Biomass Study Is Increasing

NJBIZ, Sep 8, 2008

FUELS DERIVED from socalled biomass sources are increasingly being researched as alternatives to ease the nation's reliance on petrol, and Rutgers University is involved in the effort.

Biomass fuels are produced from organic material gleaned from sources such as wood, plants like corn and grass, and waste material. Though still under exploration and refinement, the concept is to process the organic material into ethanol, methanol and other fuels that can feed vehicle engines and power plants.

In March, the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture named Rutgers University as a recipient of a grant of up to $971,799 for biomass research. The grant award is part of a broad effort by the federal agencies to invest up to $18.4 million over three years for 21 biomass research and development projects across the country.

The goal of the grant incentives is to make biomass fuels more cost-effective and efficient renewable resources. Rutgers says it will use the funds to develop a grass-breeding consortium to identify the best locations in the country for raising switchgrass for biomass production.

Plants are not the only source of biomass for fuel however. Margaret Brennan, associate director of the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station at Rutgers, says New Jersey's waste can be a primary source of biomass-derived fuel. Her department released a report, "Assessment of Biomass Energy Potential in New Jersey," in 2007 that recommended the state support the development of waste energy.

"[In New Jersey], 75 percent of our biomass is in the form of waste," which includes food waste, construction debris and paper waste, Brennan says. The report states 8.2 million dry tons of biomass are produced annually in the state, of which 5.5 million dry tons could be processed into fuels. Brennan says technology must be put in place to sort out the useful waste for processing.

Thomas Reed, chairman of the Biomass Energy Foundation in Golden, Colo., which researches technology for turning biomass into energy, believes biomass fuels have an advantage as alternate energy sources over solar power and wind turbines. While the latter are dependent on adequate sunlight and wind, he says biomass-derived fuels can be stored for later use. "Fuels by their nature are storable and you can use them when you want," Reed says.

- João-Pierre S. Ruth