Bio-Energy

In recent decades, there has been a constant growth in the world’s energy demands, mostly supported by fossil fuels. This has resulted in an associated increase in CO₂ emissions and a growing concern about the consequences of climate change and global warming, which represent a major threat to the wellbeing not only of humankind but also of our planet. Thus, there is an increasing interest in developing new technologies to produce energy from renewable sources, such as biomass, in a high-energy efficient, cost-competitive, and environmentally friendly manner. The production of bio-energy from biofuels offers several advantages, as it will reduce the energy production impact of the greenhouse effect and global warming due to its CO₂ life-cycle neutrality; likewise, unlike most other renewable energy sources, bio-energy can generate both heat and electricity with high efficiency in combined heat and power (CHP) plants.

Transport is the third-largest source of CO₂ emissions after the power and industrial sectors, with road transport being the biggest contributor followed by aviation and shipping. Reducing the emissions of the transport sector is likely to be more challenging than for other sectors; thus, key developments in the transport sector will have to include higher use of biofuels produced in a sustainable manner, including biojet fuels suitable for aircrafts, in accordance with the sustainable development scenario of the IEA.

The Bio-Energy Section is primarily focused on regular and review papers related to all aspects of bio-energy production and use, including treatment of feedstocks, biomass conversion technologies, all range of biofuels for vehicles, and new trends and latest discoveries for promoting the use of aviation biofuels. The scope is broad and includes, but is not restricted to, the following general thematic areas:

Scope

• Biomass treatment:
  • Torrefaction
  • Pelletization/densification
  • Grinding/crushing
  • Transport
  • Harsh conditions storage
• Biofuels production by different conversion technologies:
  • Pyrolysis
  • Gasification and reforming: bio-syngas generation
  • Bio-oil production
  • Biomethane production
  • Biohydrogen production
  • Road and aviation biofuels production and use
• Generation of heat and power from biofuels:
  • Biomass combustion and gasification
  • Biofuels from different nonfood energy crops
  • Current trends and new biofuels precursors
• Bio-energy and greenhouse gas emissions
  • Life cycle analysis of bio-energy systems
  • Minimization of pollutant emissions
  • Bio-energy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS)