Report of the Advisory Committee on Agriculturally Derived Fuels to the Texas Energy and Natural Resources Advisory Council

For the purpose of the Committee, biomass was defined as the volume of living material or residues of living material (organic material) available in Texas for conversion into energy. Statistical reports from the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station and other sources indicate that in addition to surplus and distressed grains and certain other crops, there are roughly 27 million tons of agricultural residues currently being left in the fields or at the processing plants after harvest. The average annual residue from five crops - sorghum, corn, wheat, rice and cotton - is more than 20 million tons with a theoretical heat value of 270 trillion Btus. This represents 64 percent of the total energy input for Texas agriculture in 1973. Additionally, 4.1 million tons of dry manure is economically recoverable from Texas feedlots which could be converted into 14 trillion Btus of energy each year in the form of methane gas. Municipal solid waste, much of which is comprised of residues of living materials, currently amounts to about 13 million tons annually. The principal processes for converting the referenced resources into energy include: (1) direct combustion; (2) fermentation; (3) gasification/pyrolysis; (4) anaerobic digestion; and (5) petroculture - the production of certainmore » non-traditional plants. Texas produces huge quantities of biomass, and has the potential of producing even more, which can be converted through various processes into significant quantities of usable energy to help meet the needs of the agricultural industry and the general public. Some of the technology required for the conversion processes is already sufficiently advanced to support immediate production and use while others will require additional research and development. The report discusses the current level of development of the relevant technologies.« less