Can Wild Grass and Seaweed Solve the Energy Crisis?

Alternative Energy Trends Get Exsposure

Biomass may replace fossil fuels than you think. From wild grass, seaweed, and other biomass products, energy companies and governments are seeking alternatives to fossil fuels like oil, which are non-renewable. Biomass, on the other hand, would provide a renewable energy source, and relieve our dependence on non-renewable energy sources.

Fuel from Wild Grass?

The newest biomass material to be considered as an alternative fuel source is wild grass, specifically a wild grass called miscanthus. Miscanthus can be used to produce ethanol, a renewable biomass resource often used as a fuel or fuel additive.

Stanford University Professor Chris Somerville originated the idea of using miscanthus to create ethanol. His idea comes with some advantages.

One advantage to producing ethanol from miscanthus is that the entire plant can be used to make the alternative fuel. This could make a miscanthus a more fruitful alternative fuel than corn. When ethanol is made from corn, only the grains from the corn plant can be used, not the entire plant.

Another advantage is that miscanthus is more profitable than corn because it takes less area to grow the plant than others, like corn. Less acreage needed to produce the same amount of ethanol means more can be produced.

According to Somerville, miscanthus also requires less water to grow, so it uses fewer resources.

Electricity-Rich Seaweed? Japanese Alternative Energy Source Coming Soon

Seaweed is widely used in Japan in sushi, miso soup and nabe dishes. Now, Japanese researchers have found a new use for seaweed: electricity.

Research on seaweed as a a source for generating electricity is expected to be completed in 2007. The goal is to produce "full-fledged electricity generation" later that year. The researchers in Japan hope to create the first power plant in the world to run off of seaweed.

The seaweed to electricity process involves biomass fermentation, where the seaweed is dredged from seashores. This seaweed will be used to produce fuel for electricity generation.