Gatterer Jessica Kloiber Patrick Martin Nicholas Perspectives for bio-refineries

What is a bio-refinery? I …is a facility that integrates biomass conversion processes and equipment to produce fuel, heat, power and chemicals from biomass.

What is a bio-refinery? II Optimization and efficiency Technology Logistics The bio-refinery concept

What is a bio-refinery? III integrates biomass conversion processes equipment to produce with biomass -Fuel -Heat -Power -Chemicals

History of bio-refineries I a long history: 1860  Nikolaus Otto 1908  Henry Ford (Model T car) 1930  a large exploration of crude oil 1970  oil-price shock 20th century in Europe  bio refineries were built Worldwide  usage of biomass as an energy source has been rising sharply

History of bio-refineries II Status

History of bio-refineries III Bio-refineries in Austria

Biorefineries in Austria From 2003 to 2008, production capacity has risen almost tenfold From 58.1 MW to MW Biodiesel production has risen from tons to tons from 2005 to 2008 First domestic bioethanol plant in Pischelsdorf opened in 2008 and satisfies demand with tons capacity

Status $38 billion invested worldwide in renewable energy capacity 7% of that in biomass electricity 47 GW current capacity Austria shows 10-30% growth MW in 2008

Processes Small-scale dedicated biomass plants still less efficient than co-firing in existing coal plants Efficiency levels for dry biomass reach 30-34% Municipal waste offers 22% Biomass co-firing achieves 45% Currently the most cost-effective biomass use

Costs Costs depend on availability of affordable local feedstock If ample feedstock is available, co-firing in coal plants can produce competitively priced power at $20/MWh Dedicated biomass plants require higher initial investments due to smaller size Prices range from $40/MWh to $90/MWh

Optimization and efficiency Sustainable Optimize use of resources Minimizing waste Maximizing benefits and profitability Optimization can be achieved by future development in key areas and the efficient exploitation of chemical energy from biomass.

Criticism I A comparison of emissions through various forms of biological feedstock, compared to the emissions level of fossil fuels.

Criticism II Increased demand for biomass causes competition for arable land and deforestation Usage of food crops as feedstock drives up worldwide food prices and causes malnourishment Safeguards must be established to ensure sustainable development of biomass usage

Bio-refineries now and perspectives I a wide array of possibilities can provide to be a resource-efficient means of production Goals and rules Perspectives

Thank you for your attention!