What is Biomass?

is mainly in the form of wood

used both in domestic and in industrial activities by way
of direct combustion.
accounts for about 15% of the energy used in the world.
the gaseous fuel which is obtained from biomass by
means of anaerobic fermentation.
The raw materials for biogas include waste from
agriculture, waste from forest, rural animal waste, urban
waste (left over food and other rubbish) and aqua waste
(fishery, algae and hyacinth).

PHOTOSYNTHESIS
is the process by which plants use their chlorophyll in
green leaves to convert solar energy into carbohydrates in
the presence of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
water. The carbohydrates are used by plants for their
growth. The plants absorb red and blue light but they do
not absorb green light. This is the reason why leaves of
plant or chlorophyll look green.
6CO2 + 6H2O + light energy = C6H12O6 + 6O2
In respiration process, energy is released which is used by
plant for growth and other activities.
Carbohydrate + O2 = CO2 + energy + water
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condition for photosynthesis

The photosynthesis depends on the following factors:
(i) Temperature should be between 20 and 30C to
have photosynthesis at the maximum rate.
(ii) Concentration of carbon dioxide in atmosphere as
it increases the photosynthesis.
(iii) Concentration of oxygen as it reduces the
photosynthesis
(iv) Water as its use efficiency increases with
photosynthesis
(v) Intensity and proper wave distribution of solar
radiation as PAR increases the photosynthesis.
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Biomass
Biomass is organic or carbon-based material that can
either react with oxygen for combustion or undergo
metabolic process to release heat.
Biomass can be used as such in its original form. More
often, it is transformed to more convenient and useful
form, thereby forming solid, liquid and gaseous fuels.

Biofules
The biofuels can be fuelwood, charcoal, fuel pellets,
bioethanol, biogas, producer gas and biodiesel.
Fuel wood
It is the most common source of biomass energy. Direct
combustion is the simplest way to obtain heat energy. It has
energy density of about 1620 MJ/kg.
Charcoal
It is obtained by carbonization of woody biomass. This
helps in providing higher energy density per unit mass of
about 30 MJ/kg. Charcoal can burn without generating
smoke.
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Biofules
Fuel pellets
Fuel pellets are formed from crop residues such as straw or
rice husk which are pressed into solid mass.
Bioethanol
It is derived from wet biomass containing sugars from
sugarcane, starches from grains and potatoes or cellulose
from woody matters. Ethanol (C2H5OH) is a colourless
liquid biofuel with boiling point of 78C and energy density
of 26.9 MJ/kg.

Biofules
Biogas
Biogas is the gaseous fuel obtained from biomass (organic
waste from plants, animals and humans) by means of
anaerobic digestion or fermentation.
The anaerobic digestion process can be profitably applied
to any wet organic matters.
Anaerobes are microorganisms or bacteria found to live
and grow in organic matter at the temperature of less than
60 in presence of moisture but in the absence of air or
oxygen.
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Biofules
The anaerobic organism consumes oxygen which it obtains
from decomposition of organic matters. Decomposition of
the organic matters by anaerobic microorganism is called
digestion or fermentation. The biogas is liberated from the
organic matters during digestion or fermentation. The biogas
produced by digestion contains (i) methane gas (CH4) 65
75%, (ii) carbon dioxide gas (CO2) 2535% and (iii) small
traces of nitrogen, ammonia, hydrogen sulphide and other
gases. The biogas has energy density of about 23 MJ/m3. It
can be used for cooking, lighting, heating and operating
small IC engines.
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Biofules
Producer gas
It is obtained by gasification of solid fuels. In this, woody
matter (crop residue, wood chips, rice husk, coconut shell
and sugarcane residue) is converted into producer gas by
thermochemical method which is infact the partial
combustion and reduction operation of biomass. The
producer gas has 19% carbon monoxide, 18% hydrogen, 1%
methane, 11% carbon dioxide and the rest remaining
nitrogen. The producer gas is used for IC engines for
running pumps, motor vehicles, heating and generation of
steam in a small-scale power plant.
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Biofules
Biodiesel
It is produced by blending of vegetable oils, with normal
diesel to obtain cheaper version of diesel engine fuel.
Besides vegetable oils, certain hydrocarbons having
molecular weight equal to that of petroleum and that are
obtainable as by-products from certain plants can also be
used for blending purpose.

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Biomass Resources

Forests
Agriculture residues
Energy crops
Urban waste
Aquatic plants

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Biomass Energy
Advantages
(i)
It is a renewable source.
(ii) It can be stored and used as per the requirement.
(iii) It helps in waste management.
(iv) It is an indigenous source of energy.
(v) It helps in economic development of rural areas.
(vi) It helps in improving sanitation in rural areas and
towns.
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Biomass Energy
Dis aadvantages
(i)
It has low energy density.
(ii) It is a labour intensive energy source.
(iii) Its production requires large land area.

