
Home

Environmental Skeptics and Critics, 2012, 1(3): 48-55
[XML] [EndNote Tagged] [BibTex] [

Full PDF (91K)] [Comment Article]

Article

Controversies, development and trends of biofuel industry in the world

Jun Zhang, WenJun Zhang
¹School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
²International Academy of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Hong Kong

Received 10 November 2011;Accepted 9 March 2012;Published online 1 September 2012
IAEES

Abstract
Controversies, development and trends of biofuel industry in the world were discussed in present article. First-generation biofuels, i.e., grain and land based biofuels, occupied large areas of arable lands and severely constrained food supplies, are widely disputed. They have been replaced by second-generation biofuels. The raw materials of the second-generation biofuels include plants, straw, grass and other crops and forest residues. However, the cost for production of the second-generation biofuels is higher. Therefore the development of the third-generation biofuels is undergoing. The third-generation technologies use, mainly algae, as raw material to produce bioethanol, biobutanol, biodiesel and hydrogen, and use discarded fruits to produce dimethylfuran, etc. Different countries and regions are experiencing different stages of biofuel industry. In the future the raw materials for biofuel production will be focused on various by-products, wastes, and organisms that have not direct economic benefit for human. Production technologies should be improved or invented to reduce carbon emission and environmental pollution during biofuel production and to reduce production cost.

Keywords biofuel;industry;trends;controversies;world.

International Academy of Ecology and Environmental Sciences. E-mail: office@iaees.org
Copyright © 2009-2024 International Academy of Ecology and Environmental Sciences. All rights reserved.
Web administrator: office@iaees.org, website@iaees.org; Last modified: 2024/4/25

Translate page to: