Presentation Flow What is Biofuels? Classification of Biofuels Biofuels as an alternative Biogas Biodiesel Biofuel prospects in Pakistan Role of Bio-informatics

What is Biomass? Biomass, a renewable energy source, is

biological material derived from living, or recently living organisms, such as wood, waste, and alcohol fuels.

Biomass is commonly plant matter grown to generate electricity or produce heat.

Biomass may also include biodegradable wastes from plant or animal that can be burnt as fuel.

What is a Biofuel? Biofuels are a wide range of fuels which

are in some way derived from biomass. Biofuel is mainly developed from the

photosynthesis process and can therefore often be referred to as a solar energy source.

First Generation Biofuels The first generation biofuels refer to the

fuels that have been derived from sources like starch, sugar, animal fats and vegetable oil.

Some of the most popular types of first generation biofuels are: Biodiesel Vegetable Oil Biogas Bioalcohols Syngas

Second Generation Biofuels Second generation biofuel can be

produced sustainably by using biomass consisting of the residual non-food parts of current crops, such as stems, leaves and husks that are left behind once the food crop has been extracted, as well as other crops that are not used for food purposes

The Energy Problem How will society

meet growing energy demands in a sustainable manner?

Fossil-fuels currently supply ~80% of world energy demand.

Are Biofuels the Answer?...

Biofuels as an Alternative Biofuels are not THE answer to

sustainable energy, but biofuels may be part of the answer

Biofuels may offer advantages over fossil fuels, but the magnitude of these advantages depends on how a biofuel crop is grown and converted into a usable fuel

Biofuels being focused Due to time constraints, in my

presentation I will be discussing about two important Biofuels: Biogas Biodiesel

What is Biogas? Bio gas is made from organic waste matter

after it is decomposed. The decomposition breaks down the organic

matter, releasing various gases. The main gases released are methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen and hydrogen sulphide.

The organic waste matter is generally animal or cattle dung, plant wastes, etc. These waste products contain carbohydrates, proteins and fat material that are broken down by bacteria. 

Creating Biogas without any Air and in the presence of Water

What is Biodiesel? Alternative fuel for diesel engines Made from vegetable oil or animal fat Biodiesel is a clean burning fuel,

produced from renewable resources. • It contains no petroleum, but can be blended at any level with petroleum diesel to create a biodiesel blend.• Biodegradable, Essentially non-toxic.

Producing Biodiesel through Algae

Biofuel Prospects in Pakistan

The sugar industry in Pakistan is the second largest after textiles.

About 80-85 percent of the total sugarcane production goes towards the production of sugar. The remaining 15-20 percent is converted into gur, a local variant of sugar, which is largely produced and consumed in the North West Frontier Province (NWFP).

Cane crushing produces sugar and molasses as a by-product. The molasses-to-bioethanol conversion process is conducted in distilleries. Currently, 21 distilleries produce industrial alcohol in the country.

Biofuel Prospects in Pakistan

Bioethanol is produced entirely from molasses, a direct by-product of sugar production. While other indigenous raw materials, such as maize, rice, wood pulp and other forest residues are available in large quantities, they do not offer the same scope for value addition that sugarcane does.

AEDB is involved in the development of Biodiesel. They have sponsored a Project to provide electricity to a remote village by running diesel generator using Biodiesel as energy source.

Molasses

Consumer

Sugarcane production

Middleman (beopari)

Cane processing

Gur making

Distilleries

Molasses Exports

Industrial alcohol

Ethanol

Industry

Exports

Export houses

Vert

ical

ly in

tegr

ated

Biofuel Prospects in Pakistan

The promotion of biofuel presents a win-win for Pakistan.

With an annual oil import bill of $3.1 billion, substituting gasoline with biofuels could generate considerable foreign exchange savings.

The environmental benefits of using biofuel have been globally documented.

Despite the potential advantages, progress in promoting biofuel lacks policy impetus.

Role of BioInformatics The computers can be used to harness the

power of information embedded in microbes (enzymes) and plants through DNA sequencing.

To understand the software of a living organism, we must know the order, or sequence, of these informative bits.

In the field of bioenergy/biofuel, sequence data can be applied by improving biomass yield and the efficiency of processes used to convert plant materials into liquid fuels and valuable byproducts.

Role of BioInformatics Plants store solar energy

through photosynthesis in cellulose and lignin cells.

DNA sequence information will enable the functional analysis of plant genetics and microbes capable of degrading lignin and cellulose for efficient conversion of biomass to fuels. 

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More Technology to Come….

“…. pharmacological potentials of genomics have been emphasized, but the greatest ultimate global impact of genomics will result from the manipulation of the DNA of plants. Ultimately, the world will obtain most of its food, fuel, fiber, chemical feedstocks, and some of its pharmaceuticals from genetically altered vegetation and trees."

Philip H. Abelson, EditorScience, March 1998

Questions?