that approximately 80% of U.S. wood pellet production was consumed domestically. However, because of strong demand growth in Europe, wood pellet exports have been the driving factor in the growth of domestic wood pellet production in recent years.

Growth of U.S. wood pellet exports has been concentrated in southeastern states, which have advantages in terms of abundant material supply and relatively low shipping costs to Europe. Transportation cost is a large part of the total cost of wood pellets; for example, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, transportation accounted for a quarter of the delivered price of wood pellets from the Southeast to the Netherlands in mid-2013. Shipping costs generally increase with distance, so the proximity of the United States to Europe compared to wood pellet manufacturers in Brazil and western Canada provides a pricing advantage for U.S. wood pellet exporters.


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Sat 31 May 2014, 01:24:14

You post a lot of nonsense, don't you?
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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Sat 31 May 2014, 02:34:36

The article was about wood exports from US. Read first sentence in second paragraph. Where does it mention stoves?
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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Sat 31 May 2014, 19:29:48

Projects of generating power from biomass be expedited: CM

A delegation of Indian experts in generation of electricity from biomass met Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif here on Friday. Matters regarding production of electricity from biomass were discussed during the meeting.
Talking to Indian delegation, the Chief Minister said that there vast opportunities of generating electricity from biomass from one crore tons of agriculture waste in the province. He directed the concerned authorities that the projects of generating electricity from biomass should be expedited. He said that the map-work for producing electricity from biomass throughout the province be conducted. He said that work should immediately be started for setting up projects at five feasible sites including Chak Jhumra.
He warned that no delay in the implementation of biomass projects will be tolerated. Indian experts assured that cooperation will be extended to Punjab government in establishing energy projects based on biomass.


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Mon 02 Jun 2014, 19:26:34

EPA's CO2 reduction proposal could be positive for biomass energy

The U.S. EPA is taking action to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from existing power plants. On June 2, the agency published a proposed rule that aims to reduce carbon emissions by 30 percent in 2030, when compared to 2005 emissions. With regard to biomass, the proposal specifically recognizes “that biomass-derived fuels can play an important role in CO2 emission reduction strategies.”


The proposed rule makes several specific references to biomass. It notes that sustainable forestry and agriculture can improve resiliency to climate change, be part of a national strategy to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, and contribute to climate change mitigation by acting as a “sink” for carbon. “The plant growth associated with producing many of the biomass-derived fuels can, to varying degrees for different biomass feedstocks, sequester carbon from the atmosphere. For example, America’s forests currently play a critical role in addressing carbon pollution, removing nearly 12 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions each year. As a result, broadly speaking, burning biomass-derived fuels for energy recovery can yield climate benefits as compared to burning conventional fossil fuels,” said the EPA in the proposed rule. “Many states have recognized the importance of forests and other lands for climate resilience and mitigation and have developed a variety of different sustainable forestry policies, renewable energy incentives and standards and greenhouse gas accounting procedures. Because of the positive attributes of certain biomass-derived fuels, the EPA also recognizes that biomass-derived fuels can play an important role in CO2 emission reduction strategies. We anticipate that states likely will consider biomass-derived fuels in energy production as a way to mitigate the CO2 emissions attributed to the energy sector and include them as part of their plans to meet the emission reduction requirements of this rule and we think it is important to define a clear path for states to do so.”


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Wed 04 Jun 2014, 19:12:35

Current trends for forest biomass for energy in EU

The EU aims to get 20% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020. Renewables include wind, solar, hydro-electric and tidal power as well as geothermal energy and biomass. These ambitious targets set in the Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) have led to concerns about the levels of woody biomass from forests which would need to be mobilized to meet them.


The amount of forest-derived and woody biomass was then estimated that could be sustainably supplied for energy uses without compromising material uses of wood. The role of sustainable woody bioenergy in the future EU energy system was analyzed for electricity, heat and transport fuels, taking into account the potentials for energy efficiency, and non-bioenergy renewables. Overall, the study found that the lower mobilization of forest resources would be sufficient to meet woody material demands only if resource efficient cascades and stringent energy efficiency measures were implemented.

The report is available online at: http://www.eeb.org/EEB/?LinkServID=FE1E ... 46BC26A1E1


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Thu 05 Jun 2014, 19:25:57

Is The Future of Biomass District Heating In Holland? (CT Exclusive)

In this city of 80,000 people, an innovative approach to district heating uses wood chip biomass to provide clean and renewable heat for three-quarters of the population at grid parity prices.

CleanTechnica toured the de Purmer biomass-to-heat facility one month before it officially goes online to see how waste wood is being used to cut emissions and natural gas use – an important sustainability measure considering heating homes and offices represents 40% of all power demand in the Netherlands (Full disclosure – while my trip is being sponsored by the Dutch Government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it had no involvement in the editorial process of this post).


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Thu 05 Jun 2014, 20:33:36

Report provides global overview of bioenergy, biofuel development

A new report published by Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21) provides a global overview of advances in renewable energy development, including development related to bioenergy, ethanol and other types of biofuels. The analysis is titled the “Renewables 2014 Global Status Report.”


