[en] By the year 2020, 4.4% of total energy consumption in the Netherlands must be generated from biomass. That means that biomass will be the most important form of renewable energy for this country. But, with 20 years to go, there is still no generally accepted strategy for the technological and economical development of bio-energy. The most important questions are discussed: is biomass sustainable or not, is it better to burn biomass or to gasify, must one built large-scale or small-scale biomass conversion plants, should the Netherlands import or biomass or cultivate biomass themselves, should biomass wastes be incinerated or recycled, must the emission standard for SO2 be 40 or 200 mg, and, finally, is bio-energy economically feasible?

[en] Variations of the fuel prices and uncertainty with respect to the output of the produced energy were reasons not to build a biomass power plant in amsterdam, Netherlands. However, in Cuyk and Lelystad (also in the Netherlands) plans to build a biomass power plant are arranged. A brief overview is given of the arguments based on which it is decided to build such a plant

[en] In its broadest sense, Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP^TM) covers the conversion of all types of carbonaceous materials to liquid fuels, high quality fuel gases, and chemicals. Commercial RTP^TM activities (including the actual implementation in the market as well as the short-term R and D initiatives) are much narrower in scope, and are focused on the production of high yields of light, non-tarry liquids (i.e. 'bio-crude') from biomass for fuel and chemical markets. RTP^TM is not an incineration process. In commercial applications, it is simply the liquification of biomass by the addition of heat at atmospheric pressure in the absence of air or oxygen. There is no direct combustion in the conversion unit. In effect, wood is converted to liquid wood, bagasse to liquid bagasse, straw to liquid straw, etc. The liquid is pourable and pumpable at room temperature, and has approximately the same heating value as the feedstock entering the conversion unit. The typical liquid yield from a representative hardwood at 10 - 15 % moisture content is about 73 % by mass in industrial operations. In general, the yield increases slightly with an increase in feedstock cellulose composition and slightly decreases with an increase in feedstock lignin composition. However, the energy yield remains approximately constant since lignin-derived liquids have a higher energy content than cellulose-derived liquids. RTP^TM was commercialised in 1989 after about 10 years of research, development and demonstration. Current product applications include boiler fuel and food chemicals. It is important to note that the primary liquid product or 'bio-crude' is essentially the same whether it is destined for the fuel or the food chemicals markets. refs

[en] The author examines briefly the factors controlling the growth of energy crops, particularly the relationship between dry matter yield and fuel costs and conversion efficiency and electricity price. The EU target is for 135 Mtoe from biomass by 2010 and consideration is given on how this can be met

[en] The paper outlines the majors issues associated with the use of biomass as a viable energy source in the future. In particular, it assesses the viability of producing large quantities of biomass, difficulties associated with its transport and the economics of various conversion processes

[en] Precommercial thinning and plantation cleaning offer opportunities for increasing the availability of wood fuel in Canada. In 1992, approximately 130 000 ha were treated with precommercial thinning or stand cleaning. Manual methods predominate in these silvicultural activities; however, at stand densities greater than 10 000 - 15 000 stems/ha, mechanized systems are more economical. Recovering this biomass for wood fuel would require changes to silvicultural systems and harvesting technology

[en] It is the government of Malaysia's vision to see that the rural community is not left behind in its endeavour to be an industrialised nation in the year 2020. The standard of living in the rural areas is very far different from that in the urban areas. To obtain equality the standard of living of the rural folks need to be ungraded. This is done largely by electrification. Electricity has been in the past the catalyst for development and raising the standard of living of the poor. Electricity supplied by the nation's electricity company might not reach all remote areas and therefore there must be a means to provide alternative electrical supply to these places. Present method employ the use of diesel generator sets to provide electricity. The availability of biomass source of supply in the rural areas could be effectively exploited to provide alternative source of energy via a gasification system to run a reciprocating engine coupled to a generator to generated electricity. A small-scale biomass gasification generator set in the range of 2-5 kW is suitable to provide electrical supply to a typical house in the rural area. The present use of biomass source of energy is in its utilisation to provide source of heat for cooking. Several tests have been conducted and the performance is very good. Alternatively another medium scale system generating about 50-20O kW would be suitable for a typical village having about 50 houses. A small-scale system has been developed in USM to provide 5 kW of electrical power. The system used a petrol engine and produces an overall efficiency of 7% with a specific consumption of about 3 kg/kWh. The biomass material used is wood. However for application in the rural areas the biomass material will depend on the type available. A further 50 kW system is being develop in USM. (Author)

[en] Short communication

[en] The sanitary landfills are susceptible of becoming important sources of biogas when breaking down the fraction organic present in them. International experiences demonstrate with success the extraction of this fuel and their later transformation in caloric or electric energy, being this last one that of more application for their versatility of transport and use. The methane is direct one of the responsible ones of the greenhouse effect and it is the majority component of the biogas, reason for the one, which is necessary to capture it and to negotiate it for its elimination. This sanitary situation added to their importance like fuel allows reaching an objective double: To reduce the contamination producing energy

[en] During 1994 and 1995 the Electric Power Research Institute collaborated with the US Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory in support of seven feasibility studies of integrated biomass systems. The goal of the studies was to assess the economic viability and environmental implications of each system. The products were comprehensive business plans for implementation of the proposed systems. One general conclusion from these studies is that the feasibility of any biomass power system is determined by the costs and unique characteristics intrinsic to the specific system. Because of the limited need for new electric capacity in most of the US, and the relatively low capital investment required for implementation, cofiring currently holds more appeal than any of the more advanced conversion options. Cofiring savings accrue from offsets of coal, along with SO_x allowances and any available NO_x or carbon credits. The closed loop tax credit authorized by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 serves to make energy crops more nearly cost-competitive with coal and natural gas. Biomass gasification combined-cycle units give promise of economic viability after the turn of the century, and as energy crops become more cost-competitive with waste feedstocks, agricultural constituencies will become more integrally involved in the establishment of biomass energy systems. At present, corollary benefits are critical if a system is to be economically feasible. A valid no-regrets policy for global climate-change mitigation that includes near-term investments in biomass technologies should result in large payoffs over the next several decades