UNIT 3.

BIO-ENERGY RESOURCES

3.1. Prospects and potential of non/forest-based bio-energy and other AE development

Biomass resources that are available on a renewable basis and are used either directly as a fuel or
converted to another form or energy product are commonly referred to as “feedstocks.”

BIOMASS FEEDSTOCKS
Biomass feedstocks include dedicated energy crops, agricultural crop residues, forestry residues,
algae, wood processing residues, municipal waste, and wet waste (crop wastes, forest residues,
purpose-grown grasses, woody energy crops, algae, industrial wastes, sorted municipal solid waste
[MSW], urban wood waste, and food waste).

A. DEDICATED ENERGY CROPS

Dedicated energy crops are non-food crops that can be grown on marginal land (land not suitable for
traditional crops like corn and soybeans) specifically to provide biomass. These break down into two
general categories: herbaceous and woody. Herbaceous energy crops are perennial (plants that live for
more than 2 years) grasses that are harvested annually after taking 2 to 3 years to reach full
productivity. These include switchgrass, miscanthus, bamboo, sweet sorghum, tall fescue, kochia,
wheatgrass, and others. Short-rotation woody crops are fast-growing hardwood trees that are harvested
within 5 to 8 years of planting. These include hybrid poplar, hybrid willow, silver maple, eastern
cottonwood, green ash, black walnut, sweetgum, and sycamore. Many of these species can help
improve water and soil quality, improve wildlife habitat relative to annual crops, diversify sources of
income, and improve overall farm productivity.

B. AGRICULTURAL CROP RESIDUE

There are many opportunities to leverage agricultural resources on existing lands without interfering
with the production of food, feed, fiber, or forest products. Agricultural crop residues, which include
the stalks and leaves, are abundant, diverse, and widely distributed across the United States. Examples
include corn stover (stalks, leaves, husks, and cobs), wheat straw, oat straw, barley straw, sorghum
stubble, and rice straw. The sale of these residues to a local biorefinery also represents an opportunity
for farmers to generate additional income.
C. FORESTRY RESIDUES
Forest biomass feedstocks fall into one of two categories: forest residues left after logging timber
(including limbs, tops, and culled trees and tree components that would be otherwise unmerchantable)
or whole-tree biomass harvested explicitly for biomass. Dead, diseased, poorly formed, and other
unmerchantable trees are often left in the woods following timber harvest. This woody debris can be
collected for use in bioenergy, while leaving enough behind to provide habitat and maintain proper
nutrient and hydrologic features. There are also opportunities to make use of excess biomass on
millions of acres of forests. Harvesting excessive woody biomass can reduce the risk of fire and pests,
as well as aid in forest restoration, productivity, vitality, and resilience. This biomass could be
harvested for bioenergy without negatively impacting the health and stability of forest ecological
structure and function.
D. ALGAE
Algae as feedstocks for bioenergy refers to a diverse group of highly productive organisms that
include microalgae, macroalgae (seaweed), and cyanobacteria (formerly called “blue-green algae”).
Many use sunlight and nutrients to create biomass, which contains key components—including lipids,
proteins, and carbohydrates— that can be converted and upgraded to a variety of biofuels and
products. Depending on the strain, algae can grow by using fresh, saline, or brackish water from
surface water sources, groundwater, or seawater. Additionally, they can grow in water from second-
use sources, such as treated industrial wastewater; municipal, agricultural, or aquaculture wastewater;
or produced water generated from oil and gas drilling operations.
E. WOOD PROCESSING RESIDUES
Wood processing yields byproducts and waste streams that are collectively called wood processing
residues and have significant energy potential. For example, the processing of wood for products or
pulp produces unused sawdust, bark, branches, and leaves/needles. These residues can then be
converted into biofuels or bioproducts. Because these residues are already collected at the point of
processing, they can be convenient and relatively inexpensive sources of biomass for energy.
F. SORTED MUNICIPAL WASTE
MSW resources include mixed commercial and residential garbage, such as yard trimmings, paper and
paperboard, plastics, rubber, leather, textiles, and food wastes. MSW for bioenergy also represents an
opportunity to reduce residential and commercial waste by diverting significant volumes from landfills
to the refinery.
G. WET WASTE
Wet waste feedstocks include commercial, institutional, and residential food wastes (particularly those
currently disposed of in landfills); organic-rich biosolids (i.e., treated sewage sludge from municipal
wastewater); manure slurries from concentrated livestock operations; organic wastes from industrial
operations; and biogas (the gaseous product of the decomposition of organic matter in the absence of
oxygen) derived from any of the above feedstock streams. Transforming these “waste streams” into
energy can help create additional revenue for rural economies and solve waste-disposal problems

Identification of biomass resources for biomass

Types of biomass residues in Nepal
Biomass residues as energy feed stocks are more environment friendly than fossilfuels. Utilization
of biomass energy recycles the carbon and does not add carbon
dioxide to the environment, in contrast to fossil fuels. Furthermore, the biomass residues are also
fire hazards during the dry season. The use of biomass feed stocks in energy generation essentially
promotes the development of healthy and sustainable local economies.

People have been using agricultural residues derived after harvesting crops like straw, stalks of
plants, etc or after industrial processing of the crops like rice husk, bagasse, coffee husk, etc. for
different purposes as well as energy. Besides agricultural residues people have also been using
forest wastes as fuel for cooking, animal bedding and compost preparation. But forest waste does
not seem to draw the attention as much as agricultural residues, although these resources are also
plentiful. Forest residues are fire hazardous during the dry season and proper measures to utilize
these resources and to control forest fires have to be introduced. Briquetting of these residues could
be one option.

Nepal is rich in biodiversity and has many herbs and medicinal plants that are being processed in
herb processing plants. After processing the herbs more than 90% of the remaining weight is
residual biomass (Source: HPPCL). These residues also are potential raw materials for briquetting.

With growing urbanization Municipal solid waste is increasing daily. The combustible portion of
the MSW is not being utilized yet for energy recovery in Nepal. This portion of the MSW is also a
reliable source of energy which is being utilized in many different forms in other countries around
the world.

Biomass, though abundant in the country, is a scattered resource and information regarding its
availability is not well established except for some agricultural residues. The total biomass
materials which can be available for Biobriquetting [4]can be categorized as
 Agricultural crop residue,
 Forest residue materials
 Residues from medicinal and herbal plant processing
 Municipal solid waste (MSW)
 Other biomass residues

Agricultural Crop Residue

Residual biomass is the weight of all the remaining biomass except the grain. For the estimation
of the residual biomass available for energy, different researchers use different but similar
indicators. Some use the factor indicating the ratio of weight of the residual biomass to
weight of the total biomass. Total biomass here means the weight of the grain and the entire
residue. The relationship between them is called the Residue Index (RI). The Residue Index
could be defined as follows: Residue Index (RI) = Weight of the Residue (Wt)/Weight of the
Total Biomass (wt).

The residues of paddy are the largest source of agricultural residue at nearly 8,521,376MT.
Considering the RPR value for rice husk to be 0.267 (Bhattacharya, et el 1993) the residue in the
form of rice husk alone come to 1,354,290MT. Following paddy, maize, wheat and Barley also
generate considerably large quantities of residues. The total residue of maize including stalk, cob
and husk comes to 5,389,691MT, whereas for Millet, wheat, Barley and Buckwheat the residue
generated 340272, 3230748, 60952 and 10021MT respectively, indicating their potential for
briquetting.

