What is Biofuel?

By Chuck R Mitchell

What is Biofuel? (also called agrofue) It can be broadly defined as solid, liquid, or gas fuel consisting of, or derived from biomass. The definition used here is narrower: biofuel is defined as liquid or gas transportation fuel derived from biomass. Biomass can also be used directly for heating or power: this is commonly called biomass fuel: see biomass heating systems. Biofuel is considered a means of reducing[2] greenhouse gas emissions and increasing energy security by providing an alternative to fossil fuels.

That is why biofuels are used globally: biofuel industries are expanding in Europe, Asia and the Americas. The most common use for biofuels is in automotive transport (for example E10 fuel). Biofuel can be produced from any carbon source that can be replenished rapidly e.g. plants. Many different plants and plant-derived materials are used for biofuel manufacture.

Humans have used biomass fuels for heating and cooking since the discovery of fire. Following the discovery of electricity, it became possible to use biofuels to generate electrical power as well. However, the discovery and use of fossil fuels: coal, gas and oil, have dramatically reduced the amount of biomass fuel used in the developed world for transport, heat and power.

Liquid biofuels have been used since the early days of the car industry. Nikolaus August Otto, the German inventor of the internal combustion engine, conceived his invention to run on ethanol. Rudolf Diesel, the German inventor of the Diesel engine, designed it to run on peanut oil. Henry Ford originally designed the Ford Model T, a car produced from 1903 to 1926, to run completely on ethanol. However, when crude oil became cheaply available (thanks to oil reserves discovered in Pennsylvania and Texas), cars began using fuels derived from mineral oil: petroleum or diesel.

Chuck is a college student and is studying biology. He is studying addition methods of new alternatives in energy and you will read some of his articles and research in these areas. To find out more about biofuels go to http://new-biofuel.info

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