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Bioenergy
Energy Efficient Technologies
Renewable Resources
Energy and Society
Connecting Agendas
16th December, 2009
Bioenergy Research
at the ERC
Gavin Collins
•Microbiology, School of Natural Sciences
•Bioenergy Research Group, ERC
Energy Research Centre
Bioenergy
• Bioenergy is produced from plant and animal material.
– Wood, other plant material, manure from livestock
• Biomass can generate:
– electricity, light, heat, motion and fuel.
• Fuels, such as ethanol, can be made from biomass and used as
an alternative to petrol to power vehicles.
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Bioenergy Research at the ERC
• Well-established and highly successful area
• Key ongoing research:
– microbial fermentations and digestion of organic feedstocks
– biocatalytic fuel cells
– combustion chemistry
Energy Research Centre
As a microbiologist….
• MICROBES:
– can, and will, do anything!
– an important natural resource
• Microbial Resource Management!
– getting the bugs to cooperate
– innovative applications
– protecting the resource!
Energy Research Centre
Bioenergy Research at the ERC
A Multi-disciplinary cluster
– Feedstock characterisation (Algae, biomass, waste resources)
– Primary conversion (enzymatic) of feedstock
– Fermentation, Biogas and BioH2
– Bioprocess solids and waters treatment and recycling
– Waste and wastewater treatment and recycling (Carbon, nutrient,
microorganisms, metals, priority pollutants)
– Combustion chemistry
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Other & New Research
• Anaerobic digestion of municipal sewage
• Closing nutrient loops
• Sustainable water infrastructures
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Bioenergy Research at the ERC
Brief details
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Fuel Cell Science & Technology
• Hydrogen supplied to anode of the cell.
• Catalyst (usually platinum) breaks apart
hydrogen into protons and electrons.
• Electrons then transferred
(producing current)
to
cathode
• Electrons rejoin with protons & oxygen at
cathode to form water.
Energy Research Centre
Biofuel Cells
“Fuel cell utilising biological
compounds to catalyse the necessary
oxidation and reduction reactions to
produce electricity”
Biofuel Cell Types
Microbial Fuel Cells, which use
micro-organisms as catalysts
Enzymatic Fuel Cells, which use
enzymes derived from organisms as
catalysts.
Glucose/O2 Enzymatic
Biofuel Cell
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Microbial Fuel Cells
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Enzyme technology
•Enzymes for pre-treatment
•Harness potential of different plant species (e.g. algae) by improving
conversion
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Low-temperature Anaerobic Digestion
High-rate treatment under
sub-ambient conditions
(4-15oC)
• Eliminate high energy
requirement
• Improved economics
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Sustainable Bioenergy:
a green biorefinery model
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from www.biorefinery.ie
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Combustion Chemistry
Rapid Compression Machine
Low-pressure shock tube
High-pressure shock tube
Chemical details of how fuels burn
– ICE, gas turbine, incinerator
– Fossil or renewable
– Efficiency/Health impact
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Combustion Chemistry
• Problems with Bioethanol
• Biobutanol/Biomethane
• Major industrial support
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Future?
• Which crops/feedstocks/wastes;
– and where, when, how, who?
– sustainable?
• Technology development & deployment
• Fuel acceptability and usage
• Life cycle analysis of biorefining systems
– of all associated activities and applications
Energy Research Centre