Biofuel Advantages & Disadvantages

Biofuels are derived from the decomposition of biological or organic waste. Most biofuels are formed from plant matter. They are found in liquid, solid or gas states.

Biofuels differ from fossil fuels in some important ways.

• They are a completely renewable energy type

• They emit much fewer pollution-causing green house gases

• They can be produced in one crop season, unlike fossil years which took MILLIONS of years to form

There are different “generations” of biofuels. Let’s look at each.

• First generation biofuels come from sugar, other starches, as well as animal and vegetable oils. Examples include biodiesel and biogas.

• Second generation oils are derived from industrial waste products, such as wood chips. Ethanol biofuel, other alcohols and diesels fall into this classification.

• Algae biofuel is the third generation. These are highly renewable because the algae can be easily grown on a large scale and they decompose quickly and easily.

• Micro-organisms are utilized in forth generation biofuels. Like third generation, they decompose quickly and so have a low carbon footprint.

Now that we have learned about the various types, let’s examine biofuel advantages.

As previously stated, all biofuels are extremely renewable. They are therefore able to lessen our reliance on non-renewable fossil fuels.

Compared to the extraction, processing and transporting of fossil fuels, manufacturing biofuels is much less expensive. Everyone is looking for home energy saving tips these days.

Biofuels are more environmentally friendly. Less green house gasses are emitted from them than from fossil fuels.

Biofuel Disadvantages:

In the creation of first generation biofuels, huge amounts of land are needed. The crops tend to be lesser varieties of the original, say of corn, for example, making it unsuitable for human consumption. This reduces acreage for good food crops and shrinks food production. The price of edible corn has therefore gone up in recent years. This has been a topic of heated discussion with many arguments on both sides. The belief by those who protest large-scale production of food crops for biofuels is that food should be solely for eating. They maintain that many poor people have already been negatively impacted by the production of biofuels.

Biofuel creation also requires enormous amounts of material. With much land devoted to this, less is available for growing edible food crops. So, as more and more land is used for both food crops and for biofuels, there is less and less natural habit for ecosystems of plants and animals.

Another issue is that most biofuels are produced in relatively small quantities compared to the large-scale production of coal, oil and natural gas. It’s difficult to maintain a regular supply of biofuel, so it cannot always be counted on unless you have a reliable source.

For these reasons, many feel the best future use of biofuels will be in developing countries. Here, where fossil fuels may be in short supply or unaffordable, small-scale biofuel production may be a viable renewable energy type. In the Indian state of Bihar, for example, the resourceful citizens are converting biomass from human waste into biogas for electricity.

Weighing the advantages and disadvantages of biofuels, we can see that they are not the perfect green energy source. If you are lucky enough to live close to some kind of manufacturing facility where waste is produced which could be turned into biofuel, then that would be terrific.

If you’re looking for home energy saving tips though, you’ll probably want to take a closer look at wind and solar power solutions. The energy-conscious home owner will find many savings with these.