All living matter is called biomass. In this case, biomass refers to the energy stored in living plants. Living plants capture sunlight and store it as carbohydrates. This stored chemical energy can be released in a variety of ways. When we eat, we are using this renewable energy to power our bodies and minds. We can also use biomass to power our vehicles, heat our homes, make electricity, and produce hydrogen.

The three main types of biomass that are useful sources of energy are oil crops, starch crops, and wood. Oil crops are plants that produce a high percentage of oil in their tissues. Soybeans, rapeseed (canola), sunflower, coconut and hemp are all great oil crops. The oil producing parts of the plant (usually the seeds) are harvested, and pressed for their oil. This oil can then be used directly as a fuel, or can be used for cooking first, for example, for French fries, and then used for fuel.

There are two ways to use vegetable oil as fuel in diesel engines, Straight Vegetable Oil (SVO), and biodiesel. In order to burn SVO engines must be modified by adding an extra fuel filter and a way to heat the SVO so it becomes the right consistency to be burned in the engine. Vegetable oil can also be made the right consistency by a simple chemical reaction to remove the glycerin from the oil, leaving biodiesel behind. Biodiesel can be burned directly in any diesel engine or in most furnaces that burn heating oil.

Starch crops, such as potatoes, corn, and grain can be fermented to make an alcohol called ethanol. Ethanol can be used in gasoline engines the same way that vegetable oil can be used in diesel engines.

Wood is often burned in woodstoves to heat homes, or it can be used to make electricity. In biomass fired electrical plants, wood is burned to make steam which turns a turbine, generating electricity. This electricity can be purchased by consumers who want renewable electricity made from forest products.

One final way that biomass can be used is in the production of hydrogen. All organic molecules have hydrogen in them, including the carbohydrates and oils in biomass. This hydrogen can be cracked off the large molecule and captured for use in fuel cells. For more information see the Hydrogen section.

While biomass is considered a renewable resource it is not necessarily a sustainable resource. For example, sustainable harvesting of wood means that forests aren’t cut down faster than they can grow back. Sustainable use of oil and starch crops requires that farmers pay careful attention to soil and water resources and also make the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources.