Help Save the World with Bamboo By Dr. Segundino U. Foronda, Ph.D. Forester, Inventor & Forest Products Specialist E-mail: [email protected] Democracy.

Help Save the World with

BambooBy

Dr. Segundino U. Foronda, Ph.D. Forester, Inventor & Forest Products Specialist

E-mail: [email protected]

Democracy M. Icawalo INBAR Alumnus & Bamboo Advocate

E-mail: [email protected]

What is Climate Change?

• Climate Change refers to any change in climate over time whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity or changing levels of Green House Gases (GHGs).

• It describes the short and long term effects on the earth’s climate as a result of human activities such as fossil fuel combustion and vegetation clearing and burning.

• It is also now referred to as GLOBAL WARMING.

CLIMATE CHANGE

Causes of Climate Change

• Wanton utilization of fossil fuels

• Deforestation

Effects of Climate Change

• Pollution of water, air and soil

• Polar ice caps melting

• Negative economic consequences

• Increased extreme weather conditions

• Spread of diseases

• Landscape changes

• Adverse effects on agriculture and food supply

Solutions1. Re-greening with trees and bamboo

Bamboo is more recommended, however, considering its natural characteristics as follows:

- Bamboo absorbs 35% more carbon dioxide compared to trees. It also emits 35% more oxygen. Even in finished products form, it

will not release its C02 contents for decades.

- It is much more sustainable and easier to plant. Even when burned, it will just grow back unlike trees.

- Its maximum maturity period is only 5 years while the minimum time for trees to mature

on the average is 10 years.

2 . Use of clean & sustainable fuel substitutes

Fossil Fuels vs. Bio-oil & Bio-coal Non-renewable - Renewable Grey CO2 - Green CO2 Dirty - Clean Not cheap - Cheaper than

fossil fuels

Bio-oilWhat is bio-oil (BO)?

• Not oil in traditional sense

• Liquid biomass, molecular composition resembles the feedstock

• Clean burning, carbon dioxide neutral fuel

• Aka: pyrolysis oil, bio-crude oil

• Can be co-fired in furnaces, boilers, gas turbines, and diesel engines

Bio-oil

Green substitute to conventional fossil fuels in

power generation for now.

( Soon, for transportation fuels! )

Benefits of Bio-oil• Reduce dependence on fossil fuel• Establish land cover• Reduce GHG emissions• Create jobs• Motivate economic activity in the countryside• Save foreign exchange• Cheaper than fossil fuel

Cost of Bio-oil“Even more importantly, bio-oil is priced at

$25 - $35 a barrel…” (Zeman, 2007)

Equiv crude oil: US$ 45.45 – 63.64 a barrel

CDM benefits when factored will increase bio-oil’s competitiveness!

Bio-oil ProcessingFast Pyrolysis

Products of Fast PyrolysisBio-oil

- Liquid biomass

- Can be stored, pumped and transported

Non-condensable gas

- Re-circulated into the pyrolysis process

Char

- Black powder- Incompletely

combusted biomass

FeedstockAny lignocellulosic or cellulosic material

Forestry, agricultural and processing residues

• Wood, sawdust, bark, forest slash, waste paper

• Rice straw & husk, corn stalks & cobs, bamboo

• Cellulosic residues from bio-diesel/ bio-ethanol

production, e.g., coco shell & husk, bagasse, etc.

• Poultry litter, animal dung

No competition with food supply!

Bio-fuel Crops Compared

• Indigenous plant species• Easier to establish than tree species• High regenerative capacity, even when burned• High capacity to withstand extreme

environmental conditions• Fast growing and high-biomass yield• Short maturity period• Co-products:

- Bamboo shoots

- High quality pole segments

Bamboo – Most Favorable Feedstock

Bamboo BO Plant Capacity

1000 ha plantation = 100TPD BO Facility

Daily BO output = 70-75 TPD

Moving Forward

Invest in Bamboo Bio-oil Production

and make money!

Reduce dependence on fossil fuels

Reduce GHG emissions

Protect the environment

Create jobs

Bio-coalWhat is bio-coal?• Torrefied biomass• Aka: e-coal, green coal• No smoke/ odor, clean• HHV = 22-26 MJ/kg• Easy to mill, friable• Hydrophobic• Decay resistant

Benefits of Bio-coal• Stores and handles like fossil coal• Requires no retrofitting for coal-fired plants• Consistent and uniform fuel efficiency • Generates electricity as efficiently as fossil coal • Enables immediate GHG emissions reduction• Fossil coal will emit (+/-) 300% more carbon dioxide

compared to bio-coal• Cost of bio-coal is only (+/-) 40% of the cost of

fossil coal

Bio-coal ProcessingTorrefaction • 200-300 °C • zero oxygen• (+/-) 30 minutes

Densification• milling/ grinding• pelletizing

Feedstock Bamboo

We need to move

from this

to this!

Remember, we need to save our world for our children.

Help save the world with bamboo!!!