Biomass can be yard waste and other products like dead trees, tree branches, yard clippings, left over crops, wood chips, and bark, sawdust from lumber mills, tires, and livestock manure. Recycling biomass for fuel cuts down on the need for "landfills" to hold garbage while presents an alternative source of fuel. Composting materials such as decayed plant or food products mixed together in a compost pile and spread to help plants grow with a by product of heat. This heat can be used to power homes, while the decomposing materials can be used to help plants grow.

The Biomass process is quite simple. The waste wood, tree branches and other scraps are gathered together in large trucks. These trucks bring the waste from factories and farms to a biomass power plant. The biomass is dumped into huge hoppers and is then fed into a furnace where it is burned. The heat is used to boil water in the boiler, and the energy in the steam is used to turn turbines, which are linked to generator thus producing electricity.

Biomass has other useful purposes than providing electricity. When biomass decomposes, it gives off methane gas (natural gas). This gas can be collected in pipelines and used to for heating. A great advantage for using methane to heat you home is that less energy will need to be used to produce the level of heat needed when compared to electrical heating. By using Biomass, we not only level the landfills, but we also produce essential power for our growing economy.

Biomass resources map

| 01.01.2009 | Read more | Print |