Biomass may replace fossil fuels than you think. From wild grass, seaweed, and other biomass products, energy companies and governments are seeking alternatives to fossil fuels like oil, which are non-renewable. Biomass, on the other hand, would provide a renewable energy source, and relieve our dependence on non-renewable energy sources.

Fuel from Wild Grass?

The newest biomass material to be considered as an alternative fuel source is wild grass, specifically a wild grass called miscanthus. Miscanthus can be used to produce ethanol, a renewable biomass resource often used as a fuel or fuel additive.

Stanford University Professor Chris Somerville originated the idea of using miscanthus to create ethanol. His idea comes with some advantages.

One advantage to producing ethanol from miscanthus is that the entire plant can be used to make the alternative fuel. This could make a miscanthus a more fruitful alternative fuel than corn. When ethanol is made from corn, only the grains from the corn plant can be used, not the entire plant.

Another advantage is that miscanthus is more profitable than corn because it takes less area to grow the plant than others, like corn. Less acreage needed to produce the same amount of ethanol means more can be produced.

According to Somerville, miscanthus also requires less water to grow, so it uses fewer resources.

Electricity-Rich Seaweed? Japanese Alternative Energy Source Coming Soon

Seaweed is widely used in Japan in sushi, miso soup and nabe dishes. Now, Japanese researchers have found a new use for seaweed: electricity.

Research on seaweed as a a source for generating electricity is expected to be completed in this year. The goal is to produce "full-fledged electricity generation" later that year. The researchers in Japan hope to create the first power plant in the world to run off of seaweed.

The seaweed to electricity process involves biomass fermentation, where the seaweed is dredged from seashores. This seaweed will be used to produce fuel for electricity generation.

In Japan, seaweed is easy to obtain and is one of the few unused biomass energy sources available. Biomass energy sources are derived from organic matter from plants or animals. Biomass energy sources include crop waste, fuel wood, garbage and waste wood. Biomass energy sources are processed to make biomass-derived fuels. Some of these include wood byproducts including briquettes, pellets and wood chips. Biomass energy fuel may also be made from garbage. For example, crop and corn waste are used to make ethanol and wood waste is used to make and methanol.

Using seaweed as an alternative energy source is environmentally sound in a number of ways. The seaweed which washes up on shores ismalodorous when it rots and the herculean task of collecting and disposing of the seaweed falls upon local coastal governments. The seaweed itself, when it grows absorbs carbon dioxide. Seaweed as a biomass may be an effective way to conserve oil resources as well as combat global warming.

Will wild grass or seaweed be the answer? It will take researchers more time and money to come up with the answer. At least there are some possibilities on the horizon.