Chapter 3: Current Lignocellulosic Biomass Logistics and Challenges

Biomass-derived fuel production requires a series of operations, from biomass harvesting to decisive conversion into biofuels, which are unique and distinguished for the different biomass supply chains. Studying biomass logistics becomes essential from researchers’, entrepreneurs’ and practitioners’ points of view. This chapter focuses on a comprehensive study of biomass logistics, including different biomass supply chains and their impacts on logistics operations and economy, all logistics operations and factors affecting the logistics costs, logistics models based on either simulation or mathematical methods, and biomass logistics and challenges in the bioprocessing of biomass. Different biomass supply chains with their logistics costs have been evaluated by numerous researchers and make entrepreneurs take a definitive decision on a particular operation to minimize the operating costs. To study logistics costs, researchers have developed many models; however, in this chapter, just five of them are reviewed, namely the straw handling model, linear programming model, mixed integer linear programming model, integrated biomass supply analysis and logistics model, and integrated biomass supply analysis and logistics-multi-crop model. Although much research has been carried out on biomass logistics, several challenges remain, which are focused on in this chapter.