Utilization of carbon-negative biofuels from low-input high-diversity grassland biomass for energy in China

This paper analyzes utilization of carbon-negative biofuels from low-input high-diversity grassland biomass on degraded lands (LIHD) for energy including energy equivalent to green house gases (GHG) capture and storage. The results show that the energy output of LIHD biomass on degraded soil is nearly equal to that of ethanol from conventional corn grain on fertile soil. It has also been shown that LIHD biofuel is far more economical than the conventional biofuels such as corn ethanol or soybean biodiesel.China is a large agriculturally developing country, with its rural area largely populated and vast land degraded. It is in this respect that we analyzed the utilization of LIHD. The potential of using energy from LIHD biomass on degraded lands in China is estimated. The results show that the potential energy production of LIHD biomass reaches 6350971.32 TJ year−1, accounting for about 15% of China’s energy consumption in 2002.