BIOMASS

Biomass heating involves burning a biofuel rather than a fossil fuel in a boiler. The Biomass fuel is derived from living or recently living biological organisms. These consist primarily of the following organic matters;

Energy Crops
- Grown specifically for high yield and for energy applications.

Agricultural Residues
- Derived from agricultural harvesting or processing.

Food Waste
- From food and drink manufacture preparation and processing. Also post consumer waste collection.

Wood
- From wood processing, forests and activities involving the use of timber materials.

Industrial Waste
- From manufacturing and industrial processes.

When derived from sustainable sources Biomass is considered a low carbon technology. The sun is the primary source of energy contained within all Biomass fuels. The energy is captured and stored by the process of Photosynthesis. When this energy is released by, for example, combustion in a suitable boiler this energy is released and used to produce heat.

The CO2 released by the combustion process is largely offset by that which was absorbed during the original growth of the Biomass fuel or which will be captured in the growth of the new Biomass material.

By contrast, when fossil fuels are combusted they release CO2 that was captured millions of years ago. Although they offer high energy density, these fuels are a major contributor to global warming as they release CO2 into the atmosphere that add to the atmospheric concentration. The replanting of Biomass fuels absorbs the CO2 produced by the combustion of these fuels and it is therefore essentially a closed loop. The burning of fossil fuels does not maintain this loop and results in a net gain.

It is important to note that net emissions will result from the collection, cultivation, harvesting, processing and transportation of the Biomass fuel, together with the manufacture and operation of the Biomass plant.

Biomass boilers can be used to provide space heating and hot water production. The fundamental difference between a Biomass heating system and a conventional fossil fuel system is that a Biomass boiler is best suited to operating relatively continuously. Consequently a heat store or fossil fuel boiler is often installed for times of peak demand.

Biomass heating plant and the space required for fuel storage means the Biomass plant is normally considerably larger than the fossil fuel burning equivalent.