A new report from IEA Bioenergy’s Task 42: Biorefining in a Circular Economy highlights the potential of combining biomass-based processes with locally-sourced hydrogen derived from surplus renewable energy. The report includes four case studies – in Australia, Brazil, Italy and the USA – and suggests some guidelines for the establishment of new biorefineries as part of the next energy transition.
Dr Yue Zhang of EBNet’s Anaerobic Fermentation WG said: “This is a welcome report on the role of green hydrogen in biomass-based systems, which is a significant step forward compared with the fossil-based hydrogen used in petroleum refinery processes for production of both energy and materials. As a powerful reducing agent, hydrogen can be used in multiple steps of a fermentation-based biorefinery system, e.g. central biological process or downstream (thermo)chemical processes to enhance biomass utilisation efficiency, product value etc. We believe the potential contribution of hydrogen in biorefining will provide a further stimulus for the rapid development of hydrogen infrastructure”.
For more information on Task 42 see here, and the report is available to download HERE.