Second Generation Biofuel – An Alternative Clean Fuel

Renewable energy resources are in high demand to decrease dependence on fossil fuels and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Biofuel industries, particularly bioethanol and biodiesel, have been rapidly increasing in tandem with agricultural production over more than a decade. First-generation biofuel manufacturing is heavily reliant on agriculture food sources like maize, sugarcane, sugar beets, soybeans, and canola. As a result, the intrinsic competitiveness among foods and fuels has been a point of contention in community for the past couple of years. Existing technological advancements in research and innovation have paved the way for the manufacturing of next-generation biofuels from a variety of feedstock’s, including agricultural waste materials, crops remnants and cellulosic biomass from high-yielding trees and bushes varieties. This report discusses the existing state of second-generation biofuel manufacturing as well as the feedstock utilized in fuel production, biofuel production globally and the current situation in India. This study also explores the current advancements in the findings and advancement of second-generation biofuel extraction from various feedstock’s. The forthcoming directions of agriculture and energy industrial sectors has also been addressed in order to feed the world 's growing population and to fuel the world's most energy-intensive industry, transportation.

Download Full-text

The impacts of biofuel crops on local biodiversity: a global synthesis

Biodiversity and Conservation ◽

10.1007/s10531-021-02232-5 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Sophie Jane Tudge ◽

Andy Purvis ◽

Adriana De Palma

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Species Richness ◽

First Generation ◽

Second Generation ◽

Sustainable Land Use ◽

Biofuel Production ◽

Food Sources ◽

Biofuel Crops ◽

Species Richness And Abundance ◽

Generation Biofuel

AbstractConcerns about the impacts of climate change have led to increased targets for biofuel in the global energy market. First-generation biofuel crops contain oil, sugar or starch and are usually also grown for food, whereas second-generation biofuel is derived from non-food sources, including lignocellulosic crops, fast-growing trees, crop residues and waste. Biofuel production drives land-use change, a major cause of biodiversity loss, but there is limited knowledge of how different biofuel crops affect local biodiversity. Therefore, a more detailed understanding could inform more environmentally-conscious decisions about where to grow which biofuel crops. We synthesised data from 116 sources where a potential biofuel crop was grown and estimated how two measures of local biodiversity, species richness and total abundance, responded to different crops. Local species richness and abundance were 37% and 49% lower at sites planted with first-generation biofuel crops than in sites with primary vegetation. Soybean, wheat, maize and oil palm had the worst effects; the worst affected regions were Asia and Central and South America; and plant species richness and vertebrate abundance were the worst affected biodiversity measures. Second-generation biofuels had smaller, but still significant, effects: species richness and abundance were 19% and 25%, respectively, lower in such sites than in primary vegetation. Our models suggest that land clearance to cultivate biofuel crops reduces local biodiversity. However, the yield of biofuel from different crops influences the biodiversity impacts per unit of energy generated, and the geographic and taxonomic variation in effects are also relevant for making sustainable land-use decisions.

Download Full-text

The impacts of biofuel crops on local biodiversity: a global synthesis

10.1101/2020.12.21.422503 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Sophie Jane Tudge ◽

Andy Purvis ◽

Adriana De Palma

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Species Richness ◽

Environmental Impacts ◽

First Generation ◽

Second Generation ◽

Biofuel Production ◽

Food Sources ◽

Biofuel Crops ◽

Species Richness And Abundance ◽

Generation Biofuel

AbstractConcerns about the environmental impacts of climate change have led to increased targets for biofuel in the global energy market. First-generation biofuel crops contain oil, sugar or starch and are usually also grown for food, whereas second-generation biofuel is derived from non-food sources, including lignocellulosic crops, fast-growing trees, crop residues and waste. Increasing biofuel production drives land-use change, a major cause of biodiversity loss, but there is limited knowledge of how different first- and second-generation biofuel crops affect local biodiversity. A more detailed understanding could support better decisions about the net environmental impacts of biofuels. We synthesised data from 116 sources where a potential biofuel crop was grown and estimated how two measures of local biodiversity, species richness and total abundance, responded to different crops. Local species richness and abundance were 37% and 49% lower at sites planted with first-generation biofuel crops than in sites with primary vegetation. Soybean, wheat, maize and oil palm had the worst effects; the worst affected regions were Asia and Central and South America; and plant species richness and vertebrate abundance were the worst affected biodiversity measures. Second-generation biofuels had significantly smaller effects: species richness and abundance were 19% and 25%, respectively, lower in such sites than in primary vegetation. Our models suggest that land clearance to generate biofuel results in negative impacts on local biodiversity. However, the geographic and taxonomic variation in effects, and the variation in yields among different crops, are all relevant for making the most sustainable land-use decisions.

