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Biofuels are any fuel produced from biomass, organic material that is not fossilized or embedded in geological formations

Summary​

Biofuels are energy sources derived from biomass, including liquid fuels like bioethanol and biodiesel. They have been used throughout human history for cooking, heating, and lighting. While currently supplying 8.76% of global energy, biofuels play a crucial role in decarbonization efforts, particularly in hard-to-abate sectors like aviation, steel, and cement production. The classification of biofuels as renewable is complex, as poor implementation can negatively impact biodiversity and emissions. Under net zero scenarios, biofuels are forecast to contribute significantly to transportation (15% overall, 45% of aviation), steel (10%), cement (30%), and chemical industries (15%).

Biofuels are a form of bioenergy that can be derived from biomass. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is the leading body in charge of analyzing and assessing the field of climate change research, defines these terms as follows:

Biofuels: "A fuel, generally in liquid form, produced from biomass. Biofuels include bioethanol from sugarcane, sugar beet or maize and biodiesel from canola or soybeans" 1

Bioenergy: "Energy derived from any form of biomass or its metabolic by-products." 1

Biomass: "Organic material excluding the material that is fossilized or embedded in geological formations." 1

Bioenergy and biofuels have been utilized since the dawn of humanity as a usable energy source for a wide range of functions including cooking, heating, and lighting. Traditionally, biofuels were used in their solid form as that is how they would have been recovered from nature. Solid biofuels can include materials such as firewood, charcoal, and animal manure. The energy stored within the earth's biomass is immense, with some estimates placing the terrestrial biomass (above ground and not located in oceans) that is produced annually to be 3 – 4 times greater than current annual global energy demands 2. Biofuels can also be found naturally with little refining in liquid forms such as those naturally found as seed oils, animal fats, and vegetable oils.

Since the industrial revolution and the widespread adoption of fossil fuels, the share of the total energy supplied by biofuels has remained small. However, due to the ever-increasing demand for energy and the limitations and concerns related to fossil fuels, this share has begun slightly increasing in the past decade 3. According to the World Bioenergy Association, 8.76% of the total energy supplied in 2022 was in the form of bioenergy 3. In the United States, biofuels and bioenergy have mainly been associated with the corn-derived ethanol industry, and to a lesser extent, bioenergy power plants that operate by combusting biomass such as timber. Corn-derived ethanol has formed a key part of the United States' energy portfolio as it offers an energy-dense drop-in alternative to fossil fuels.

A key component of any discussion relating to biofuels and bioenergy is whether they should be considered 'renewable' or not. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change still considers bioenergy as a renewable source; however, it cautions that poor implementation of bioenergy can compound "climate-related risks to biodiversity, food, water security, and livelihoods" 4. The classification of bioenergy as a renewable source can be erroneous due to its influences on land use change which can lead to reduction in biodiversity and result in more CO₂ emissions than fossil fuels. When considered as a renewable energy source, the importance of bioenergy can be seen in a number of key areas of the energy sector such as heat production and transportation where it supplied 96% and 93% of the total 'renewable energy' respectively in 2022 3.

Biofuels become even more relevant when analyzing potential pathways for decarbonization and goals of 'net zero' emissions. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the usage of biofuels will be heavily relied upon for achieving net zero emissions, especially in hard-to-abate sectors that are resistant to electrification or hydrogen usage. Under the IEA's net zero emission scenario, biofuels are forecasted to contribute to the total energy demand of steel production (10%), cement production (30%), transportation (15% overall and 45% of the aviation sector), and in the chemical industry (15%) 5 6.

Sources​

Footnotes​

  1. IPCC. (2022). Annex II: Glossary (V. Möller, R. van Diemen, J. B. R. Matthews, C. Méndez, S. Semenov, J. S. Fuglestvedt, & A. Reisinger, Eds.). In H.-O. Pörtner, D. C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E. S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, & B. Rama (Eds.), Climate change 2022: Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (pp. 2897 – 2930). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009325844.029 ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  2. Guo, M., Song, W., & Buhain, J. (2015). Bioenergy and biofuels: History, status, and perspective. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 42, 712 – 725. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2014.10.013 ↩

  3. World Bioenergy Association. (2024). Global bioenergy statistics report 2024 (11th ed.). World Bioenergy Association. PDF retrieved from https://www.worldbioenergy.org/uploads/241023_GBS_Report.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  4. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). (2023). Climate change 2023: Synthesis report. Contribution of Working Groups I, II, and III to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (Core Writing Team, H. Lee, & J. Romero, Eds.). IPCC. https://doi.org/10.59327/IPCC/AR6-9789291691647 ↩

  5. International Energy Agency. (2022). World energy outlook 2022. IEA. https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-outlook-2022 ↩

  6. Groppi, D., Pastore, L. M., Nastasi, B., Prina, M. G., Garcia, D. A., & de Santoli, L. (2025). Energy modelling challenges for the full decarbonisation of hard-to-abate sectors. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 209, 115103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2024.115103 ↩