Biofuels, Liquid

The challenge

A combination of factors is driving the development of alternatives to fossil fuels to meet our transportation energy needs. The most promising of alternatives are liquid fuels derived from cellulosic biomass. Liquid biofuels can be produced from non-food agricultural sources (straws, rapeseed, sunflowers, etc.) and forest waste (tree trimmings, forest residues, and stumps). These advanced new biofuels have the potential to be clean-burning, carbon-neutral, and renewable. The focus to date has been on the technological challenges of producing high quality biofuels that are sustainable and competitive with gasoline. However, there are important social, economic, and environmental challenges that must be met.

• Bio-chemical conversion
• Thermo-chemical conversion