Published in ERW, 8 Mar 2013
Advanced “cellulosic” biofuels that have a low carbon footprint will struggle in coming decades to compete economically with oil, a study by researchers in China and the US has revealed. The study, which takes into account the cost reduction that results from stimulated production, estimates that cellulosic biofuels will still be at least 40% more expensive than oil in two decades.
Cellulosic biofuels are a type of ethanol biofuel derived from lignocellulose, the basic structural material of plants. Compared with widely used biofuels, such as ethanol derived from corn or sugarcane, cellulosic biofuel has a much lower carbon footprint. This is largely down to the grassy crops used – miscanthus and switchgrass, which require little fertilizer to grow, and from which woody “lignin” can be extracted to convert into liquid fuel. […]
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