biology Enlish(4)

concerns over the potential oil peak, greenhouse gas emissions, rural development interests, and instability in the Middle East.

Biomass

Sugarcane can be used as a biofuel or food.

Main article: Biomass

Biomass is material derived from recently living organisms. This includes materials from plants and animals and their by-products. For example, manure, garden waste and crop residues are all sources of biomass. It is a renewable energy source based on the carbon cycle, unlike other natural resources such as petroleum, coal, and nuclear fuels.

Animal waste is a persistent and unavoidable pollutant produced primarily by the animals housed in industrial-scale farms. Researchers from

Washington University have figured out a way to turn manure into biomass. In April 2008, with the help of imaging technology, they noticed that vigorous mixing helps microorganisms turn farm waste into alternative energy, providing farmers with a simple way to treat their waste and convert it into energy.[5]

There are also agricultural products specifically grown for biofuel production. As noted above, these biofuels are known as agrofuels. There are two common strategies of producing agrofuels. One is to grow crops high in sugar (sugar cane, sugar beet, and sweet sorghum[6]) or starch (corn/maize), and then use yeast fermentation to produce ethyl alcohol (ethanol). The second is to grow plants that contain high amounts of vegetable oil, such as oil palm, soybean, algae, or jatropha. When these oils are heated, their viscosity is reduced, and they can be burned directly in a diesel engine, or they can be chemically processed to produce fuels such as biodiesel. Wood and its byproducts can also be converted into biofuels such as woodgas, methanol or ethanol fuel.

Currently, crops being grown for biofuels include the following: corn, switchgrass, and soybeans, primarily in the United States; rapeseed, wheat, and sugar beet, primarily in Europe; sugarcane in Brazil; palm oil