Table 11: Area, production and available residue from cereal crops
Crop type Area Crop Production Residue type RPR* Total Residue
[Ha] [MT] Production [MT]
Paddy 1,531,493 5,072,248 Total residue 1.68 8,521,376
Husk 0.267 1,354,290
Maize 871387 2179414 Total residue 5,389,691
stalk 2 4,358,828
cob 0.273 594,980
husk 0.2 435,883
Millet 278030 315067 stalk 1.08 340,272
Wheat 765317 1846142 straw 1.75 3,230,748
Buckwheat 10339 10021 Straw 1 10,021
Barley 27966 34829.8 straw 1.75 60,952
Source: Statistical information on Nepalese Agricultural 2011/2012

Besides cereal crops, there are a large number of cash crops, which yield huge amounts of
residues directly after harvesting of the crops. Industrial processing of these crops also yields
additional residues as in the case of sugarcane which gives bagasse. The total residue generated
from sugarcane including bagasse and leaves and tops alone comes to 1,728,728MT. The
residue production of some of these crops is given in Table 12. Besides these crops there are
many other crops like coffee, tea, cardamom, cotton, etc which also generate a lot of residues,
which can be used for the purpose of briquetting.

Table 12: Area, production and available residue from cash crops
Crop type Area Crop Production Residue type RPR Total Residue
[Ha] [MT] Production [MT]
Oil Seed 214835 179145 Stalk 4.01 71,837
Sugarcane 64472 2930047 Bagasse 0.29 849,714
tops/leaves 0.3 879,014
Total 1,728,728
Jute 10540 14424 Stick 2 28,848
Soybean 29281.8 28269.8 Total 98,944.3
Straw 2.5 70,674.5
Pods 1 28,269.8
Black Gram 27496.2 22482.4 Straw/stick 1.66 37,320
Cotton 135 133 Sticks 2.75 365.75
Coconut Husk 0.419 NA
 Shell 0.12 NA
Coffee 1780 425000 Husk 2.1 892,500
Ground nut 2736 3869 Husk 0.477 1,845
Straw 2.30 8,899
Source: Statistical information on Nepalese Agricultural 2011/2012

Forest Based Biomass Resources:

Wood based resources
Forest and shrubs cover 39.6% of the total land area (including protected areas) of Nepal.
According to a study conducted by Forest Resources Survey Department the potential assessment
of total growing stock (i.e. total biomass of stems, branches, leaves of tree from ground level to
the top) is nearly 285 million cubic meters while the available volume per hectare is about 131
cubic meter.

Forest based residues can be mainly classified into residues coming from wood processing
plants, management of perennial crop plantation and waste generatedfrom the forest itself. Wood
processing plants include wood residues from logging and wood-processing such as saw-milling
and manufacturing of plywood and particle board. Logging residues consist of branches, leaves,
lops, tops, damaged or unwanted stem wood. After receiving the logs, about 12% is waste in the
form of bark. Slabs, edgings and trimmings amount to about 34% while sawdust constitutes
another 12% of the log input. After kiln- drying the wood, further processing may take place
resulting in another 8% waste (of log input) in the form of sawdust and trim end (2%) and planer
shavings (6%). For calculation purposes a yield factor of 50% has been used (38% solid wood
waste and 12% sawdust). [2, 25]. This indicates the amount of waste generated from wood
processing.

Saw dust
The Timber Corporation of Nepal does not have the exact number of saw mills existing in the
country, but gave some estimates of the saw dust that is produced by the saw mills. It is assumed
that about 9-11% of sawdust is obtained during the processing of timber. Taking the average as
10%, the volume of sawdust obtained is shown in table below in Table13.

Table13: Timber used & sawdust obtained in different fiscal years

S No. Year Timber used (ft3) Volume of sawdust &
wood waste obtained (ft3)
1. 2061/62 1227739.62 122773.96
2. 2062/63 924843.11 92484.31
3. 2063/64 1266008.80 126600
4. 2064/65 1271515.62 127151.56
5. 2065/66 1359099 135909.9
6. 2066/67 673275.07 67327.50
Source: TCN and Department of Forest, 2066
There are many saw mills, private as well as government owned under the Timber Corporation of
Nepal, located in different places throughout the country. A study report conducted in early
1980ies had established that the TCN in Hetauda was generating annually 14,800 tons of wood
wastes (saw dust, bask, trim-ends, etc) including daily 10 tons of saw dust alone. Based on
this raw material a piston press briquetting plant of daily 8 ton production capacity had already
been proposed to establish there during the early 70ies [26]. This already indicated that saw dust
and wood waste had big potential as raw material for briquetting.

Similarly substantial amounts of waste are generated from Veneer, Plywood production and
Particle board production. The assessment of the residues generated from wood processing plants
is also required to be established as the raw material base for briquetting undertaking separate
studies. The case of waste generated from Veneer Industries will be dealt later as an example of a
good source of raw material for briquetting industries. The case of particle board and plywood
industries too has to be studied in future if briquetting is to be promotedin large scale.
On the other hand during processing of timber substantial amount of the biomass such as twigs
and branches are also obtained. The volume of this biomass is givenin Table 14.
Table 14 : Twigs & branches obtained in different fiscal years.
S No. Year Twigs and branches obtained (ft3)
1. 2061/62 21650.46
2. 2062/63 1464.19
3. 2063/64 1870.57
4. 2064/65 1713.07
5. 2065/66 1938.70
6. 2066/67 892.66
Source: TCN and Department of Forest, 2066

Despite having such big biomass resources briquette production from sawdust and wood waste
has not been a priority. This is due to lack of interest as well as genuine knowhow about
briquetting technology coupled with ignorance which tempts the villagers and sawmill owners to
simply burn the obtained residue without briquetting.

Pruning of trees
Wood residues generated by management of perennial crop plantations such as pruning and
replanting of trees (rubber, coconut, palm oil); perennial crop plantations such as for coconut
and rubber generate considerable amounts of wood residues from pruning and replanting
activities. This is another potential area where forest based biomass residues are generated and
the amount ofwaste generated should be established through separate studies.

6.2.1. Biomass under the high tension lines

Another important resource which is also neglected and being wasted is the biomass under the
high tension lines which is cut annually so that they are not destroyed by climbers and trees. The
Sub sector report of NIDC on Fuel briquetting [12] clearly mentions the huge amount of
biomass under the high tension lines which is cut annually and wasted. It even recommends it as
a very good raw material which should be distributed freely to the existing briquetting industries.
Quantification and utilization of this resource is also important.
Data and information regarding these forest based waste resources are very scanty and have not
been quantified properly. Hence, it is necessary to undertake separate assessment studies for the
quantification of forest based waste resources in view of establishing and promoting briquetting
industries in thefuture.

In the absence of established data base, for the purpose of giving some indicative figures for
some waste biomass, some rough estimates of some waste biomass found while studying various
reports and literature have been given here.

