Biomass Production and its Utilization for Energy

In recent years, a great deal of research effort has been witnessed for increasing the production and utilization of biomass as a source of renewable energy. The biomass is defined as living matter or its residue, which is a perpetual or a renewable source.

The common examples of biomass are wood, grass, herbage, grains or bagasse. The main sources of biomass can be classified in two groups :

(i) waste material including those derived from agriculture, forestry and municipal wastes; and

(ii) growing energy crops involving short rotation forestry plantations.