Biofuels and Municipal Waste Technology an Overview of the DOE Program

Abstract

Biomass currently contributes about 4% (1.3 million Barrels of Oil Equivalent /day (BOE/D)) of the total annual U.S. energy requirement in the form of residential heat, process heat and steam, and electricity from wood and municipal waste and ethanol from grain crops. These contributions from biomass are significant; however, the potential exists for a much greater impact on U.S. energy supplies. While that potential is difficult to quantify, it seems likely that it could easily exceed 15 quadrillion Btu (Quads) (15 exajoules). Further, biofuels as a domestic, economic, dispersed and comparatively environmentally benign resource meets the DOE goal of a safe, secure, and affordable supply of energy. The Biofuels and Municipal Waste Technology Division’s (BMWTD) strategy for contributing to the nation’s energy supply focuses on research and development of those technologies where the risks are too high and the return on investment too low to attract private sector investment. As technology is developed cooperation with and cost sharing from is sought for eventual commercialization by industry. Outside input and cooperative research is sought at all stages of the federal research program. With a large federal deficit limiting Federal investment in many areas biofuels research, the BMWTD focuses research on a select number of fuel cycles aimed at mid- to long- term processes for liquid and gaseous fuels, the energy products for which the U.S. is most dependent on foreign sources of supply. Each fuel cycle involves a renewable feedstock coupled to a conversion process.