Different Forest waste

Waste generated from forest itself, such as leaves falling from the different trees, weeds and
invasive plants, etc. can also be used for briquetting. A lot of trees (Sal) shed leaves regularly
during the winter season to given a thick bed of leaves. Likewise, where there are pine forests a
thick layer of pine needles as well as pine cones are found in huge amounts. All these resource
are plentiful and are very fire hazardous during the dry seasons and cause tremendous amount of
damage. Then there are a lot of alien invasive species of biomass such as Banmara, Lantana
camara, Mikania macrantha, etc, which have invaded the forest as well as grassland and are
destroying the forest as well as the habitat of many protected areas. Some assessment of these
resources is also necessary as there is no established data on these waste resources. Some
estimates of these resources are given below to indicate the large amounts of forest based
biomass that can beavailable for briquetting.

Banmara
Banmara (the forest killer) or Adenophorum Eupatorium is and invasive seasonal plant which
came from Latin America, can be seen everywhere throughout the country in forest areas,
agricultural land and on the sides of roads and highways. There are many species of this plant.
Photos of different species from different areas are given below. It not only destroys the forest
but also destroys all other plants around it. During the dry season it is very fire hazard and the
seed of this plant can be carried to long distance during forest fires.

During 1994, Sagarnath Forestry Development project, which spread over 11,000 hectares, had
undertaken some preliminary study and reported that an average yield of 0.8 tons of Banmara
can be collected from one hectare. An estimated amount of 8800 tons could be generated from
the project area and the collection cost came to Rs 40 for 70 kg per person.
White Banmara White and Kalo Banmara together

A recent assessment study (February 2014) of availability of Banmara in different parts of the
country showed that the amount of dry matter that can be obtainedis about 17 tons/ha annually
(Table 15). The total area of coverage of Banmara has not yet been established, but the
visibility of Banmara along the highways (East West Highway and other roads) and degraded
forest areas, especially the areas under the high tension electricity lines, show huge amounts of
Banmara. Once the exact coverage area by Banmara is established then the total amount
available can be determined.

Table15: Amount of Banmara from different places

S.N Site location Biomass Wt of wet Area Wt of dry Average wt of
species biomass(kg) Biomass dried matter
(kg/m2)
1 Makwanpur Banmara 10 1 m2 2.5
(Bhaise)
Banmara 11 1 m2 2.75
2 Nawalparasi Banmara 6 1 m2 1.5 1.78 kg/m2
(17 tons/ha)
Banmara 6 1 m2 1.5
3 Dhading Banmara 6 1 m2 1.5
Banmara 3.5 1 m2 0.85
7.5 1 m2 1.85
Field survey February 2014:CEEN

Pine needles
Chir pine (Pinus roxburghii) is an important native conifer tree species in Nepal. It has
dominated the coniferous forests of the country, which comprise 17% of the total area. In 1981
and 1982, 57% of all trees planted by the Community Forestry Development Project were chir
pine. Out of the seventy-five districts, forty-eight districts have contributed to the pine forest in
Nepal. Western regions of Nepal show higher percentage of pine forest. Accham, Baitadi, Doti,
Salyan, Dailekh, Jajarkot, and Pyuthan have crossed the twenty percent level.

The total Chir pine forest area in Nepal is reported to be 382,944.80 hectares (table 16). The
average number of pine trees having stem diameter greater than 30 cm is 50 per hectare.
 Table 16: Chir Pine Availability in Nepal
Total Forest Chir Pine Forest Percent Availability of
S.N. District
Area(Ha) Area(Ha) Chir Pine (%)
1 Achham 88,097.90 22,122.80 25.11
2 Baitadi 78,720.90 31,708.90 40.28
3 Bajhang 113,179.20 8,813.40 7.79
4 Bajura 98,646.10 2,506.30 2.54
5 Dadeldhura 115,891.10 21,620.20 18.66
6 Darchula 97,537.70 2,713.60 2.78
7 Doti 144,689.20 35,573.20 24.59
8 Kailali 231,092.70 15,761.10 6.82
9 Bardia 127,682.20 295.00 0.23
10 Dailekh 78,136.50 18,495.50 23.67
11 Dang 197,272.80 5,252.50 2.66
12 Jajarkot 135,615.00 36,459.90 26.88
13 Mugu 111,098.90 1,776.50 1.60
14 Pyuthan 72,694.30 16,373.40 22.52
15 Rolpa 94,096.80 15,219.10 16.17
16 Rukum 136,452.00 4,795.80 3.51
17 Salyan 79,597.90 52,539.40 66.01
18 Surkhet 177,854.70 31,045.70 17.46
19 Argakhache 73,133.40 6,247.30 8.54
20 Baglung 98,045.70 1,841.20 1.88
21 Gorkha 112,534.70 344.90 0.31
22 Gulmi 40,663.30 5,973.20 14.69
23 Kaski 89,943.20 400.00 0.44
24 Myagdi 84,452.10 1,056.40 1.25
25 Nawalparasi 12,274.70 91.60 0.75
26 Palpa 71,172.00 1,313.60 1.85
27 Parbat 19,997.20 1,039.60 5.20
28 Syangja 31,690.60 32.60 0.10
29 Bhaktapur 1,947.20 32.30 1.66
30 Dhading 92,855.40 3,495.20 3.76
31 Dolakha 94,477.80 3,660.30 3.87
32 Kathmandu 13,752.40 741.10 5.39
33 Kavre 72,949.60 3,342.70 4.58
34 Lalitpur 20,727.50 161.20 0.78
35 Makwanpur 167,453.30 5,879.20 3.51
36 Nuwakot 49,654.40 1,056.00 2.13
37 Ramechhap 66,151.90 4,525.30 6.84
38 Rasuwa 52,290.40 118.50 0.23
39 Sindhupalchok 162,543.20 724.90 0.45
40 Sindhuli 62,043.00 6,158.90 9.93
41 Bhojpur 77,887.60 542.80 0.70
42 Dhankuta 36,385.20 601.30 1.65
43 Khotang 79,553.70 2,912.50 3.66
44 Okhaldhunga 47,346.70 3,746.20 7.91
45 Panchthar 57,706.60 1,390.70 2.41
46 Taplejung 139,167.20 96.70 0.07
47 Tehrathum 24,627.60 160.50 0.65
48 Udayapur 138,916.70 2,185.80 1.57
4,270,700.20 382,944.80 8.96
 Source: (Land Utilization report Appendix One (1986), Land Resource Mapping Project)

Pine tree is a major source of timber used for making furniture and plywood. Resin from chir
pine trees is used to manufacture turpentine, rosin and other products. The only wastage of pine
tree is being the pine needle, so the appropriate use of pine needle as energy source will
enhance the community people for greater plantation of the pine tree. As pine needle being
loose forest residue which is slow decaying and totally wastage material is also a major cause of
forest fire. The collection of pine needles ensures that the chances of forest fires are minimal.
Usually, the accumulating carpet of needles on the forest floor under these trees makes it
unsuitable for many common plants and trees to grow. Every autumn, the dried needles of this
tree form a dense carpet on the forest floor, which the locals gather in large bundles to serve as
bedding for their cattle, for the year round. Pine-needle collection will generate employment
opportunities for the villagers. It is estimated that one family can collect up to 100–200 kg of
pine needles in a day depending upon the time they spend in collection. A pine forest area of 1
m²will yield 1.19kg of pine needles and 115 ha of cleared forest every year will give 1350 tons
of pine needles per year. So considering the pine forest area in Nepal to be 382,944.80ha then
around 4.5million tons of pine needles will be available as raw material.

