The advantages and disadvantages of biofuels.
Pros and cons of biofuels
Pros and Cons of biofuels have become an often discussed subject because of their potential to become a significant energy source of the future to help to address energy cost, energy security, and global warming concerns associated with liquid fossil fuels. This alternative energy source is drawing increasing attention worldwide as an alternative to petroleum-derived transportation fuels.
Though biofuel has the potential to replace nonrenewable fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, its production has its drawbacks also. In this article, I have examined the advantages and disadvantages of biofuels to have a better understanding of this alternative energy source of the future. But before we go into the pros and cons of biofuels let’s first see what are Biofuels.
What are Biofuels?
Biofuels are plant-based fuels that are derived from biomass i.e. from plant or algae materials or animal waste. Since such feedstocks can be replenished readily, biofuel is considered to be a renewable energy source. Today, most biofuels are produced from agricultural crops. It is a cost-effective and environmentally friendly source of energy alternative to petroleum and other fossil fuels. Biofuels are mostly used as transportation fuels. Liquid biofuels are of particular interest to the transport sector because of the already existing infrastructure to use them. Ethanol and Biodiesel are the two most common types of biofuels in use today.
Now let’s examine the major advantages and disadvantages of biofuels.
Pros and cons of biofuels
Pros of biofuels
1. Reduce Greenhouse Gases
Biofuels are considered to be the greener alternative to fossil fuels. They are environment-friendly, produce less air pollution, and are much cleaner than conventional fuels. When burned, biofuels produce significantly less carbon and fewer toxins than traditional fossil fuels making them less harmful to our environment and a safer alternative to conventional transport fuels.
One of the major advantages of biofuels is that it produces less greenhouse gases. Plant-based biofuels cause much less greenhouse gas emissions and make little net contribution to global warming and climate change. Studies show that biofuels reduce greenhouse gases by about 65 percent. Whereas other fossil fuels, when burnt, produce large amounts of greenhouse gases causing global warming.
2. Carbon neutral
Biofuels are carbon neutral because it removes the carbon that enters the atmosphere during their combustion. The amount of carbon dioxide which biofuels emit to the environment is absorbed back out of the atmosphere by the source plants which produce them, through the process of photosynthesis. Hence, no extra carbon dioxide remains in the environment.
3. Renewable source of energy
Biofuels are produced from plants and other organic materials which are not likely to run out any time soon. They can be regarded as entirely renewable and sustainable because the biofuel feedstocks can be grown in perpetuity. This is in contrast to fossil fuels, which are constantly in the process of depletion.
4. Can stimulate the economy
The increasing popularity of biofuels can keep our economy secure. Since biofuels are produced locally the manufacturing plants of biofuels can create thousands of jobs, particularly in rural areas. Moreover, increased production of biofuels can boost the demand for biofuel crops which would eventually provide economic stimulation to the agriculture industry.
5. Less expensive than fossil fuels
Since the cost of producing biofuels is relatively lower than fossil fuels, they are comparatively less expensive. For example, ethanol is much cheaper than gasoline and diesel. This is because the worldwide increasing demand for these traditional fuels is creating a huge gap between their demand and supply which is causing an increase in the prices of gasoline and other fossil fuels. Biofuels, on the other hand, have the potential of becoming even cheaper in the future due to this increasing demand as they can be grown locally in perpetuity.
Cons of biofuels
Despite several pros of biofuels mentioned above, here are a few disadvantages associated with this renewable energy source:
1. Lower energy density
Biofuels have lower energy densities than petroleum fuels. Energy density by weight and volume are important technological challenges for biofuels to replace petroleum fuels.
2. Requires high initial investment
Biofuels require a high initial investment to set up biofuel manufacturing plants and to refine the fuels to make them a more efficient energy source.
3. Loss of habitat due to land conversion
The land required to produce a sufficient supply of biofuels to meet their increasing demand is also a major factor in evaluating biofuel cons. If biofuels are made a primary source of energy, a large amount of land will be required to grow biofuel crops. This would need conversion of several open spaces and forests into agricultural land which may result in loss of habitat for various plants and animals causing ecological damage.
4. May spark ‘food versus fuel’ debate
As the demand for biofuels increases there will be an urge to grow more of the biofuel crops instead of food crops. In diverting cultivable land from food production to biofuel production, the economics of food price and availability may be affected.
5. Emissions of harmful gases during the production process
Although as a renewable energy source, plant-based biofuels in principle make little contribution to global warming yet there are additional emissions of greenhouse gases during the industrial production of agricultural biofuels. These emissions include carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels during the production process and nitrous oxide from soil that has been treated with nitrogen fertilizer.
6. Limitations of use in vehicles
Today’s vehicles are still not properly designed to run on biofuels alone. Vehicle engines need modifications for increased use of biofuels. At present the vast majority of the existing vehicles are using biofuels as additives rather than as a replacement for fossil fuels.
Now that we have a better picture of the pros and cons of biofuels let me also reply to the following common queries often heard related to biofuels:
How are biofuels made?
There are various processes for making plant-based biofuels. They normally use chemical reactions, fermentation, and heat to break down the sugars, starches, and other molecules in the source plants. The resulting products are then refined to produce a fuel that can be used as transportation fuels for use in cars or other vehicles.
What are the basic types of biofuels?
Ethanol and Biodiesel are the two most common types of biofuels in use today, both of which represent the first generation of biofuel technology.
Ethanol is a renewable fuel that is made from various organic materials that come from plants and animals. Most ethanol is made from plant starches and sugars.
Biodiesel is a liquid fuel produced from renewable sources, such as new and used vegetable oils and animal fats, and is a cleaner-burning replacement for petroleum-based diesel fuel.
You might also like this related post: How does biomass work to produce energy?
Conclusion
After going through the pros and cons of biofuels you may wonder whether biofuels are the right renewable energy source of the future to replace traditional petroleum and other fossil fuels.
Nevertheless, the fact remains that second and third-generation biofuels have a lot more advantages than disadvantages and they have the potential to provide a reliable source of energy in years to come. Since biofuel technology is still in a nascent stage, with more research and development, it is definitely possible to minimize the disadvantages of biofuels and make them suitable for becoming a reliable alternative energy source of the future and solve the issue of dwindling fossil fuel reserves.