Download Full-text

Techno-economic analysis for co-processing fast pyrolysis liquid with vacuum gasoil in FCC units for second-generation biofuel production

Fuel ◽

10.1016/j.fuel.2020.119960 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 293 ◽

pp. 119960

Author(s):

Michael Talmadge ◽

Christopher Kinchin ◽

Helena Li Chum ◽

Andrea de Rezende Pinho ◽

Mary Biddy ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Economic Analysis ◽

Second Generation ◽

Fast Pyrolysis ◽

Vacuum Gasoil ◽

Biofuel Production ◽

Pyrolysis Liquid ◽

Generation Biofuel ◽

Fast Pyrolysis Liquid

Download Full-text

Role of metagenomics in prospecting novel endoglucanases, accentuating functional metagenomics approach in second-generation biofuel production: a review

Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery ◽

10.1007/s13399-020-01186-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ninian Prem Prashanth Pabbathi ◽

Aditya Velidandi ◽

Tanvi Tavarna ◽

Shreyash Gupta ◽

Ram Sarvesh Raj ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Second Generation ◽

Biofuel Production ◽

Functional Metagenomics ◽

Generation Biofuel

Download Full-text

Feasibility Assessment of a Bioethanol Plant in the Northern Netherlands

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app9214586 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (21) ◽

pp. 4586 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Spyridon Achinas ◽

Nienke Leenders ◽

Janneke Krooneman ◽

Gerrit Jan Willem Euverink

Keyword(s):

Sugar Beet ◽

Lignocellulosic Biomass ◽

Fossil Fuels ◽

Net Present Value ◽

Agricultural Waste ◽

Simulation Software ◽

Sugar Beet Pulp ◽

Bioenergy Crops ◽

Renewable Energy Resources ◽

Beet Pulp

Due to the exhaustion and increased pressure regarding the environmental and political aspects of fossil fuels, the industrial focus has switched towards renewable energy resources. Lignocellulosic biowaste can come from several sources, such as industrial waste, agricultural waste, forestry waste, and bioenergy crops and processed into bioethanol via a biochemical pathway. Although much research has been done on the ethanol production from lignocellulosic biomass, the economic viability of a bioethanol plant in the Northern Netherlands is yet unknown, and therefore, examined. In this thesis, the feasibility study of a bioethanol plant treating sugar beet pulp, cow manure, and grass straw is conducted using the simulation software SuperPro Designer. Results show that it is not economically viable to treat the tested lignocellulosic biomass for the production of bioethanol, since all three original cases result in a negative net present value (NPV). An alternative would be to exclude the pretreatment step from the process. Although this results in a lower production of bioethanol per year, the plant treating sugar beet pulp (SBP) and grass straw (GS) becomes economically viable since the costs have significantly decreased.

Download Full-text

Microbial Beta Glucosidase Enzymes: Recent Advances in Biomass Conversation for Biofuels Application

Biomolecules ◽

10.3390/biom9060220 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (6) ◽

pp. 220 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Neha Srivastava ◽

Rishabh Rathour ◽

Sonam Jha ◽

Karan Pandey ◽

Manish Srivastava ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fossil Fuels ◽

Biomass Conversion ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Cellulosic Biomass ◽

Biofuel Production ◽

Biomass Hydrolysis ◽

Advanced Technique ◽

Recent Developments ◽

Beta Glucosidase ◽

Made In

The biomass to biofuels production process is green, sustainable, and an advanced technique to resolve the current environmental issues generated from fossil fuels. The production of biofuels from biomass is an enzyme mediated process, wherein β-glucosidase (BGL) enzymes play a key role in biomass hydrolysis by producing monomeric sugars from cellulose-based oligosaccharides. However, the production and availability of these enzymes realize their major role to increase the overall production cost of biomass to biofuels production technology. Therefore, the present review is focused on evaluating the production and efficiency of β-glucosidase enzymes in the bioconversion of cellulosic biomass for biofuel production at an industrial scale, providing its mechanism and classification. The application of BGL enzymes in the biomass conversion process has been discussed along with the recent developments and existing issues. Moreover, the production and development of microbial BGL enzymes have been explained in detail, along with the recent advancements made in the field. Finally, current hurdles and future suggestions have been provided for the future developments. This review is likely to set a benchmark in the area of cost effective BGL enzyme production, specifically in the biorefinery area.

Download Full-text