Pine needles as raw material is being used for different purposes like biomass gasification for
electricity generation, briquetting and pellet production. In Berinag, Uttarakhand, India, it is used
for gasification and villagers get Rs 1,000 for every ton of needles collected. Hence, the material
itself will be free of cost requiring only collection cost.

An equal amount of pine cones also can be expected from these forests. This resource can prove
to be a potential raw material base for biobriquetting in the areas where pine forests exist.

Besarmi jhar
Besarmi jhar is abundantly found in the Terai region. It grows wildly in water logged areas along
the highways and roadsides. A sample survey of the plant shows that from an area of 2 sq meters
about 8-10kgs of wet biomass can be collected. This yields about 5-6 kgs of dried biomass which
can be used for briquetting. So far the area of coverage by this plant is not known. Hence if a
survey is conducted in future the total amount of biomass can be known.

Photos of sample survey of Besarmi Jhar in Nawalparasi

Saal leaves
Saal forest in Nepal is a source of hard wood used for housing and construction purposes. Sal is
moderate to slow growing, and can attain heights of 30 to 35 m and a trunk diameter of up to 2-
2.5 m. The leaves are 10–25 cm long and 5–15 cm broad. In wetter areas, it is evergreen; in drier
areas, it is dry-season deciduous, shedding most of the leaves in between February to April,
leafing out again in April and May, giving a bed/carpet of leaves of around 8-12 inches thick.
Timely disposal of this material is important as it can induce forest fires that can destroy forest
area.

An estimate has shown that a total of 3654 million ha of forest area is available for improved
management. Out of which saal forest occupies area of 1,320,000 ha in Nepal.

There is considerable amount of litter fall annually in tropical dry deciduous forests. According
to Burges [29]the total litter fall in tropical forest may reach to 1.53 thousands kg/ha/yr. Taking
this figure into consideration and the saal forest area of Nepal as 1,320,000 ha, the amount of
saal litter i.e. leaves that will be available will be around 2,019,600 tons of leaf litter per year.

Earlier if fresh green leaves of saal found limited use traditionally for making Tapari, recently
Saal leaves are used as raw materials for the production of traditional plates or bowels (tapari) in
certain industries. These industries consume large amounts of leaves in the process of making
tapari, etc. One such industry alone has around 5 tons of waste materials (Source AEPC), which
do not find any use. As these leaves have better heating values and low ash content they can be
used as raw materials for briquetting. Ghimire has shown that these leaves have higher calorific
values of about 4880 kcal/kg than other waste biomass and alower ash content.

Saal leaf litter Collection of leaf litter

Mikania micrantha
Mikania macrantha, also known as mile a minute, is one of the many invasive species of
biomass, which is showing severe damaging effects on young trees, shrubs, grasses in mostly
mixed and reverine forests and grass lands. It has reduced food availability of wildlife species
found in Koshi Tappu and Parsa Wildlife Reserve and Chitwan National Park areas. It is
threatening the rhino- habitat including the grassland. Its present infestation is estimated to
have over 30 % of the entire Chitwan national park area. If it is spread widely it will reduce the
productivity, destroy regeneration and degrade the forest condition.
It is neither a good feed for the animals nor does it have any other value of biomass. One of the
methods of utilizing it would be for briquetting. Poudel M. S. has successfully shown that the
invasive plant Mikania can be used to produce different types of briquettes – biomass briquettes,
beehive briquettes and charcoal pellets. A survey conducted jointly by NTNC, TCN and NAST
in Chitwan National Park has shown that 91,088 tons of dried Mikania or 34,158 tons of
Charcoal from Mikania respectively is available for briquetting purposes annually (Table 17).

Mikania has infested many other places such as the Koshi Tappu, Parsa Wild life Reserve, etc. It
has been established that more than 20 districts in the Terai region has been infested with
Mikania. Therefore, the potentials of Mikania as one raw material for briquetting in these areas
are quite large and assessment of its available quantity should be established if briquetting is
going to be promoted in future.
Table 17: Estimates of Mikania as raw material for briquetting
No Parameter Amount Unit
1 Average fresh weight of Mikania from a plot 30.39
Kg/25m2
2 Total area of Chitwan national park 932 Km2
3 Mikania coverage** 30%
4 Effective Mikania coverage with reference to column 3 279.6 Km2
5 Total weight biomass of Mikania in 279.6 Km2 339881760 kg
6 No of times Mikania can be collected in a year 2
7 Total biomass yield from 2 collection phases in a year 679763520 Kg
8 Moisture content with reference to thesis 86.6%
9 Recovery of dried Mikania for direct 91088312 kg ~91088 tons
densification
10 Recovery of Mikania after charring*** 34158117 kg
11 Recovery of Mikania for charcoal 34158.117 ~34158tons
briquetting
Since it does not find much use and does not have any economic value, simply using it as
renewable biomass could be an option to tap and use this as a raw material for briquetting.
Considering the infestation of about 20 district of Terai by Mikania, approximately 600,000
tons of dried Mikania will be available as raw material for briquetting.

Other agro and forest waste

There is many more such waste that does not find much use and they are also creating problems.
Lantana Camara and Mugwort are invasive biomass like Banmara Water hyacinth is creating
problem in many water bodies including Fewa Taal. Many more such waste biomass exists in
different parts of the country but the amount of coverage and the yield per hector has yet to be
established.
Then there are also many agro wastes that are found available in abundant quantities but to use
them as raw material some assessment studies have to be conducted to know the exact amount
that will be available. The list of waste biomass is in exhaustive. To mention a few, they are
1. cotton stalks
1. Coffee waste
2. Tobacco waste
3. Tea waste
4. Ground nut shells
5. Lantana Camera –Dhugri Phool
6. Mugwort - Tite pati
7. Water Hyacinth
8. Banana waste
9. Eucalyptus forest Waste (leaves)

Municipal Solid waste

The combustible portion of the Municipal Solid Waste from cities is another reliable raw
material for briquetting. The five municipalities in the Kathmandu Valley generate daily
approximately 435 tons of solid waste of which more than 70% comes from Kathmandu
Metropolitan City alone. The most recent data suggests that the five municipalities in
Kathmandu valley generate around 468.25 tons of solid waste daily. This increase in the
amount of solid waste by 7.64% in a span of four years can be attributed to the increasing
population in Kathmandu valley. The average composition of MSW of Kathmandu valley,
which consists of compostable waste (decaying organic matter), combustibles (paper,
plastics, textiles) and inorganic matter such as glass and metal from different years are
given in Table 18.

