Properties and Environmental Assessment of Rice Husk

For many years, we have consumed fossil fuels with no worries about possible shortages, but, now, those same oil fields are running dry, while use of coal as a source of energy is also facing criticisms due to its contribution on environmental pollution. In view of this situation, there has been a growing impetus looking for alternative sources of energy for the future. Biomass based second generation biofuels could partly assist to resolve some of these issues, especially from the feedstock point of view for energy production applying various conversion methods to improve the combustion efficiency. The advantages of using biomass are obvious as this material, is generally left to rot or burnt in an no controlled manner, producing CO2 as well as smoke A large portion of the fossil fuels is imported thus causing concern for energy security. In addition, utilization of fossil fuels is associated with emissions of CO2, SO2 and NOX leading to environmental impacts. To approach the reduction of these problems, alternative (renewable) energy sources are proposed. Rice husk is a potential source of energy for an agricultural country with high rice production. Rice mills can use the rice husk generated by them as a fuel to produce energy. However, the environmental profile of the energy production must be assessed to ensure reduced environmental damage.