Opportunities for biomass as fuel

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Opportunities for biomass as fuel
Bernard Rice
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Why biofuels now?

• Increasing mineral fuel prices
• Need for new farm enterprises
• Need for secure fuel supply
• EU Directives/obligations
• Kyoto Protocol, Transport Biofuels Directive

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Factors limiting progress

• Limited excise relief for road biofuels
• Low price for renewable electricity
• High cost of biomass boilers
• Lack of boiler fuel supply chains

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Biofuel possibilities

• LIQUID BIOFUELS
• Veg oil/fats as biodiesel or in modified engines
• Ethanol from cereals, beet
• Biofine process, ethanol from straw/wood
• SOLID BIOFUELS
• Straw, wood residues
• Short-rotation willow effluent disposal
• Other energy crops (e.g. miscanthus, hemp)
• Biogas food wastes

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In this talk

• Vegetable oil
• Ethanol from wheat, beet
• Wood residues, straw
• Energy crops effluent disposal

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1. Liquid biofuels(oils and fats)
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Transport Biofuels Directivesubstitution targets
()
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To achieve 2 substitution

• Petrol 1.5 PJ 70 ML ethanol
• 15300 ha beet
• or 23000 ha cereals
• Diesel 1.7 PJ 86 ML oil/fat
• e.g. 30 ML biodiesel
  (RVO/tallow)
• 50, 000 ha rape

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Transport Biofuels DirectiveMOTR Scheme

• Proposes excise relief on
• 6 Million litres vegetable oil (5-6000 ha rape)
• 1 Million litres biodiesel
• 1 Million litres bio-ethanol (250 ha beet)
• Cost of excise foregone 3M
• most would be recovered in VAT, income tax etc
• Substitution achieved 0.1

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July 6, 2005 European Union sends Reasoned
Opinions to 9 Member States (including Ireland)
for failure to implement European legislation on
biofuels
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Delivered fuel costs
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2. Liquid biofuels (Ethanol)
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BIO-ETHANOL

• Current Irish options
• Produce from wheat or beet
• Add 5 as octane booster to petrol
• Replacement for MTBE or lead
• (no engine modifications needed)

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Delivered cost of ethanol(wheat 120/t, beet
40/t)
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Ethanol yields

• From wheat
• 350 litres per tonne
• 3000 litres per ha
• From sugar beet
• 90 litres per tonne
• 4500 litres per ha

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Ethanol from wheat, beet

• For 2 substitution
• 25,000 ha beet
• or
• 35,000 ha wheat
• Needs
• Large scale
• Excise relief
• Investor/promoter interest

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From Liquid Biofuels Strategy Study for Ireland
(sei.ie)
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GHG impact of 2 substitution

• Biodiesel 1.5 PJ 86 ML
• 130,000 t CO2
• Bio-ethanol 1.9 PJ 70 ML
• 168,000 t CO2

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Other environment impacts

• Cereal breaks desirable (beet, rape)
• Spring vs winter rape?
• Rape pollen effects?
• Visual impacts?
• Overall, little impact expected

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Economic impact
If 2 substitution keeps the required land in
tillage, benefit to farm output would be 90M
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3. Solid biofuels(wood residues, straw, energy
crops as boiler fuels)
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Wood residues and straw

• Large quantities of both available
• Wood use now developing
• Many companies active
• Fewer options for straw
• More difficult fuel
• No market leaders

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Estimate of wood residue in excess of current
demand, 2005-2015 (ktonne)
1 t of this wood abates about 3/4 t of CO2
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Current straw uses (1.1 Mt)
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Wood/straw fuel markets (1)

• Boiler fuel
• Medium size units 50-500 kW
• Value of heat 200/t of biomass
• High-efficiency modern wood boilers
• Several wood units installed
• Is there an opening for straw?

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Wood chip boiler (Oak Park)

• Efficient, expensive, needs capital grant
• Suitable for wood only
• Supply chains needed

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Cost of biomass heating systems (Austrian study)
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Questions about straw pellets

• Suitability for stove market
• higher ash content
• binding problems
• more corrosion
• emissions?
• What scale is needed?

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Energy crops and waste disposal

• Willow used as boiler fuel
• Sites used for
• sewage sludge injection
• Rapid progress in N.I.
• Potential for 3000 ha
• trickle irrigation of dilute effluents
• Several projects under way
• Promising results to date
• Full potential not established

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Sewage sludge injector (N.I.)
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Energy crops and waste disposal

• Research needed on
• volume and composition of effluents
• uptake by energy crops
• Liaison needed with
• local authorities, EPA
• heat users
• effluent producers

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Miscanthus
High yield. High establishment cost.Easy to
maintain and harvest. Handling and burning still
problems
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Hemp
Annual crop. High yield. High production cost.
Low moisture at harvest. Fibre fuel.
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Conclusions

• Some biofuel opportunities emerging
• They need
• Clear govt policy and supports
• more extensive road excise relief
• grants for biomass boilers
• establishment grants for energy crops
• Realistic price for renewable electricity
• Pilot projects in newer technologies