What are green technologies?

Bioenergy is renewable energy that is derived from biological sources.  This energy is derived from biomass which is organic material that has stored sunlight in the form of chemical energy.  Biomass can include wood, manure, sugarcane, agricultural grains, and a variety of available organic products that can grow in local climate and weather conditions.  Renewable organic resources, unlike energy derived from oil, are constantly replenished in a sustainable life cycle and never run out.  Biomass can be used to produce biofuels, biopower, and bioproducts:

Biofuels is biomass, usually plant sugars or starches that are converted to liquid fuels for use in transportation or are gases like methanol derived from decaying organic matter.  Ethanol and biodiesel fuels can be produced from many sources including corn, sugarcane, soybeans, or recycled vegetable oils.  The future of biofuels lies in converting cellulosic materials, like switchgrass and corn stover, directly into ethanol by fermenting and breaking down the cellulose in plant cells.  Another future application is the commercial development and production of biodiesel from algae and other plant-derived fats.  Energy from the anaerobic digestion of manure or landfill wastes in the form of methane can be collected and used to produce electricity.

Biomass power technologies convert renewable biomass fuels into heat and electricity using processes similar to that used with fossil fuels.  Burning wood to heat our homes is an example. Large-scale projects can use any combustible material to produce electricity, heat for industrial processes, or both as in cogeneration projects like the EIU Renewable Energy Center plant.  Steam generation technology to produce electricity is very dependable and proven.  In addition, biomass gasifiers can produce gas as fuel that can be burned or used in fuel cells.

Bioproducts produced from biomass could replace the chemical feedstocks now derived from fossil fuels.  Plastics, chemicals, and composite materials from renewable resources could be produced from agricultural crops and residues, trees and forest products, grasses, animal wastes, and organic municipal solid wastes.  This is a growing field where production agriculture, research, and industry expertise will combine to produce energy-efficient and cost-competitive products to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

Lake Land offers TEC 064, Bioenergy and TEC 066, Resource Sustainability as courses in the new green technology curriculum.  They deal with the fundamentals of energy use and production from biogas, biofuels, and biomass including production methods, domestic and industrial uses, and sustainability issues related to the needs of future generations.

 Career pathways for those interested in bioenergy could include production agriculture, harvesting technologies, storage, and management, supply-chain management, production facility laboratory services, labor, or management,  fuel handling, transportation, distribution, or production, enzyme and fermentation biology, or dozens of other possibilities.