Biomass
1-Biomass is a renewable energy resource derived from plant and animal waste.
2-Biomass fuels can be used directly or they can be transformed into more convenient form and then used
3-Biomass can be converted into alcohol (liquid biofuels) by distillation
4-Ethanol, Methanol, Gasoho, Biodiesel are Liquid Biofuels
5-Gaseous Biofuels: Synthetic natural gas (biogas), Wood gas: Methane – 70% and CO2 – 30%.
6- Uses – A) Biomass is becoming important for applications such as combined heat and power generation.
B)-Biomass energy is gaining significance as a source of clean heat for domestic heating and community heating applications.
C)-Biomass is an important source of energy and the most important fuel worldwide after coal, oil and natural gas.
D)-Biomass is renewable and is abundantly available on the earth in the form of firewood, agricultural residues, cattle dung, city garbage etc.
7-The biogas plant consists of two components: a digester (or fermentation tank) and a gas holder.
Petro crops (Plants)
1- Recent researches suggest that hydrocarbon producing plants can become alternative energy sources, which can be inexhaustible and ideal for liquid fuel.
2- These plants called petroplants/petrocrops can be grown on land which are unfit for agriculture and not covered with forests. Jatropa curcas is an important petro plant.
Geothermal energy
1- Geothermal energy is natural heat from the interior of the earth that can be used to generate electricity as well as to heat up buildings.
2- Geothermal resource falls into three major categories: i) Geopressurized zones, ii) hot-rock zones and iii) Hydrothermal convection zones. Of these three only the first is currently being exploited on a commercial basis.
3- Northwestern Himalayas and the western coast are considered geothermal areas.
4- The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has already identified more than 350 hot spring sites, which can be explored as areas to tap geothermal energy.
5-The Puga valley in the Ladakh region has the most promising geothermal field.