How efficient is converting biomass into energy/fuels?
The process of burning biomass at extremely high temperatures in an enclosed container free of air is called gasification. Depending on the technology, gasification can convert from 80 percent to 96.6 percent of the biomass into fuel, and technologies are improving all the time. Lower temperature combustion (pyrolysis) is less efficient at 56% of the biomass being converted to bio-oil. The “well to wheel” efficiency of wood based transportation fuels, using waste wood, demolition wood, or non-commercial timber, are considered to have an 80 to 85 percent net yield. Corn based ethanol is much lower, at 30 percent, due to the amount of energy required to grow and harvest agricultural biomass.