Table 18 : Composition of waste in past years Kathmandu (% wt)

No. Type of waste 1976 1981 1985 1988 1995 1999 2000 2004 2008
1 Organic 67.8 60.0 67.5 58.1 65.0 67.5 69.84 67 68.0
2 Paper 6.5 19.3 6.0 6.2 4.0 8.8 8.5 10 10.0
3 Rubber 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 1.0 0.3 0.54 0.24 mix1
4 Leather - - - - - - 0.12 - -
5 Wood 2.7 1.6 0.0 0.5 3.0 0.6 0.73 - -
6 Plastic 0.3 3.6 2.6 2.0 5.0 11.4 9.17 16 13.0
7 Bone - - - - - - 0.23 - -
8 Textile 6.5 5.3 2.7 2.0 3.0 3.6 3.02 4 2.0
9 Ferrous metal 4.9 3.4 2.2 0.4 1.0 0.9 0.87 1 -
10 Aluminium - - - - - - 0.05 - -
11 Metal - - - - - - - - 1.0
12 Sand dust - - - - - - - - 1.0
12 Glass 1.3 3.4 4.0 1.6 1.0 1.6 2.5 1 4.0
13 Construction 10.0 3.4 15.0 28.9 17.0 5.3 4.33 1.24 1.0
debris/Others
(Source: Various JICA survey reports, and SWMRMC 2008)
The recent trend towards MSW in many countries is to look at it as a resource and not waste. It
has been practiced worldwide to use MSW for power generation, compost, recycling and
recycled products. Waste to energy conversion can be an economical and eco friendly way for
waste utilization and reduction as well as
source of fuel alternative at the same time. This technology has long been in practice in many
cities of Japan in the form of MSW briquette fuel use for the purpose of heating. Likewise, the
municipal waste of Kathmandu could be best recovered and reused by transformation into solid
waste fuel briquettes in the form of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF). In Nepalese context, such type
of fuel material can be a substitute for the imported Indian coal in industries like Brick Kiln,
industrial boilers, etc. With this concept NESS also had undertaken some research works to
produce fuels briquettes in 1995. As plastic is an integral component of RDF the heat content
was high and the fuel was easy to ignite, so the test results of NESS had shown very promising
results.

There are 58 municipalities in Nepal and the amount of waste generated by these municipalities
per day comes to 2813.13 tons. Out of this amount of generated waste, 2164.49 tons are
collected. The average composition of this waste, considering the combustible portion only, is
8.36% - plastics, 8.59% -paper, 1.66%- textiles and 0.68% by weight – woody matter. From
simple calculations, this gives about 181 tons of plastics, 186 tons of paper, 36 tons of textiles
and 15 tons of woody matter on a daily basis which are good raw materials for producing RDF.
All these waste resources open up big avenues for briquetting of these combustible matters to
produce fuel briquettes for industrial use.

Waste from veneer industries

There are many veneer and plywood industries established all over NepaI. In Birtamod alone
there are around 38 veneer industries (table No19), which are using Utis, Malato and Mauwa
logs from Ilam and Panchthar for the production of veneer. The logs cost about Rs 150 per cubic
feet. One such industry - Shree Hari Om Veneer Udyog in Ataarmani, Jhapa – processes an
average amount of 400 cu. ft. of logs per day. Along with the veneer product the industry
generates a huge amount of different types of waste starting from bark of the tree logs to saw
dust.

Mainly five different types of waste were found in the factory. These waste materials have found
limited use only. Some of it is being sold to a tea factory, which uses about 8 tons/per week as
fuel for a Gasifier to dry tea leaves. Some selected waste is sold to the local people as fuel for
cooking.
These wastes from the veneer industry could be a potential raw material for briquetting. Since
the wood used is mainly soft wood, they are good raw materials
for producing wood pellets. The different types of waste in the factory are shownin the
pictures below.

Table 19:Different types of waste and cost

No Different waste Cost (Rs/kg) Users Purpose
1 Bark 2 Locals Making alcohol
2 Gollia or golla 6-7 Locals Cooking/tea factory
3 Saw dust 1 Locals Cooking food
4 Small strips 3-4 Locals Cooking food and animal feed
5 Very small pieces 1 Locals Cooking/tea factory
About 20 industries are situated in Morang districts. According to the Nepal Veneer
Producers Association there are 54 members in the association. Not all industries are
members. Altogether all over Nepal there are about 200 such industries in operation.

According to Ms Shri Om Veneer Udyog, the estimate of waste generated in the factory
comes to about 30% of the processed wood. However, visual on sight observation indicate
more. According to Nepal Veneer Producers Association, currently 25% of the waste from
the industries is being consumed locally as fuel for cooking and boilers and 75 % is unused.
(Source: Mr Ek Raj Karki, President, Nepal Veneer Producers Association)

For these industries, Koopmans and Koppejan [22]mentions that from the log input, the
main forms of waste are log ends and trims (7%), bark (5%),log cores (10%), green veneer
waste (12%), dry veneer waste (8%), trimmings (4%) and rejected plywood (1%). These
form the largest amount of waste while sanding theplywood sheets results in another loss of
5% in the form of sander dust [3]. For calculation purposes a yield factor of 50% has been
used, with 45% solid wood residues and 5% in the form of dust[22].
3.2 Sustainable management of bio-energy resources (existing
resource assessment, new resource development and management)

Sustainable management:- Sustainable management has been created to be defined as the

application of sustainable practices in the categories of businesses, agriculture, society,
environment, and personal life by managing them in a way that will benefit current generations
and future generations.

Sustainable energy:- Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Most definitions of
sustainable energy include considerations of environmental aspects such as greenhouse gas
emissions and social and economic aspects such as energy poverty. Renewable energy sources
such as wind, hydroelectric power, solar, and geothermal energy are generally far more
sustainable than fossil fuel sources. However, some renewable energy projects, such as the
clearing of forests to produce biofuels, can cause severe environmental damage. The role of non-
renewable energy sources in sustainable energy has been controversial. Nuclear power is a low-
carbon source whose historic mortality rates are comparable to wind and solar, but its
sustainability has been debated because of concerns about radioactive waste, nuclear
proliferation, and accidents. Switching from coal to natural gas has environmental benefits,
including a lower climate impact, but may lead to a delay in switching to more sustainable
options. Carbon capture and storage can be built into power plants to remove their carbon
dioxide (CO2) emissions, but is expensive and has seldom been implemented.

Sustainable Development:- Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

How Sustainable is Biomass?

The biomass industry is the most highly regulated among the entire forest products sector. For
biomass to be recognized as "sustainable" and eligible to receive subsidies, it must be produced
and consumed following an overlapping system of international, federal and state-level laws.

We believe sustainably sourced biomass must: come from a region where forest carbon stocks
are stable or increasing; require that forests are regrown after harvest; not use wood that could
have another high-value use; and be harvested with respect for biodiversity and conservation
value. We believe all wood fiber procurement should be sourced according to these principles,
and compliance should be independently verified.
The fundamental science on the carbon and forestry benefits of wood bioenergy, when produced
sustainably, is well-established and remains unchanged. It has been attested to by the leading
scientists and academics who specialize in this field and is underpinned by a growing body of
academic literature, including crucial research published in 2019 and 2020. Biomass can provide
firm, dispatchable baseload power, and it can provide this low-carbon power today. As a result,
biomass offers an immediate low-carbon solution, and bioenergy must be part of the mix as we
consider the global energy transition.

Alternative energy solutions must be deployed today. Sustainably sourced biomass can displace
coal 1:1, keep the lights on when wind and solar energy are scarce and reduce carbon emissions
by 85 percent on a lifecycle basis.

