Biomass Energy Questions and Answers – Usable Forms of Biomass, their Composition and Fuel Properties – 1

This set of Biomass Energy Multiple Choice Questions & Answers (MCQs) focuses on “Usable Forms of Biomass, their Composition and Fuel Properties – 1”.

1. What is biomass?
a) Organic materials from living organisms
b) Inorganic materials from living organisms
c) Inorganic materials from non-living organisms
d) Organic materials from non-living organisms
View Answer

Answer: a
Explanation: Biomass is a term for all organic materials stemming from living organisms like plants, animals and microorganisms. Examples of biomass are – animal waste, dead plants and animals, sugar, fats, etc.

2. Which of the following can be classified under biomass?
a) Steel
b) Organic molecules containing hydrogen
c) NaOH
d) Iron
View Answer

Answer: b
Explanation: Organic molecules containing hydrogen is a biomass. Steel is made up of inorganic materials. NaOH is a strong base which is made up of an inorganic material called sodium (Na). Iron (Fe) is another inorganic material which is used for its magnetic properties.

3. Which of the following is not used as food for humans?
a) Sugars
b) Glucose
c) Cellulosic matter
d) Fats
View Answer

Answer: c
Explanation: Cellulosic biomass is not used as a food source for humans. It is made up of very complex sugar polymers. Sugars, glucose and fats are used in various food items.
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4. __________ is an example of cellulosic biomass.
a) Glucose
b) Fats
c) Lipids
d) Agricultural residue
View Answer

Answer: d
Explanation: Agricultural residue is an example of cellulosic biomass. They generally include leftover material from crops like stalks and leaves. Fats, lipids and glucose are not cellulosic biomass.

5. Value of any biomass depends on ___________ properties.
a) chemical and physical
b) chemical and photo sensitive
c) physical and photo sensitive
d) the number of carbon molecules and on the number of tin molecules
View Answer

Answer: a
Explanation: The value of any biomass depends on the chemical and physical properties. These are basically the properties of the large molecules from which it is made. It does not depend on the light and the number of molecules.

6. Which of the following are characterizes an ideal energy crop?
a) High yield, high energy input to produce, high cost and high nutrient requirements
b) High yield, low energy input to produce, low cost and low nutrient requirements
c) High yield, high energy input to produce, low cost and high nutrient requirements
d) Low yield, high energy input to produce, high cost and high nutrient requirements
View Answer

Answer: b
Explanation: In general, the characteristics of any ideal energy crop are – high yield, low energy input to produce, low cost, consists of least contaminants and low nutrient requirements. These depend on the local climate and soil conditions.

7. Which energy forms can biomass be converted to?
a) Electrical and light
b) Light and chemical
c) Electrical and heat
d) Heat and light
View Answer

Answer: c
Explanation: Biomass can be converted to electrical and heat energy. It can also be used as transport fuel and chemical feedstock. It cannot be converted to light energy.
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8. The heating value is expressed in BTU/kg.
a) True
b) False
View Answer

Answer: a
Explanation: The heating value is expressed in BTU/kg. BTU stands for British Thermal Unit and is used to measure thermal (heat) energy. It is the amount of energy needed to raise 1 pound of water 1 degree farad at sea level. Other commonly used units are MJ/kg and cal/g.

9. What does heat value indicate?
a) Amount of energy consumed by biomass to produce energy
b) Amount of energy required to process biomass to produce energy
c) Amount of energy required as heat by the organisms
d) Amount of energy that is available in the fuel
View Answer

Answer: d
Explanation: Heating value indicates the total amount of energy that is available in the fuel. It is one of the most important characteristics of a fuel. It is mostly a function of fuel’s chemical composition.
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10. What is higher heating value?
a) Amount of energy available in the fuel + energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases
b) Total amount of energy available in the fuel – energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases
c) Total amount of energy available in the fuel * energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases
d) Total amount of energy available in the fuel
View Answer

Answer: a
Explanation: Higher heating value is the total amount of energy available in the fuel, including energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases. Heating value indicates the total amount of energy available in the fuel.

11. What is lower heating value?
a) Amount of energy available in the fuel + energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases
b) Total amount of energy available in the fuel – energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases
c) Total amount of energy available in the fuel / energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases
d) Total amount of energy available in the fuel which cannot be used
View Answer

Answer: b
Explanation: Lower heating value (LHV) is total amount of energy available in the fuel – energy contained in water vapour in the exhaust gases. Generally, LHV is not an appropriate value to use for biomass combustion.

12. High moisture fuels burn readily and provide more useful heat per unit mass.
a) True
b) False
View Answer

Answer: b
Explanation: High moisture content in fuels do not allow them to burn readily and provide less useful heat per unit mass. This is because water itself does not provide any energy value. In fact, much of the supplied energy is used to heat and vaporize water which leads wastage of supplied energy.

13. Moisture content can be calculated on two bases, namely _______
a) light and heavy
b) weighted and even
c) wet and dry
d) light and dry
View Answer

Answer: c
Explanation: Moisture content can be calculated on two bases, namely, wet and dry. Weighted is generally used to calculate weighted average. Light and heavy are not related to moisture content.

14. What are the main components of cellulosic biomass?
a) Hemicellulose and lignin
b) Hemicellulose and sugars
c) Cellulose, sugars and fats
d) Cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin
View Answer

Answer: d
Explanation: The main components of cellulosic biomass are cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. Sugars and fats are not cellulosic biomass.

15. Biomass is seasonal.
a) True
b) False
View Answer

Answer: a
Explanation: Biomass is seasonal, especially plant biomass. This is a problem because most biomass comes from agricultural feedstock. However, the energy and feedstock demands are continuous irrespective of season.

Sanfoundry Global Education & Learning Series – Biomass Energy.

To practice all areas of Biomass Energy, here is complete set of 1000+ Multiple Choice Questions and Answers.

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Manish Bhojasia - Founder & CTO at Sanfoundry
Manish Bhojasia, a technology veteran with 20+ years @ Cisco & Wipro, is Founder and CTO at Sanfoundry. He lives in Bangalore, and focuses on development of Linux Kernel, SAN Technologies, Advanced C, Data Structures & Alogrithms. Stay connected with him at LinkedIn.

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