260 PETROLEUM TECHNOLOGY, ECONOMICS, AND POLITICS
9.4 Liquids from Biomass
Fossil fuels are finite energy resources (Salameh, 2005; Pimentel
and Pimentel, 2006). Therefore, reducing national dependence of
any country on imported crude oil is of critical importance for longterm security and continued economic growth. Supplementing
petroleum consumption with renewable biomass resources is a
first step towards this goal. The realignment of the chemical industry from one of petrochemical refining to a bio-refinery concept is,
given time, feasible and has become a national goal of many oilimporting countries. However, clearly defined goals are necessary
for increasing the use of biomass-derived feedstocks in industrial chemical production and it is important to keep the goal in
perspective.
Biomass currently supplies 14% of the world's energy needs,
but has the theoretical potential to supply 100%. Most present day
production and use of biomass for energy is carried out in a very
unsustainable manner with a great many negative environmental
consequences. If biomass is to supply a greater proportion of the
world's energy needs in the future, the challenge will be to produce
biomass and to convert and use it without harming the natural
environment. Technologies and processes exist today which, if used
properly, make biomass based fuels less harmful to the environment than fossil fuels. Applying these technologies and processes
on a site specific basis in order to minimize negative environmental
impacts is a prerequisite for sustainable use of biomass energy in
the future.
In this context, the increased use of biofuels should be viewed as
one of a range of possible measures for achieving self-sufficiency
in energy, rather than a panacea (Crocker and Crofcheck, 2006;
Worldwatch Institute, 2006; Freeman, 2007; Nersesian, 2007).
Biomass is a renewable resource, whose utilization has received
great attention due to environmental considerations and the
increasing demands of energy worldwide (Tsai et al., 2007; Speight,
2008). Biomass is clean for it has negligible content of sulfur, nitrogen and ash-forming constituents, which give lower emissions of
sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and soot than conventional fossil
fuels. The main biomass resources include the following: forest
and mill residues, agricultural crops and wastes, wood and wood
wastes, animal wastes, livestock operation residues, aquatic plants,
fast-growing trees and plants, and municipal and industrial wastes.
9.4 Liquids from Biomass
Fossil fuels are finite energy resources (Salameh, 2005; Pimentel
and Pimentel, 2006). Therefore, reducing national dependence of
any country on imported crude oil is of critical importance for longterm security and continued economic growth. Supplementing
petroleum consumption with renewable biomass resources is a
first step towards this goal. The realignment of the chemical industry from one of petrochemical refining to a bio-refinery concept is,
given time, feasible and has become a national goal of many oilimporting countries. However, clearly defined goals are necessary
for increasing the use of biomass-derived feedstocks in industrial chemical production and it is important to keep the goal in
perspective.
Biomass currently supplies 14% of the world's energy needs,
but has the theoretical potential to supply 100%. Most present day
production and use of biomass for energy is carried out in a very
unsustainable manner with a great many negative environmental
consequences. If biomass is to supply a greater proportion of the
world's energy needs in the future, the challenge will be to produce
biomass and to convert and use it without harming the natural
environment. Technologies and processes exist today which, if used
properly, make biomass based fuels less harmful to the environment than fossil fuels. Applying these technologies and processes
on a site specific basis in order to minimize negative environmental
impacts is a prerequisite for sustainable use of biomass energy in
the future.
In this context, the increased use of biofuels should be viewed as
one of a range of possible measures for achieving self-sufficiency
in energy, rather than a panacea (Crocker and Crofcheck, 2006;
Worldwatch Institute, 2006; Freeman, 2007; Nersesian, 2007).
Biomass is a renewable resource, whose utilization has received
great attention due to environmental considerations and the
increasing demands of energy worldwide (Tsai et al., 2007; Speight,
2008). Biomass is clean for it has negligible content of sulfur, nitrogen and ash-forming constituents, which give lower emissions of
sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and soot than conventional fossil
fuels. The main biomass resources include the following: forest
and mill residues, agricultural crops and wastes, wood and wood
wastes, animal wastes, livestock operation residues, aquatic plants,
fast-growing trees and plants, and municipal and industrial wastes.