According to the report, 88 GW of power capacity from biomass was in place globally at the close of 2013, up from 83 GW the prior year. In 2004, less than 36 GW of biomass energy capacity was in existence. Biomass was used to generate an estimated 405 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy in 2103, up from 350 TWh in 2012. In 2004, only 227 TWh of energy was generated from biobased fuels.

The report indicates that biomass demand continued to grow steadily in the heat, power and transportation sectors last year. “Total primary energy consumption of biomass reached approximately 57 exajoules (EJ) in 2013, of which almost 60 percent was traditional biomass, and the remainder was modern bioenergy (solid, gaseous, and liquid fuels),” said authors in the report.

Heating accounted for the majority of biomass use last year. According to the report, modern biomass heating capacity increased about 1 percent, reaching 296 GW of thermal energy. With regard to pellets, the report notes that demand for modern biomass is driving increased international trade in solid biofuels. Overall, the European Union imported about 6.4 million metric tons of pellets last year, with 75 percent of imports coming from North America. In 2012, only 55 percent of European pellet imports came from North America.

According to the report, about 60 percent of total biomass used for energy purposes is traditional biomass, including fuel wood, crop residues and animal dung that are used developing countries for cooking, heat and some lighting. The remaining 40 percent is used in modern bioenergy applications. This modern biomass share includes approximately 13 EJ in thermal applications, 5 EJ converting to produce biofuels, and approximately 5 EJ to generate electricity.

The U.S. added an estimated 0.8 GW of biopower capacity last year, reaching 15.8 GW by the end of the year. Solid biomass accounted for two-thirds of total biobased fuel, with the remainder coming from landfill gas, organic municipal solid waste and other wastes.

The European Union has about 34.5 GW of biopower capacity, and biopower accounted for 5 percent of new capacity last year. Electricity generated from biomass, however, increased by 7 percent, reaching 79 TWh.


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Fri 06 Jun 2014, 18:18:48

New insights into biomass breakdown provided by scientists

How a recently discovered family of enzymes can degrade hard-to-digest biomass into its constituent sugars has been the focus of new study. The enzymes -- lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) -- are secreted by both fungi and bacteria and have the ability to 'chip away' at cellulose and other intractable materials. This allows cellulosic materials such as plant stems, wood chips and cardboard waste, as well as other tricky polysaccharides such as insect/crustacean shells, to be broken down.


Professor Davies said: "To begin fermenting materials such as wood chips or plant stems, there needs to be a way of breaking into it. The action of an LPMO makes a scratch on the biomass surface which provides an entry point for other enzymes. Understanding how LPMOs work will aid the quest for second generation biofuel production."


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Sat 07 Jun 2014, 20:16:12

Study Looks Into Trends in Forest Biomass for Energy in EU

European Forest Institute (EFI) along with the International Institute for Sustainability Analysis and Strategy (IINAS) and Joanneum Research conducted a study on current trends in forest biomass for energy in Europe, carbon balance and the sustainable potential.

The study analyzed the role of sustainable woody bioenergy in the future EU energy system for electricity, heat and transport fuels, taking into account the potentials for energy efficiency, and non-bioenergy renewables.

Three scenarios were modeled to evaluate how sustainable woody bioenergy could be used by 2020 and 2030:

• The reference scenario (REF) is based on the EC 2013 PRIMES reference (pdf). Overall demand for material uses of wood will increase, and co-firing of imported pellets becomes relevant. In REF, bioenergy from EU forest will provide about 1700 PJ by 2030, and woody residues and short rotation coppice (SRC) will contribute with 1300 PJ while about 750 PJ of wood pellets would be imported to the EU. Non-woody bioenergy would contribute about 600 PJ.

• Two contrasting scenarios—one for greenhouse-gas emission reduction (GHG), and one for ambitious sustainability (SUS) assume more stringent energy efficiency and higher renewable energy targets.

• The reduced GHG emissions scenario (GHG) considers C stock changes for forest bioenergy, and implements cascading use of woody material. With that, the use of EU forest products is reduced to 1100 PJ by 2030, and imports can be reduced by 80 %. Domestic woody bioenergy from residues, wastes and SRC would supply 3100 PJ by 2030, a doubling compared to the REF scenario. Non-woody bioenergy use would also increase to 1200 PJ, mainly from straw, and manure.

• The sustainable bioenergy scenario (SUS) assumes same demand as in the other scenarios but reduces forest bioenergy use to avoid associated risks, especially from imports. As in the GHG scenario, cascading use of woody material is massively increased. The use of EU forest bioenergy will be only about 350 PJ by 2030, and no woody bioenergy would be imported. The use of woody residues, wastes and SRCwould increase to 2700 PJ, and non-woody bioenergy would contribute about 3100 PJ.

The implementation of stringent energy efficiency measures in all scenarios would significantly reduce the final energy demands for heat and transport while electricity demand could remain almost constant.


Overall, the study found that the lower mobilization of forest resources would be sufficient to meet woody material demands only if resource efficient cascades and stringent energy efficiency measures were implemented.

The full text of the study is available online (pdf).


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Sun 08 Jun 2014, 19:09:21

This is also posted on front page but needs to be here too.