Sustainable Forest Management and Bioenergy

Background: The Nepalese government’s long-term strategy is to achieve net-zero emissions by

2045. In its updated NDC, the country proposes an ambitious target to increase the sustainable
management of forests, maintain 45% of the country under forest cover and enhance carbon
sequestration. Further, by 2030, Nepal aims to ensure 15% of the total energy demand is supplied
from clean energy sources. In Nepal, forest fires, unsustainable management of forests and the
waste of biomass have been identified as major sources of GHG emissions. The country is
combatting the spread of invasive species which are causing the spread of forest fires. In order to
prevent forest fires, the promotion of sustainable forest management and the management of
invasive species is crucial.

Approach to Transformational Change: The NSP intends to enhance carbon sequestration of

forests and achieve behavioural change of fossil and conventional fuel users to switch over to
sustainable biomass pellets. The NSP promotes sustainable forest management practices and
converting hazardous biomass into biomass pellets which will lead to the reduction of forest
fires. The NSP will further initiate behavioural change in brick and cement industries to switch
from fossil fuel to sustainable biomass pellets. After the implementation of the NSP, 75,060 ha
of forest will be sustainably managed thereby contributing to the production of 100,000 Mt of
bio-pellets per year. In addition, the NSP intends to promote occupational health and safety
measures, as well as gender sensitive approaches in bio-energy SMEs. With the promotion and
increased production of sustainable biomass pellets, the NSP promotes the creation of jobs in
rural areas.
Mitigation Potential: The NSP will support Nepal in the implementation of its NDC by focusing
on two mitigation actions: 1) substituting fossil fuel with densified biomass pellets produced
from forest floor biomass of sustainably managed forests and 2) enhancing the carbon
sequestration capacity of forests. Over the course of its implementation, the NSP thereby expects
to reduce around 4.91 million tCO2e.

[Resource assessment, new resource are Described in above]

5. BIO-ENERGY TECHNOLOGY
Direct combustion system

Direct combustion is a thermochemical technique in which the biomass is burned in open air or
in the presence of excess air. In this process, the photosynthetically stored chemical energy of the
biomass will be converted into gases.

Biomass combustion is a series of chemical reactions by which carbon is oxidized to carbon

dioxide, and hydrogen is oxidized to water. Biomass fired domestic stoves are commonly used
for space heating and cooking in the rural areas.

Principles of Combustion

Combustion is familiar to all of us, but many do not realize that it is essentially a chemical
reaction. In the process of combustion, two ingredients (biomass and oxygen) are combined in a
high temperature environment to form carbon dioxide, water vapor, and heat.

CH1.44O0.66 + 1.03 O2 = 0.72 H2O + CO2 (+Heat)

Note: CH1.44O0.66 is the approximate chemical equation for the combustible portion of
biomass.

The amount of heat that is produced varies depending on species, climate, and other factors, but
it is generally about 20 Megajoules of energy per dry kilogram of biomass.

In order for combustion to be efficient and clean, the ingredients must be well mixed at the right
temperatures for the right amount of time. Practically speaking, this means that you need the
right amount of fuel, the right amount of air, and the right conditions.
Water content in biomass is an important factor when it comes to combustion. The best burning
fuels are dry. However, biomass almost always includes some amount of moisture. For example,
green wood chips are usually about 50% water and 50% dry matter. Fresh leaves from a plant
can be as high as 95% moisture and 5% dry matter. Ideally, biomass should be no more than
20% moisture.

Solid biomass particle entering a combustor undergoes four distinct combustion stages: drying,
devolatilization, combustion of gases, and char burning.

Thermal conversion is the use of heat, with or without the presence of oxygen, to convert
biomass into other forms of energy and products. These include direct combustion, pyrolysis,
and torrefaction.
 a. Combustion is the burning of biomass in the presence of oxygen. The waste heat is used
to for hot water, heat, or with a waste heat boiler to operate a steam turbine to produce
electricity. Biomass also can be co-fired with existing fossil fuel power stations.
b. Pyrolysis convert biomass feedstocks under controlled temperature and absent oxygen
into gas, oil and biochar (used as valuable soil conditioner and also to make graphene).
The gases and oil can be used to power a generator and some technologies can also make
diesel and chemicals from the gases.
c. Torrefaction is similar to pyrolysis but in a lower operating temperature range. The final
product is an energy dense solid fuel often referred to as “bio-coal”.

Systems
A. Biomass Cooking stoves

Biomass stoves burn compressed wood or biomass pellets to create a source of heat. By
slowly feeding fuel automatically from the storage container (called the hopper) into the burn
tray, a constant flame is created and monitored to ensure maximum efficiency. When burned, the
energy in biomass is released as heat.
According to AEPC Nepal

Improved Cooking Stoves

Mud ICS

Introduction
Improved cook stoves (ICS) particularly mud-brick ICS with and without chimney is one of
the most simple, inexpensive and widely used technologies designed to improve combustion
efficiency of biomass and reduce exposure to indoor air pollution.

The benefits of ICS includes: increased thermal efficiency, conservation of forests by

reducing fuel wood consumption, reduction in womens' drudgery, reduction in indoor air
pollution and hence smoke-related health disorders, and prevention of fire hazards.

Traditional stoves used in Nepal are simple structures made from clay or having stone or
metal tripods. These stoves are very inefficient because they have poor air flow and
insulation. As a result, they consume a lot of biomass and produce high levels of indoor air
pollution.

ICS was introduced in Nepal in 1950s and continues to be relevant in the present context.
AEPC/NRREP, together with other government, non-government and private organisations,
is involved in developing and promoting different types of ICS in Nepal and so far more than
700,000 improved cook stoves have been installed in 63 districts.

ICS Models

Metallic ICS

Introduction

Biomass is the primary fuel of the country. Various types of mud and metallic improved
cooking stoves have great scope to replace the traditional cooking stoves that burn fire wood
for cooking and heating. Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) has been promoting
Metallic Improved Cooking Stoves (MICS) since 2009 under Biomass Energy Support
Programme. The main objective of this programme is to address dual purpose of
simultaneous Cooking as well as Space heating need of people living in remote high hills of
Nepal. The target beneficiary of MICS is very remote places, above 1500m, from sea level.
The Dissemination has been carried out through the Pre qualified manufacturer and installer
companies with government subsidy. This subsidy is just a quality assurance discount for
these beneficiaries that do not cover entire cost.
The programme has disseminated more than 10,500 MICS with disbursement of subsidy till
June 2013 covering high hill region of 39 districts. AEPC has been implementing National
Rural and Renewable Energy Programme (NRREP) form July 2013. NRREP has targeted
4,75,000 ICS disseminate in rural area of Nepal, among the target 35,000 is Metallic
Improved Cooking stove (MICS).

MICS Models

In the beginning BESP has promoted three pot hole metallic stoves with water tank,
developed through technical support from Kathmandu University. This model was targeted
for high hills where ICS is needed for cooking and space heating. Especially Water tank is
used to tap waste heat from MICS body. Furthermore, other MICS model is identified and
modifications on existing model were done with the learning & feedback provided by users,
manufactures, installer and other stakeholders.

At the moment AEPC is promoting three models of MICS as following:

Three pot hole with water tank

Three pot hole with grate & ash tray

Two pot hole with grate & ash tray

Institutional ICS

Introduction

Institutional Improved Cooking Stoves are used in hotels, hospitals,hostels, barracks,

teashops, restaurants, small scale industries like wool dyeing,daalmoth (snacks) factory etc.
IICS can be used for heating water with some modification like joining back-boiler or
running metal pipes inside its body.

