Greenhouse gas balances of biomass energy systems
- Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (United States)
- Institute for Energy Research, Joanneum Research, Graz, (Austria)
A full energy-cycle analysis of greenhouse gas emissions of biomass energy systems requires analysis well beyond the energy sector. For example, production of biomass fuels impacts on the global carbon cycle by altering the amount of carbon stored in the biosphere and often by producing a stream of by-products or co-products which substitute for other energy-intensive products like cement, steel, concrete or, in case of ethanol from corn, animal feed. It is necessary to distinguish between greenhouse gas emissions associated with the energy product as opposed to those associated with other products. Production of biomass fuels also has an opportunity cost because it uses large land areas which could have been used otherwise. Accounting for the greenhouse gas emissions from biomass fuels in an environment of credits and debits creates additional challenges because there are large nonlinearities in the carbon flows over time. This paper presents some of the technical challenges of comprehensive greenhouse gas accounting and distinguishes between technical and public policy issues.
- Research Organization:
- International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Vienna (Austria)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Research, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-84OR21400
- OSTI ID:
- 432870
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9410484-1; ON: DE97001309
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: IAEA advisory group meeting on analysis of net energy balance and full-energy-chain greenhouse gas emissions for nuclear and other energy systems, Beijing (China), 4-7 Oct 1994; Other Information: PBD: 1994
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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