Talkin' trash: Are we literally throwing away energy?

Philipp Schmidt-Pathmann wakes up every day thinking about trash. What got him thinking about it in the first place is how much of it is simply dumped into landfills across America when most of what is not recyclable could instead be turned into energy for homes and businesses everywhere.

Schmidt-Pathmann has seen a better approach in his native Germany where only about 1 percent of all municipal waste goes into landfills. This compares with about 68 percent in the United States of the 400 million tons discarded annually, he explains. (Exact numbers are hard to come by, but he prefers figures collected by Biocycle Magazine.) Germans recycle almost 70 percent of their municipal waste and burn almost all the rest to turn it into energy.

Schmidt-Pathmann is founder and executive director of the Zero Landfill Initiative based in Seattle. He says that the United States could add 12 gigawatts (billions of watts) of electricity generation by expanding waste-to-energy facilities even if the country upped its percentage of recycling to that of Germany's. The United States currently recycles about 25 percent of its waste. Burning all the landfill waste currently available would provide an extra 33 gigawatts. That would be the equivalent of 33 large electricity generating plants.

But, Schmidt-Pathmann thinks he knows why there is so much resistance to the German model in the United States.

First, Americans still believe that burning waste is a dirty business, giving off toxic fumes and plumes of smoke. But modern waste-to-energy facilities produce little in the way of air pollution using up-to-date technology to reduce emissions to a minimum. High-temperature burning breaks apart the bonds of toxic chemicals.


http://resourceinsights.blogspot.co.nz/2014/06/talkin-trash-are-we-literally-throwing.html
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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Tue 10 Jun 2014, 21:47:50

UK energy projects sign contracts for renewable energy incentives

The U.K. Department of Energy and Climate Change has announced eight renewable energy projects have officially signed the first contracts under the government’s electricity market reforms. The list includes three previously-announced biomass projects, including the biomass conversion of Drax Unit #1, a 645 MW facility in Selby, North Yorkshire; the biomass conversion of Lynemouth Power Ltd., a 420 MW facility in Ashington, Northumberland; and the development of the 299 MW Teesside project by MGT Power Ltd., a proposed dedicated biomass facility with combined-heat-and-power (CHP). The other five projects are off-shore wind projects.

According to the DECC, the eight projects will are expected to add an estimated 4.5 GW of renewable capacity in the U.K., accounting for approximately 14 percent of the renewable capacity expected to be brought online by 2020. The projects are also expected to lead to the reduction of about 10 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

“We have put in place a framework of sustainability criteria and reporting requirements for biomass which covers these projects. These will ensure that we only provide support for biomass plants which meet the appropriate legal requirements for low carbon generation,” said MP Michael Fallon in a written statement posted to the DECC website. “These contracts are just one of the electricity market reform (EMR) measures designed to ensure a reliable, diverse and low-carbon power market. DECC has robust plans to deal with security of supply, working jointly with National Grid and the energy regulator Ofgem.I am grateful to all applicants for their participation in the FID Enabling for Renewables process. The level of interest in the process demonstrates industry support for EMR and the healthiness of the renewables sector in the U.K.”


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Fri 13 Jun 2014, 19:16:43

New USDA Report Validates Sustainability of Biomass

Experts from Iowa State University and the United States Department of Agriculture (UDSA) have dtermined that after five years of soil nutrient data gathered at POET-DSM’s Project Liberty site are consistent with more than 500 site-years of additional soil research. The research team has concluded that the results show that biomass harvesting, which is now being done in the Emmetsburg, Iowa area, is consistent with proper farm management.


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Report highlights benefits of coal to biomass conversions

A new report published by FutureMetrics shows that converting old coal plants to burn wood pellets provides a ready-to-go solution for meeting carbon mitigation goals while creating jobs. The white paper, authored by FutureMetrics President William Strauss, discusses the costs of fuel switching to pellets compared to the costs of other pathways to lower carbon emissions. The paper is titled, “A Cost Effective, Job Creating, and Ready to Deploy Strategy for Baseload Dispatchable Low Carbon Power Generation.”

“The data used in the analysis shows that converting an older pulverized coal power plant to wood pellet fuel results in a cost per megawatt-hour (MWh) that is surprisingly low and very competitive relative to other power generation methods,” wrote Strauss in the paper. “This analysis also shows that more jobs are needed to supply pellet fuel than are need to supply coal for the equivalent power output.”


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Re: Biomass Thread

Unread postby Graeme » Mon 07 Jul 2014, 20:31:28

JAPAN BIOMASS ELECTRICITY GENERATION BOOMING

Currently the installed biomass electricity generation capacity is about 5 times higher than for geo-thermal energy production – a fact often overlooked in superficial discussions.

Biomass electricity production is included in Japan’s new feed-in-tariff program which started in July 2012, and is also very generous.

The figure above shows approvals for electricity generation projects from biomass under the new feed-in-tariff program, and demonstrates that after a slow start, approvals are now picking up. The sum of biomass generation facilities operating before the introduction of the new feed-in-tariffs plus approvals since July 2012 approaches 4 GigaWatt, which corresponds approximately to the generation capacity of 4 nuclear reactors.


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