A procedure to evaluate energy contribution of biomass

A simple methodology was developed to evaluate the real energy contribution of biomass to replacing conventional sources of energy and their specific technologies.

To this effect, energy content, replacement energy value, energy cost and energy return of biomass (kJ per kg dry matter) were considered. Thus some figures valid under Italian conditions were calculated by this methodology and are reported here.

6.4 × 10⁶ t (dry matter) of wood and cellulosic residues are available yearly in Italy and could replace 73 PJ/year (1.8 × 10⁶ toe/year) if they were used exclusively for heat generation by direct combustion, or 47 PJ/year (1.15 × 10⁶ toe/year) if used in gasification processes to generate electricity and replace the energy currently supplied by the national grid.