[...]... t) of topsoil This soil formation rate is the equivalent of about 1 t/ha/yr Forest soil re-formation is slower than in agriculture and is estimated to take more than 1000 years to produce 2.5 cm of soil The adverse effect of soil erosion is the gradual loss of productivity and eventually the abandonment of the land for crop production P1: FJU Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology. .. annual production of biomass FIGURE 3 World food and forage production (millions of tons) P1: GNH 2nd Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33 148 for these many food and feed uses, as well as available crop and forestry residues C Biotechnology and Biomass Production 1 Modify Biomass Composition for Easier Processing Plant breeding and/ or molecular... Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33 153 Biomass, Bioengineering of toxicity, but by high oxygen demands if processed in conventional sewage treatment facilities Solid wastes from biomass processing could occupy large volumes of landfill space, and would tend also produce high oxygen demand liquid effluents from landfills The volume of landfill space... Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002C-60 May 17, 2001 20:23 171 Biomass Utilization, Limits of as to how much biomass can be harvested as an energy source without further causing the extinction of more plants, animals, and microbes because of biomass resources on which biodiversity depends Agriculture and managed forests occupy approximately 70% of the total land area and use about 70% of the... greater than the human demand Obviously, much of the plant matter we grow is used to feed animals, not people directly However, if we so chose, we could easily feed the world’s population with an adequate, plant-based, diet using a fraction of the land now devoted to agriculture and animal husbandry (There P1: GNH 2nd Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33... these tree and fiber crops and their residues are essentially all P1: GNH 2nd Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33 147 Biomass, Bioengineering of lignocellulosic materials, i.e., they are composed mostly of sugar polymers and lignin 5 Forage and Grass Crops For purposes of this article, we will not distinguish between grasses and legumes, but will consider... will follow B Major Types of Biomass: Their Production and Composition 1 Sugar Crops The major sugar crops are sugar cane and sugar beets Worldwide, approximately 100 million tons per year of sugar (sucrose) are produced from sugar cane and sugar beets Most of these sugars are used ultimately in human P1: GNH 2nd Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33... oilseeds and sugar crops 2 Animal Feeds In 1998 the United States produced about 40 million tons of beef, pork, and poultry as well as billions of dozens of eggs and tens of millions of tons of milk To generate these products, livestock and poultry consumed well over 500 million tons of feed expressed on a feeding value equivalent to corn Over half of this total feed was from forages, about two thirds of. .. chief source of fuel and materials With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, a gradual switch from biomass as the major fuel source took place, first through a transition to coal and later to petroleum and natural gas The oil P1: GNH 2nd Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33 150 refining industry was developed over about the last 120 years and catalyzed... biomass P1: GNH 2nd Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002G-61 May 19, 2001 19:33 151 Biomass, Bioengineering of 2 New Liquid Fuels from Biomass Total consumption of gasoline and diesel fuel in the United States is about 150 billion gallons per year Assuming an average density of these liquid fuels of six pounds per gallon, the total mass of raw material that would need to . 00, 00, 00, 00 Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002C-64 May 19, 2001 20:39 Table of Contents (Subject Area: Biotechnology) Article Authors Pages in the Encyclopedia . Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002C-60 May 17, 2001 20:23 160 Biomass Utilization, Limits of essential nutrients. This is the largest number and pro- portion of malnourished. and P1: FJU Revised Pages Encyclopedia of Physical Science and Technology EN002C-60 May 17, 2001 20:23 Biomass Utilization, Limits of 163 TABLE III Energy Inputs and Costs of Corn Production per Hectare