Supergen

"The SUPERGEN Biomass and Bioenergy Consortium aims to provide a recognised focus for UK biomass and bioenergy activities that unites key stakeholders and academia through leading edge research in renewable energy"

		The SUPERGEN Bioenergy Consortium has recently been awarded a further EPSRC grant of £6.4m which will support a new work programme for an additional 4 years. SUPERGEN Bioenergy will continue to carry out excellent research into all steps in the bioenergy chain from production of biomass to delivery of a useful and valuable energy product, such as power, heat, and transport fuels.

		Biomass is any plant material which can be used as a fuel, such as energy crops, wood, agricultural waste and vegetable oils. Biomass can be burned directly to generate power, or processed to create gas or liquids to be used as fuel for production of power, transport fuels and chemicals. Biomass currently accounts for just 0.43% of the UK's energy, but it is seen as one route to meeting EU targets for reduction of CO2 emissions and increased use of renewable energy.

		The newly expanded Consortium is managed by Aston University with the University of Leeds as the financial hub. The other research partners include Cranfield University, Imperial College, Kings College London, the University of Manchester and the University of Sheffield, as well as Rothamsted Research Institute, the Institute of Grassland and Environmental Research and Forest Research. The planned industrial partners are Alstom, Amec, Bical, Biffa, Biomass Engineering, BP, Coppice Resources, E.ON UK, Johnson Matthey, Rural Generation and RWE nPower. In addition there are four associate academic partners - Irish Seaweed Centre, Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), the University of Oxford and the University of Ulster.

		We are studying the production of different types of biomass and investigating their behaviour in thermal conversion processes, with particular emphasis on the interaction and interface between production and conversion. Conversion processes are being investigated to improve their performance. Finally the bioenergy products are being expanded to include transport fuels and renewable chemicals within the context of a biorefinery. A wide range of system studies are included to evaluate the performance, cost, and socio-economic benefits of a wide range of bioenergy chains.

		The SUPERGEN Initiative was created by the EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council in the UK) to encourage the development of sustainable power generation and supply. 13 SUPERGEN Consortia have been established which address a range of sustainable technologies. Further details of the SUPERGEN Programme can be found on the EPSRC SUPERGEN web site. SUPERGEN Bioenergy has just completed the original four year project and will now continue for a further four years. Information regarding the original project work programme can be found on the "SUPERGEN Bioenergy Phase I" page, accessible via the link on the left hand navigation menu.