This two-volume book on biomass is a reflection of the increase in biomass related research and applications, driven by overall higher interest in sustainable energy and food sources, by increased awareness of potentials and pitfalls of using biomass for energy, by the concerns for food supply and by multitude of potential biomass uses as a source material in organic chemistry, bringing in the concept of bio-refinery. It reflects the trend in broadening of biomass related research and an increased focus on second-generation bio-fuels. Its total of 40 chapters spans over diverse areas of biomass research, grouped into 9 themes.

This two-volume book on biomass is a reflection of the increase in biomass related research and applications, driven by overall higher interest in sustainable energy and food sources, by increased awareness of potentials and pitfalls of using biomass for energy, by the concerns for food supply and by multitude of potential biomass uses as a source material in organic chemistry, bringing in the concept of bio-refinery. It reflects the trend in broadening of biomass related research and an increased focus on second-generation bio-fuels. Its total of 40 chapters spans over diverse areas of biomass research, grouped into 9 themes.

This book provides general information and data on one of the most promising renewable energy sources: biomass for its thermochemical conversion. During the last few years, there has been increasing focus on developing the processes and technologies for the conversion of biomass to liquid and gaseous fuels and chemicals, in particular to develop low-cost technologies. This book provides date-based scientific information on the most advanced and innovative processing of biomass as well as the process development elements on thermochemical processing of biomass for the production of biofuels and bio-products on (biomass-based biorefinery). The conversion of biomass to biofuels and other value-added products on the principle biorefinery offers potential from technological perspectives as alternate energy. The book covers intensive R&D and technological developments done during the last few years in the area of renewable energy utilizing biomass as feedstock and will be highly beneficial for the researchers, scientists and engineers working in the area of biomass-biofuels- biorefinery. - Provides the most advanced and innovative thermochemical conversion technology for biomass - Provides information on large scales such as thermochemical biorefinery - Useful for researchers intending to study scale up - Serves as both a textbook for graduate students and a reference book for researchers - Provides information on integration of process and technology on thermochemical conversion of biomass

Continuously increased consumption of fossil fuels, decreased availability of easily accessible fossil fuels, significant contributions to climate change and wildly fluctuating fuels prices have combine to challenge the reliability and sustainability of our current energy supply. A possible solution to this energy challenge, biomass energy producti

An interdisciplinary and quantitative account of human claims on the biosphere's stores of living matter, from prehistoric hunting to modern energy production. The biosphere—the Earth's thin layer of life—dates from nearly four billion years ago, when the first simple organisms appeared. Many species have exerted enormous influence on the biosphere's character and productivity, but none has transformed the Earth in so many ways and on such a scale as Homo sapiens. In Harvesting the Biosphere, Vaclav Smil offers an interdisciplinary and quantitative account of human claims on the biosphere's stores of living matter, from prehistory to the present day. Smil examines all harvests—from prehistoric man's hunting of megafauna to modern crop production—and all uses of harvested biomass, including energy, food, and raw materials. Without harvesting of the biomass, Smil points out, there would be no story of human evolution and advancing civilization; but at the same time, the increasing extent and intensity of present-day biomass harvests are changing the very foundations of civilization's well-being. In his detailed and comprehensive account, Smil presents the best possible quantifications of past and current global losses in order to assess the evolution and extent of biomass harvests. Drawing on the latest work in disciplines ranging from anthropology to environmental science, Smil offers a valuable long-term, planet-wide perspective on human-caused environmental change.

Introduction to Chemicals from Biomass, Second Edition presents an overview of the use of biorenewable resources in the 21st century for the manufacture of chemical products, materials and energy. The book demonstrates that biomass is essentially a rich mixture of chemicals and materials and, as such, has a tremendous potential as feedstock for making a wide range of chemicals and materials with applications in industries from pharmaceuticals to furniture. Completely revised and updated to reflect recent developments, this new edition begins with an introduction to the biorefinery concept, followed by chapters addressing the various types of available biomass feedstocks, including waste, and the different pre-treatment and processing technologies being developed to turn these feedstocks into platform chemicals, polymers, materials and energy. The book concludes with a discussion on the policies and strategies being put in place for delivering the so-called Bioeconomy. Introduction to Chemicals from Biomass is a valuable resource for academics, industrial scientists and policy-makers working in the areas of industrial biotechnology, biorenewables, chemical engineering, fine and bulk chemical production, agriculture technologies, plant science, and energy and power generation. We need to reduce our dependence on fossil resources and increasingly derive all the chemicals we take for granted and use in our daily life from biomass – and we must make sure that we do this using green chemistry and sustainable technologies! For more information on the Wiley Series in Renewable Resources, visit www.wiley.com/go/rrs Topics covered include: • The biorefinery concept • Biomass feedstocks • Pre-treatment technologies • Platform molecules from renewable resources • Polymers from bio-based monomers • Biomaterials • Bio-based energy production Praise for the 1st edition: “Drawing on the expertise of the authors the book involves a degree of plant biology and chemical engineering, which illustrates the multidisciplinary nature of the topic beautifully” - Chemistry World

Modeling and Optimization of Biomass Supply Chains: Top Down and Bottom Up Assessment for Agricultural, Forest and Waste Feedstock provides scientific evidence for assessing biomass supply and logistics, placing emphasis on methods, modeling capacities, large data collection, processing and storage. The information presented builds on recent relevant research work from the Biomass Futures, Biomass Policies and S2Biom projects. In addition to technical issues, the book covers the economic, social and environmental aspects with direct implications on biomass availability. Its chapters offer an overview of methodologies for assessing and modeling supply, biomass quality and requirements for different conversion processes, logistics and demand for biobased sectors. Case studies from the projects that inspire the book present practical examples of the implementation of these methodologies. The authors also compare methodologies for different regions, including Europe and the U.S. Biomass feedstock-specific chapters address the relevant elements for forest, agriculture, biowastes, post-consumer wood and non-food crops. Engineers in the bioenergy sector, as well as researchers and graduate students will find this book to be a very useful resource when working on optimization and modeling of biomass supply chains. For energy policymakers, analysts and consultants, the book provides consistent and technically sound projections for policy and market development decisions. - Provides consistent ratios and indicators for assessing biomass supply and its logistical component - Explores assumptions behind the assessment of different types of biomass, including key technical and non-technical factors - Presents the existing modeling platforms, their input requirements and possible output projections