The couple munching on popcorn during a romantic movie, the softball team chomping on greasy pizza to celebrate a huge victory and the family enjoying corn-on-the-cob at a picnic all have something in common. The foods that they are consuming are all produced from the same sources that are used to make biofuels.
A biofuel is a type of fuel that comes from raw biological material. According to Richard Shaten, faculty associate at the Gaylord Nelson Institute, biofuels can be made from a wide range of resources, ranging from plants and crops to waste materials. Shaten also mentioned that identifying the resource, better known as feedstock, is the first step in producing biofuels.
The most common types of biofuels as listed by the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Consumer's Guide are ethanol and biodiesel. Ethanol consists of anything containing starch or sugar, with corn and sugarcane as the main sources. Biodiesel, on the other hand, is primarily produced from vegetable (soybean) oil, restaurant grease or animal fat.
Once a feedstock is identified, different techniques are used to convert these different material sources into fuel. Biodiesel is made using alcohol to transform the animal fat or vegetable oil. Ethanol is made from fermenting the starch or sugar found in the feedstock. This is comparable to the way alcohol is made, according to Matt Johnston, a UW-Madison graduate student in land resources and energy analysis and policy.
After the feedstock is converted to a fuel state, the resulting fuel may be used to generate heat, make electricity or to power vehicles. Biofuels are alternatives to using fossil fuels, such as gas and oil, which also come with many benefits.
Perhaps the most exciting advantage of using biomass is that the carbon that you're burning in the biomass is carbon that's being cycled above the Earth,\ Shaten said. ""When plants grow, they absorb carbon dioxide and when you burn them you give off carbon dioxide, so it's kind of carbon neutral for the atmosphere.""
In addition to the positive effects on the environment, biofuels will also have a positive effect on the economy. There is no scarcity in the resources used to produce biofuels.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, feedstock such as soybean oil and restaurant grease are in surplus in the United States.
""We have many tensions and scarcities that revolve around fossil fuels,"" said Sanya Carleyolsen, a UW-Madison graduate student in urban planning and energy analysis and policy. ""And so by tapping into biomass, which is an abundant and renewable resource, we can continue to create energy sources to satisfy a demand without depleting a supply that is already compromised and scarce.""
Likewise, using abundant resources will help decrease reliance on foreign resources.
""If we produce domestically, we will be supporting our agricultural base as well as reducing our dependence on foreign oil,"" Johnston said.
Producing locally will also create domestic jobs. In the ethanol industry, there are approximately 200,000 jobs currently available as noted by the U.S. Department of Energy. An increase in ethanol production alone will create jobs in plant construction, operation and maintenance. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a 100 million gallon ethanol production facility is estimated to create 2,250 local jobs in a single community.
However, production has not reached that level yet. The U.S. Department of Energy cites 81 plants producing a total of 3.41 billion gallons of ethanol in 2004. This is still less than 2 percent of the fuel needed for automobiles.
Another current downside to using biofuels is the cost.
""Currently the cost to produce ethanol is about $2.25 per gallon, so the cost to produce gas is about $1.50 per gallon,"" Shaten said. ""So you can see that even at the gas prices we have now, it's still cheaper than ethanol but the two are coming closer together.""
While the biofuel industry is not quite established and the cost to produce biofuels is high, there is still potential for biofuels to flourish as an industry.
""In Wisconsin, I see [biofuels] becoming a primary industry,"" Carleyolsen said. ""It's something that Wisconsin has a wealth of, and we have the ability right now to put a lot of support into the industry to build it.""
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