Distillation of Fermented Biomass - A Scope for Future Bio-Methanol

Energy is one the essential constituent of modern society. Now a days energy comes for the greatest part from fossil fuel like oil, natural gas and coal. The proven fossil fuel reserves are declining in most part of the world. This demands for the development of sustainable alternative energy sources. Renewable energy is generally defined as energy that is collected from resources which are naturally replenished on a human timescale, such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves and geothermal heat. Renewable energy often provides in four important areas electricity generation, air and water heating/cooling, transportation and rural (off-grid) energy services. Methanol is an alternative fuel for internal combustion and other engines, either in combination with gasoline or directly (neat). It is used in racing cars in many countries. In the U. S. , methanol fuel has received less attention than ethanol fuel as an alternative to petroleum-based fuels, because in the 2000 particularly, the support of corn-based ethanol offered certain political advantages. In general, ethanol is less toxic and has higher energy density, although methanol is less expensive to produce sustainably and is a less expensive way to reduce the carbon footprint. However, for optimizing engine performance, fuel availability, toxicity and political advantage, a blend of ethanol, methanol and petroleum is likely to be preferable to using any of these individual substances alone. Methanol may be made from hydrocarbon or renewable resources, in particular natural gas and biomass respectively. It can also be synthesized from CO2 and hydrogen.