Brazilian biofuels can meet world's total gasoline needs - expert
Quicknote bioenergy potential
The business of projecting the technical biofuels potential of a given region is extremely complex because it is dependent on so many uncertain factors and sub-projections (population growth, GDP, food, meat, wood and fuel demand projections, advances in technology, effects of climate change on agriculture, and so on). All these factors determine how much land will ultimately be available for energy cropping.
Still, a handful of experts study the matter in-depth and arrive at projections and scenarios that may differ considerably from those of their collegues. One of the new and highly optimistic estimates is made by professor Luis Cortez, Vice-Coordinator on a project for the expansion of ethanol production in Brazil and a professor at the State University of Campinas.
Currently, Brazil uses only 0.8% of its entire territory (8.5 million square kilometres) for the production of biofuels - an insignificant patch of land, so to speak. But if it were to cultivate energy crops for biofuels on a quarter of its territory (around 212 million hectares), the country could supply the entire world's current gasoline needs (which stand at around 24 million barrels per day).
This projection is based on the idea that second and third generation biofuels become viable. Such biofuels, based on the use of entire crops the lignocellulose of which is transformed via biochemical and/or thermochemical conversion techniques, would double the output per hectare of land for sugarcane. There are some indications that second generation biofuels may enter the market sooner than expected: Dedini SA, Brazil's main ethanol plant manufacturer recently announced a breakthrough in cellulosic ethanol production, which increased the output of a hectare of sugarcane by 30%. A doubling of the output is expected in the coming years (earlier post). Moreover, such a scenario would also entail the introduction of new, high yielding energy crops designed specifically for particular environments, as well as new forms of livestock production (no grazing on pastures).
Even though his projections are in line with some of the most optimistic scenarios made by researchers from the IEA's Bioenergy Task 40 (earlier post), Cortez stresses that they merely point to the technical potential for Brazil, and that "another question is if we’d really want to do it - and would it be politically possible". The scientist was speaking on a panel at Europe’s 500 “European Growth Summit: Growth is East and Green” [*.pdf] hosted at the Barcelona campus of IESE, one of the leading business schools. He criticized the production of ethanol from corn, a food crop with low yields, and called for responsible investments only, that is biofuel projects that limit environmental damage and promote social sustainability.
The map (click to enlarge) is a purely visual aid showing what an expansion of the hectarage to 212 million ha really means. It would be difficult to imagine that such an expansion could go without massive deforestation in the Amazon basin [entry ends here].
biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: ethanol :: cellulose :: pyrolysis :: gasoline :: Brazil ::
Article continues
The business of projecting the technical biofuels potential of a given region is extremely complex because it is dependent on so many uncertain factors and sub-projections (population growth, GDP, food, meat, wood and fuel demand projections, advances in technology, effects of climate change on agriculture, and so on). All these factors determine how much land will ultimately be available for energy cropping.
Still, a handful of experts study the matter in-depth and arrive at projections and scenarios that may differ considerably from those of their collegues. One of the new and highly optimistic estimates is made by professor Luis Cortez, Vice-Coordinator on a project for the expansion of ethanol production in Brazil and a professor at the State University of Campinas.
Currently, Brazil uses only 0.8% of its entire territory (8.5 million square kilometres) for the production of biofuels - an insignificant patch of land, so to speak. But if it were to cultivate energy crops for biofuels on a quarter of its territory (around 212 million hectares), the country could supply the entire world's current gasoline needs (which stand at around 24 million barrels per day).
This projection is based on the idea that second and third generation biofuels become viable. Such biofuels, based on the use of entire crops the lignocellulose of which is transformed via biochemical and/or thermochemical conversion techniques, would double the output per hectare of land for sugarcane. There are some indications that second generation biofuels may enter the market sooner than expected: Dedini SA, Brazil's main ethanol plant manufacturer recently announced a breakthrough in cellulosic ethanol production, which increased the output of a hectare of sugarcane by 30%. A doubling of the output is expected in the coming years (earlier post). Moreover, such a scenario would also entail the introduction of new, high yielding energy crops designed specifically for particular environments, as well as new forms of livestock production (no grazing on pastures).
Even though his projections are in line with some of the most optimistic scenarios made by researchers from the IEA's Bioenergy Task 40 (earlier post), Cortez stresses that they merely point to the technical potential for Brazil, and that "another question is if we’d really want to do it - and would it be politically possible". The scientist was speaking on a panel at Europe’s 500 “European Growth Summit: Growth is East and Green” [*.pdf] hosted at the Barcelona campus of IESE, one of the leading business schools. He criticized the production of ethanol from corn, a food crop with low yields, and called for responsible investments only, that is biofuel projects that limit environmental damage and promote social sustainability.
The map (click to enlarge) is a purely visual aid showing what an expansion of the hectarage to 212 million ha really means. It would be difficult to imagine that such an expansion could go without massive deforestation in the Amazon basin [entry ends here].
biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: ethanol :: cellulose :: pyrolysis :: gasoline :: Brazil ::
Article continues
Monday, May 21, 2007
New interdisciplinary biofuels journal launched: "Biotechnology for Biofuels"
The journal is being edited by some of the leaders in biofuels research including Charles Wyman, Ford Motor Company Chair in Environmental Engineering at the University of California at Riverdale; Chris Somerville, Professor of Biological Sciences at Stanford University; and Michael Himmel, Team Leader of the Biomolecular Sciences research staff at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
In recent years governments around the world have responded to the challenges posed by global warming by searching for new ways to limit greenhouse gas emissions. Many governments, research institutes and private enterprises are investing heavily in the development of improved technologies for production of biofuels as part of a solution to this problem. The biofuels currently in commercial production derive primarily from corn, sugar-cane and plant oils, each of which has its shortcomings. Much research effort is now focused on the development of biofuels from cellulosic biomass. Such cellulosic biofuels have the potential to offer significant economic and environmental benefits if techniques can be developed to produce them cost-effectively.
Biotechnology for Biofuels is being launched to provide a forum for publication of research focused on advances in the development of clean, efficient biofuels. Biotechnology for Biofuels will publish multi-disciplinary, high-calibre, peer-reviewed research, reviews and commentaries on all biotechnological aspects of biofuels research and any related economic, environmental and policy issues:
bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability :: ethanol :: biodiesel :: biomass :: biotechnology :: science :: journal ::
The journal will publish research on a broad range of topics including production of cellulosic biomass, investigations of biomass composition and structure, plant deconstruction, pretreatments, enzymes, fermentations, integrated systems, process design and economics, life cycle studies and other related areas.
Like all of BioMed Central's journals, Biotechnology for Biofuels will make research immediately available without charge to any reader with Internet access. Articles accepted for publication by the journal will be included in PubMed, PubMed Central and other major indexing services.
BioMed Central is an independent online publishing house committed to providing immediate access without charge to the peer-reviewed biological and medical research it publishes. This commitment is based on the view that open access to research is essential to the rapid and efficient communication of science. In addition to open-access original research, BioMed Central also publishes reviews and other subscription-based content.
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