Waste Valorisation

5Valorisation of Woody Biomass

Md Khairul Islam¹, Chengyu Dong¹, Hsien‐Yi Hsu², Carol Sze Ki Lin², and Shao‐Yuan Leu¹

¹Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Hong Kong

²School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

5.1 Generation of Woody Biomass

Woody biomass derived from forest and agricultural residues is an important source of renewable energy and chemicals. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States (FAO), the global production of wood residues between 1974 and 2016 has increased from 1.85 × 10⁴ tons to 5.69 × 10⁸ tons (Food and Agriculture Organization 2018). Most of the woody biomass has been generated in Asia (51%), America (20%), and Europe (27%) (Food and Agriculture Organization 2018), which is derived from different sources, such as woody product wastes (Figure 5.1a) and yard wastes (Figure 5.1b,c). It contains different parts of woody plants, such as the trunks, branches, and leaves.

Figure 5.1 Examples of woody biomass derived from different sources: (a) woody product wastes; (b) yard wastes; and (c) trimmings.

Living woody plant cells are generated from mitosis division of the apical and lateral meristems (Evert 2006). The apical meristems are located in the tips of the stems, roots, and branches and are responsible for the primary ...