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Biogas
Biogas is the gaseous fuel which is obtained from
biomass by means of an anaerobic digestion or
fermentation of wet organic matters.
flammable gas.
5060% methane gas, 3540% carbon dioxide, 5%
hydrogen and a small amount of hydrogen sulphide and
other gases.
Methane and hydrogen gases form the combustible
portion of biogas.
The biogas has energy density of about 23 MJ/m3. It can
be used for cookings, heating, lighting and running small
IC engine.
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AEROBIC AND ANAEROBIC

The anaerobic digestion or fermentation in biomass slurry
is started by a microorganism called anaerobe.
The anaerobe microorganism grows on biomass at a
temperature lower than 65C in the presence of moisture
but in the absence of air or oxygen.
The microorganism anaerobe consumes oxygen for
survival and growth which is obtained from the digestion
or fermentation of the wet organic matter.
During anaerobic digestion of wet biomass slurry, the
biogas is liberated. Anaerobic bacteria are also called
methane formers.
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Biomass to Biogas
Hydrolysis of organic matter
The biomass (complex compounds of carbohydrate,
protein and fats) is broken due to the action of water
(hydrolysis) into simpler soluble compounds.
Anaerobic and faculative microorganisms
These bacteria start growing to produce acetic and propionic
acids.
Digestion.
Anaerobic bacteria slowly digest the biomass slurry to
produce biogas.
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Biogas digester or plant

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Advantages of anaerobic digestion

(i)
to obtain energy from discarded or waste matter.
(ii) to provide two main benefits which include fuel by
biogas and fertilizer in the form of sludge.
(iii) The process helps in conserving complete nitrogen
content of the biomas. Hence, fertilizer produced as sludge is
better in terms of both quantity and quality.
(iv) It helps in the waste management of an industry such
as dairy or milk processing plant with simultaneously
meeting the energy requirement of the same industry.
(v) It helps in the urban waste management such as
municipal solid waste or garbage and sewage or liquid waste.
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Raw material for biogas

The raw materials for biogas can be waste, cultivated
material and harvested material. The waste includes
industrial waste, agricultural crop residues and waste, animal
waste, urban waste, aqua waste and forest waste. Agricultural
crops include rice, wheat and cereals while agricultural
wastes include wheat straw, sugarcane biogasses, groundnut
shell, coconut shell and rich husk. Animal wastes include
cow dung, horse manure, sheep manure and poultry waste.
Urban wastes include paper, leftover food, plastic, rubber,
wood and textile. Aqua wastes include water plants
(hyacinth), algae and waste from fishery. Forest wastes
include waste from sugar mill, tannery, fruit processing
industry and paper mill.
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Factors affecting performance

Temperature
Pressure
Water
PH value
Feeding rate
Seeding
Mixing and stirring
Toxic substances
Types od Biomass
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Classification of Biogas Plants

Batch type plant
Continuous type biogas plant
floating drum or constant pressure type plant and
fixed dome or constant volume type plant.

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Batch type plant

A batch type plant consists of a number of digesters which are
charged, used and emptied one by one in a synchronous manner to
maintain regular supply to gas holder or storage tank. Each digester
is charged with fresh biomass and it starts supplying biogas after
810 days. The digester is now capable of supplying biogas for
about 4050 days till its biomass is completely digested.
Afterwards, this digester is emptied and recharged with fresh
biomass. Hence, each digester should be charged in about at the
interval of 5060 days

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Continuous type plant

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Continuous type plant

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Floating drum type biogas plant

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Advantages
Higher gas production per cubic meter of digester
volume.
No gas leakage problem.
Constant gas pressure.
No danger of gas explosion.
No separate pressure equalising device is needed
when fresh feed is added or digested slurry is
removed from the digester.
Simple installation.

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Dis advantages
It has higher cost due to movable metallic drum.
It has corrosion problem in the metallic movable
drum provided.
It requires more maintenance.

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Fixed dome type biogas plant

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Advantages

It has lower cost.

It has no corrossion problem.
It has better heat insulation.
It requires no maintenance.

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Dis advantages
Gas production per cubic meter of the digester is
less.
It has variable pressure of biogas.
It has more risk of leakage due to higher pressure of
gas.
It has more risk of explosion.
It involves complex installation.

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BIOMASS CONVERSION TECHNOLOGIES

Incineration,
Thermochemical
Biochemical

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BIOMASS CONVERSION TECHNOLOGIES

Incineration,
Thermochemical
Biochemical

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Thermochemical
The biomass can be converted into more valuable
and convenient fuels by the use of the
thermochemical process called pyrolysis.
Pyrolysis is a thermochemical decomposition of
organic material at elevated temperatures in the
absence of oxygen (or any halogen). It involves the
simultaneous change of chemical composition and
physical phase, and is irreversible.
Pyrolysis can process all forms of biomass (organic
materials), including rubber and plastic which cannot
be converted by any other methods.
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Thermochemical
If pyrolysis is carried out at higher temperature
(above 1000C), maximum amount of gaseous
product is formed. This high temperature pyrolysis is
called gasification. This process is generally used to
produce charcoal and it is also called carbonization.
Liquid product from biomass is obtained by catalytic
liquefaction process at low temperature (250450C)
and high pressure (270 atm).

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Biochemical
The conversion of biomass is carried out using
metabolic action of microorganism or bacteria.
Anaerobic digestion or fermentation
Anaerobic digestion is a series of biological
processes in which microorganisms break down
biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen.

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Biochemical
Ethanol fermentation.
also called alcoholic fermentation, is a biological process
which converts sugars such as glucose, fructose, and
sucrose into cellular energy, producing ethanol and carbon
dioxide as a side-effect.

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Biomass Energy Programme in India

40 million tons of solid waste and 5000 million tons
of liquid wastes
Owing to lack of stringent provision against
pollution and lack of awareness, most of the waste
generated is discharged into rivers, ponds and lowlying land without any treatment or utilisation.
Such disposal of waste without treatment or
utilisation results in creating odour, pollution of
water and air, and emission of greenhouse gases such
as methane and carbon dioxide.
1700 MW power from urban and industrial wastes in
India-415 MW power is being generated
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Biomass Energy Programme in India

19,500 MW power from agricultural wastes-613 MW
launched a scheme to blend 5% ethanol in petrol,
which has helped to considerably reduce the import
of crude oil. Ethanol is produced from sugarcane and
this blending has encouraged greater cultivation of
sugarcane crop in India.

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