BIOMASS

How it works-
Burns biomass in a boiler (typically hot water boiler or a steam boiler) wood chips and other biomass are used in the boiler with coal, natural gas and oil. Then it is turned into electricity to use in people's homes

HISTORY

• Biomass has been used ever since fire was discovered
• Biomass did not receive its name until 1970
• It was discovered when scientists became interested in the possibility eof replacing fossil fuels
• The name biomass became popular around 1975 when people realized that mining coal could be replaced with almost everything around us

HISTORY

• In the 1980's the OTA (Office of Technology Assessment) estimated that 1/4 of the U.s could be powered by this source
• In the 2000's the U.S government developed a program called Co-firing that combines biomass with objects such as coal and using that combination for fuel

USES

• Biodiesel
• Producing energy
• Waste-to energy power plants
• Heating
• Cooking
• Compostmaterial
• Electricity

ENERGY TRANSFORMATIONS

• Thermal conversions (most common)
• Biofuel
• Biochar
• Hydrogen fuel cells

EFFECTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT

• The displacement of fossil fuel usage
• The reduction of air pollution and acid rain
• Recycling atmospheric carbon dioxide
• Deforestation
• Terrestrial Biomass

EFFECTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT

• Too much CO2 removed from the atmosphere

PROS

• Biomass reduces the need for fossil fuels
• Biomass is EVERYWHERE and is always available
• The disposal of waste material reduces the space landfills take up
• Less money wasted on foreign oils

CONS

• Can sometimes (in major cases) be a big pollution problems
• Most biomass conversion programs use limited supplies
• Research is needed to reduce the cost of biomass production