10 Top Solar Biofuels Projects
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) …Aside from the general observation that nearly all energy systems ultimately are based on today’s or yesterday’s solar energy (only geothermal and nuclear power are distinct exceptions), a new generation of technologies is bringing solar and biofuel technologies closer together.
Symbiosis or Convergence? There are two main approaches: symbiosis, or co-location, where biofuels and solar projects can be co-located to reduce cost and symbiotically add value to each other, such as a solar thermal system providing renewable energy for the hot water needed for enzymes to do their biofuels processing magic.
The other is convergence, where the focus is to design systems that directly utilize sunlight in the production of fuel – as opposed to traditional biofuels in which sunlight, water and CO2 are used by plants in the creation of biomass, which is later re-converted to liquid fuel. READ MORE
