What is a Biofuel?

Biofuel is derived from the biomass conversion and have been used since the start of the 20^th century. It is simply the energy derived from carbon fixation. The use of Biofuels has increased in recent times as the price of gasoline has increased. Along with, the need to combat the increased carbon dioxide emissions and government subsidies has led to increased usage of biofuels. This is evident from the fact that the production of biofuel has increased 17% in 2010 compared to the production in 2009.
Petrol and diesel are also ancient biofuels but they are considered as fossil fuel as the carbon in them has been out of the natural carbon cycle for a long period of time.  Biofuels are made from the plants that are nowadays available.


The most widely used biofuel is ethanol. USA and Brazil are the top producer and consumer of ethanol. It is made by fermenting alcohol, mostly from carbohydrates produced in sugar or starch crops such as corn or sugarcane. Ethanol is added to the gasoline to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and to increase the engine performance, though it can be used as a fuel in its pure form.


Another popular form of biofuel used is biodiesel. European Union is the biggest producer of biodiesel and biodiesel is the most common biofuel in Europe. It is produced from oils or fats and can be used as fuel to drive vehicles in its pure form but is added to the conventional diesel to reduce emissions.


The popularity of biofuels has soared in the recent years as they help to reduce emissions, reduces reliability on the conventional fossil fuels and is a renewable source of energy. But there has been increased debate on the benefits of biofuels. Some experts believe that the energy obtained from the biofuel is less than what is spend on the production of biofuel.


Therefore, it is imperative to improve the production process of biofuel and make them easily available to the general consumers with increased government subsidies.