BESC with technical assistance from Kathmandu University had finalized three different
models of large size IICS which requires different metallic components for reinforcement.
Later, the household ICS have also been installed with proper reinforcement at vital parts as
well as scaling up the size as per need. These stoves have been widely used in the local
teashops of the rural villages.
 A pilot project was also conducted in Malekhu Bazar, one of the busiest local markets on the
national highway. This project was specially focused on the installation of the IICS with
chimney in the hotels, tea shops located along the Malekhu Bazar area. The project was very
successful.

Furthermore, the recently promoted IICS technology is based on the rocket principle and is
comparatively affordable than the previous models due to less reinforcement and space
requirements and user’s claim that it saves a lot of money by saving the expensive fuel wood
up to 40 to 50%. It is also easy to use and reduces cooking time significantly. These days
IICS based on rocket technologies and those up-scaled are more popular.

So far, AEPC have been able to declare 2 IICS clusters as IAP FREE in Bara and Rautahat
districts and few others are ready to be declared.

Rocket Stoves

Introduction

A rocket stove is an efficient cooking stove using small diameter wood fuel which is burned in a
simple high-temperature combustion chamber containing an insulated vertical elbo which
ensures complete combustion prior to the flames reaching the cooking surface.

A rocket stove achieves efficient combustion of the fuel at a high temperature by ensuring a good
air draft into the fire, controlled use of fuel, complete combustion of volatiles, and efficient use
of the resultant heat. It has been used for cooking purposes in many energy poor locales as well
as for space and water heating.

BESC has developed a portable mud rocket stoves suitable for house hold use in Terai
settlements. The sole purpose of this model is to cater the users who cook inside as well as
outside their house.

Further, BESC has disseminated these newly developed portable mud rocket stoves in the labor
settlement inside the Brick Kilns of Kathmandu Valley & Jhapa district as well as in Veneer
Industry in Jhapa district.

Benefits

Low cost

Fuel efficient
 Easy to transport

Locally builtable

Accepted technology, particularly in Terai

According to tier level

Biomass boilers
A biomass boiler works in a very similar way to conventional boilers, combusting fuel to
produce heat that is then used to heat water. Biomass boilers are normally substantially bigger
than their fossil fuel-burning brothers though, for a number of reasons. Firstly since they are
burning wood pellets as opposed to gas, the boiler needs to be larger to hold the larger volume of
fuel.
 Biomass Boiler Pros and Cons
Pros Cons

Renewable Boiler Space Requirments

Carbon Neutral Fuel Storage Space

Could Reduce Your CO2 Output Fuel Storage Environment

Cheap and Stable Fuel Prices High Upfront Costs

Highly Efficient Continual Maintenance

Possible Renewable Heat Incentives Could Have Fuel Supply Issues

Off-Grid Locations Fuel Quality

Duel Use(Space Heating and Hot Water) Annual Servicing is Required

Reduces Wood Waste Possibly More Labour Intensive

Industries Are Co-firing Biomass to Reduce Emissions More Difficult to Handle and Combust Compared

to Fossil Fuels

Problems From Slagging, Fouling, and Clinkering

kiln
A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to
complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or chemical changes. Kilns have been used
for millennia to turn objects made from clay into pottery, tiles and bricks. Various industries
use rotary kilns for pyroprocessing—to calcinate ores, to calcinate limestone to lime for cement,
and to transform many other materials.
Thermo-chemical conversion system
[An additional pdf is provided from websites]

Bio-chemical conversion system

Biochemical conversion involves the use of enzymes of bacteria or other microorganisms to
break down biomass through the processes of anaerobic digestion, fermentation, or
composting.

Bio-methanation,
Biogas is produced by anaerobic fermentation of organic materials (biomass) such as compost,
organic waste, sewage sludge, manure, plant residues etc. Biogas is particularly suitable for
energy production in so-called biogas plants.

Chemically, biogas is a flammable gas. It is composed very differently depending on the

substrate employed and technical workup.

As main constituents generally occur methane and carbon dioxide. Other components are
nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide and water vapor. The interfering gases
in the crude biogas (H2S, NH3 and CO2) are deposited prior to combustion.

The production of biogas is a microbial process that occurs in several stages. Starting materials
are the carbohydrates, fats and proteins in the biomass. These are converted by the
microorganisms through various metabolic pathways in biogas - in absence of oxygen (anoxic
conditions; for example, anaerobic digestion).

The principle of a biogas plant is, the anaerobic fermentation of the biomass (organic matter) in
presence of water. The working of a biogas plant is, the biomass is mixed with water and then is
decomposed by the anaerobic bacteria into the products like gasses (methane, hydrogen, carbon
dioxide) and the other side products (manure, fertilizers).

Complete step by step :

The principle of a biogas plant: The principle of a biogas plant is to produce the gasses like
methane and other side products like carbon dioxide, etc by decomposing (breaking down the
complex substances into the simple/basic substances) the biomass (the organic matter - the
natural substances obtained from the plants and animals, such as the cow dung, the vegetable
waste) in the absence of air (the anaerobic fermentation) and presence of the water.
The schematic diagram representing the bio-gas plant is as follows.
The working of a biogas plant: Consider the above diagram while going through the below-
working steps of the biogas plant.

The inlet of the biogas plant is the mixing tank. In this mixing tank, the biomass is mixed with
the water to form a slurry. A slurry is a composition of the water and the cow dung (biomass).
The mixing tank is also called the slurry region. Then, this slurry enters the digester.
The digester (air-tight chamber) is an area with the absence of the oxygen (basically an anaerobic
region) and the presence of microorganisms (the anaerobic bacteria). These bacteria are capable
of decomposing the substances in absence of oxygen.

Thus, these microorganisms in the digester, decompose the biomass, that is, breaks down the
complex substance into basic substances like methane, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, hydrogen
sulfide. These gasses produced are stored in the gas tank and wherever required, these gases are
taken out through the gas outlet.

The other side products, other than the gas, produced during the decomposition of the biomass
are substances like manure and the fertilizers.
Note:
The microorganisms present in the digester are capable of decomposing the substance in the
absence of air, thus, they are also called as the anaerobic bacteria. This biogas produced in a
biogas plant has many commercial and household applications, like, this biogas can be used as a
fuel, even as a kitchen gas, in gas engines.

Bio ethanol and Bio diesel

 Ethanol or ethyl alcohol is a clear colourless liquid, it is biodegradable, low in toxicity
and causes little environmental pollution if spilt. Ethanol burns to produce carbon dioxide
and water. Ethanol is a high octane fuel and has replaced lead as an octane enhancer in
petrol. By blending ethanol with gasoline we can also oxygenate the fuel mixture so it
burns more completely and reduces polluting emissions. Ethanol fuel blends are widely
sold in the United States. The most common blend is 10% ethanol and 90% petrol (E10).
 Vehicle engines require no modifications to run on E10 and vehicle warranties are
unaffected also. Only flexible fuel vehicles can run on up to 85% ethanol and 15% petrol
blends (E85).
 Bioethanol fuel is mainly produced by the sugar fermentation process, although it can
also be manufactured by the chemical process of reacting ethylene with steam. The main
sources of sugar required to produce ethanol come from fuel or energy crops. These crops
are grown specifically for energy use and include corn, maize and wheat crops, waste
straw, willow and trees, sawdust, reed canary grass, cord grasses, jerusalem artichoke,
miscanthus and sorghum plants. Biodiesel is produced from oils or fats
using transesterification. It can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure form (B100), but
it is usually used as a diesel additive to reduce levels of particulates, carbon monoxide,
and hydrocarbons from diesel-powered vehicles.

