Читать книгу Encyclopedia of Renewable Energy - James Speight G., James G. Speight - Страница 88

Liquid fuels are combustible or energy-generating molecules that can be harnessed to create mechanical energy. It is the fumes of liquid fuels that are flammable instead of the fluid. Most liquid fuels in widespread use are derived from fossil fuel sources, but there are several types derived from non-fossil fuel sources – these are hydrogen, methanol ethanol, and biodiesel that are derived from non-fossil fuel sources which are also categorized as a liquid fuel.

Biofuel is a generic name for gaseous, liquid, or solid fuels that are not derived from fossil fuels or contain a proportion of non-fossil fuel. For the purposes of this text, the term alternate fuels is used to represent those fuels that are produced from plant sources as well as from other sources such as the organic constituents’ (predominantly biological in nature) municipal and industrial waste. Thus, biofuels are bio-materials that are produced made from renewable biological sources which are now contemplated as grown specifically for the purpose of providing useful heat upon combustion. Biofuels are produced from sources such as: corn, soybeans, flaxseed, rapeseed, sugarcane, palm oil, sugar beet raw sewage, food scraps, animal parts, and rice.

Biofuels are fuels derived from plant materials – are entering the market, driven by factors such as oil price spikes and the need for increased energy security. Examples of solid biofuels include wood, sawdust, grass cuttings, domestic refuse, charcoal, agricultural waste, non-food energy crops, and dried manure. Biofuels are also known as non-conventional fuels or alternative fuels. Alternative fuels can be classified as any fuel that is not derived from conventional sources like natural gas, crude oil, and coal.

See also: Liquid Fuels.