FIRST GENERATION
First Generation Biofuels, also called conventional biofuels, are fuels that have been derived from traditional crop based feedstocks like vegetable oil, sugar, corn, wheat, and starch. Production of the oil is normally at commercial scale and encompasses conventional techniques – for example, vegetable oil for biodiesel via esterification and sugar crops for bioethanol via fermentation. The resultant fuels are distinctive and high quality. Some of the most common first generation biofuels are biogas, biodiesel, and bioalcohol.
BIOGAS
Biogas is mainly produced after the of the organic materials. It is principally a mixture of carbon dioxide and methane, along with other trace gases. Since the bigogas produced is very rich in methane, it is easy to recover through the use of mechanical biological treatment systems. Normally, Biogas is produced in natural enviornments that are low in oxygen and have degradable organic matter present. These natural sources of biogas include: wet soils, animal and insect digestive tracks, core of some trees, aquatic sediments, and buried organic matter. There are additional human-made sources of biogas, including waste lagoons, landfills, and waste storage structures. Due to methane’s potent greenhouse gas properties, atmospheric emissions of biogas contribute to climate change. Biogas can also be produced with the biodegradation of waste materials which are fed into anaerobic digesters which yields biogas. The residue or the by product can be easily used as manure or fertilizers for agricultural use. The biogas produced is very rich in methane which can be easily recovered through the use of mechanical biological treatment systems. A less clean form of biogas is the landfill gas which is produced by the use of naturally occurring anaerobic digesters."Biogas, like natural gas, has a low volumetric energy density compared to the liquid biofuels, ethanol and biodiesel. However, biogas may be purified to a natural gas equivalent fuel for pipeline injection and further compressed for use as a transportation fuel. Methane, the principal component in biogas, has four times the volumetric energy density of hydrogen (H2) and is suitable for use in many types of fuel cell generators."
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BIODIESEL
This type of biofuel is very common and frequently used in European countries. It is primarily produced through a process called and is normally made from soybeans. The fuel is relatively similar to the mineral diesel and is chemically known as fatty acid methyl. While it is usually blended with gasoline, it is also possible for it to be used directly in any diesel engine. “The EPA has recognized biodiesel’s environmental benefits by classifying it as an Advanced Biofuel, making biodiesel the only commercial-scale U.S. fuel produced nationwide to meet the agency’s advanced criteria. According to the EPA, biodiesel reduces greenhouse gas emissions by at least 57 percent and up to 86 percent when compared to petroleum diesel – making it one of the most practical and cost-effective ways to immediately address climate change. In addition, biodiesel sharply reduces major tailpipe pollutants from petroleum diesel, particularly from older diesel vehicles. This is important because the EPA has consistently cited diesel exhaust – primarily from older trucks, buses and other vehicles – as one of the nation's most dangerous pollutants.”
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Bioalcohols are alcohols produced through the process of of starches and sugar. The more common types of bioalcohol include ethanol, propanol, butanol, and methanol. Out of the four, the most common type is ethanol, while butanol and propanol are among the lesser known ones. The four above mentioned types of bioalcohol are of interest as fuels, because they can be synthesized chemically or biologically. They all have characteristics that will allow them to be used in internal combustion engines. Ethanol is more commonly produced through fermentation of sugars, while methanol has been more commonly produced from synthesis gas but there are also other ways to obtain those fuels. Compared to methanol, propanol and butanol are relatively less toxic and less volatile.
BIOALCOHOL
Bioalcohol As An Alternative Fuel
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