Production process of Bio Ethanol

The predominant technology for converting biomass to ethanol is fermentation

followed by distillation. Fermentation is a bio-chemical conversion process in which
the biomass is decomposed using micro- organisms (bacteria or enzymes). This
technology can be used for various types of biomass feedstocks.

Practically all ethanol fermentation is still based on Baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces

cerevisiae), which requires simple (monomeric) sugars as raw material. Conventional
yeast fermentation produces 0.51 kg of ethanol from 1 kg of any the C6 sugars
glucose, mannose and sucrose. However, not all feedstocks contain simple sugars.
Starch and lignocellulose are polymers, and an hydrolysis is required to break the
bonds between monomers and produce simple C6 sugars for fermentation.

Hydrolysis of starch and cellulose followed by fermentation of glucose to ethanol

The first step in this conversion process comprises milling or grinding of the grain so
as to release its starch. Then this material is diluted in water to adjust the amount of
sugar in the mash. This is necessary to maintain the yeast and make the mash easier to
stir and handle. Then this mixture is cooked to dissolve all the water-soluble starches.
The starch is converted to sugars simultaneously. This can be done by enzymes or
acid hydrolysis. In the case of acid hydrolysis, dilute mineral acid is added to the grain
slurry prior to cooking. The short carbohydrates resulting from these processing steps
can be fermented by micro-organisms. For growing of the yeast needed for the
fermentation process, the solution must be slightly acid, namely a pH between 4.8 and
5.0. During fermentation, ethanol is produced, which is diluted with water. This
process also results in the formation of CO2. Through a series of distillation and
dehydration steps, the ethanol concentration can be increased.

The conversion process of lignocellulosic biomass to ethanol only differs from the
process described above with respect to the break down, or hydrolysis, of the raw
material to fermentable sugar. This hydrolysis process is more difficult than the
hydrolysis of starch. Lignocellulosic biomass contains carbohydrate polymers called
cellulose (40-60% of dry weight) and hemicellulose (20-40% of dry weight) that can
be converted to sugars. Cellulose is composed of glucose molecules bonded together
in long chains that form a crystalline structure. Hemicellulose consists of a mixture of
polymers made up from xylose, mannose, galactose, or arabinose. It is much less
stable than cellulose. Both materials are not soluble in water. The remaining fraction,
a complex aromatic polymer called lignin (10-25% of dry weight) cannot be
fermented because it is resistant to biological degradation. This material can be
utilised for the production of electricity and/or heat.

For fuel applications, the purity of the ethanol must be almost 100%. This means that
the water content must be much lower compared to ethanol produced by current
industrial technology. For the dehydration of ethanol several technologies are
available, such as the use of molecular sieves and membrane separation, which can
still be improved. The power and heat production from the non-fermentable fraction
of the biomass and the overall process integration can also be developed further,
which will lead to an increase of the energetic efficiency and economic performance
of the process.

Bio Diesel
Biodiesel is a form of diesel fuel derived from plants or animals and consisting of long-chain
fatty acid esters. It is typically made by chemically reacting lipids such as animal fat (tallow),
soybean oil, or some other vegetable oilwith an alcohol, producing a methyl, ethyl or propyl ester
by the process of transesterification.
Unlike the vegetable and waste oils used to fuel converted diesel engines, biodiesel is a drop-in
biofuel, meaning it is compatible with existing diesel engines and distribution infrastructure.
However, it is usually blended with petrodiesel (typically to less than 10%) since most engines
cannot run on pure Biodiesel without modification. Biodiesel blends can also be used as heating
oil. The US National Biodiesel Board defines "biodiesel" as a mono-alkyl ester.

Production
Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oils, yellow grease, used cooking oils, or animal fats. The
fuel is produced by transesterification—a process that converts fats and oils into biodiesel and
glycerin (a coproduct). Approximately 100 pounds of oil or fat are reacted with 10 pounds of a
short-chain alcohol (usually methanol) in the presence of a catalyst (usually sodium hydroxide
[NaOH] or potassium hydroxide [KOH]) to form 100 pounds of biodiesel and 10 pounds of
glycerin (or glycerol). Glycerin, a co-product, is a sugar commonly used in the manufacture of
pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

Schematic of Biodiesel
Production Path
Raw or refined plant oil, or recycled greases that have not been processed into biodiesel, are not
biodiesel and should not be used as vehicle fuel. Fats and oils (triglycerides) are much more
viscous than biodiesel, and low-level vegetable oil blends can cause long-term engine deposits,
ring sticking, lube-oil gelling, and other maintenance problems that can reduce engine life.
Research is being conducted on developing algae as a potential biodiesel feedstock. It is
expected to produce high yields from a smaller area of land than vegetable oils.

Biomass power plants

Biomass power is electricity generated from renewable organic waste that would otherwise be
dumped in landfills, openly burned, or left in the woods as fodder for forest fires.

In biomass power plants, wood waste or other waste is burned to produce steam that runs a
turbine to make electricity, or that provides heat to industries and homes. Fortunately, new
technologies — including pollution controls and combustion engineering — have advanced to
the point that any emissions from burning biomass in industrial facilities are less than emissions
produced when using fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, oil). ReEnergy’s facilities use this state-of-
the- art technology.

Biomass power provides significant environmental and consumer benefits, including improving
forest health and forest air quality, and offering baseload, dependable electricity to complement
intermittent sources of electricity.

The operation of a biomass plant

A biomass power plant produces electricity from the steam that is released during the
combustion of plant or animal matter in a combustion chamber. This process is done in several

steps:
1. Combustion: The biomass is burned in a combustion chamber.

2. Steam production: The biomass releases heat that heats water in a boiler. The water is
transformed into steam, which is sent under pressure to turbines.

3. Electricity production: The steam turns a turbine which in turn drives an alternator. Thanks
to the energy supplied by the turbine, the alternator produces an alternating electric current. A
transformer raises the voltage of the electric current produced by the alternator so that it can be
more easily transported in medium and high voltage lines.

4. Recycling: At the exit of the turbine, part of the steam is recovered to be used for heating.
This is called cogeneration.

The rest of the steam is again transformed into water thanks to a condenser in which cold water
from the sea or a river circulates. The water thus obtained is recovered and recirculated in the
boiler to start another cycle.

The main advantage of biomass power plants is simple: they allow to create energy without
using fossil fuels, thanks to ecological resources. With biomass, it is also possible to recover
waste and reuse it to create energy.

This mode of electricity production has, in principle, a neutral carbon balance, because it rejects
a relatively low quantity of CO2, similar to the quantity consumed by the plants during their
growth phase.

In a world where ecology and respect for the environment are increasingly important, the use of
natural fuels is necessarily a welcome solution. However, this solution is contested by many
associations...