Potential U.S. Production of Liquid Hydrocarbons from Biomass with Addition of Massive External Heat and Hydrogen Inputs Supplementary Dataset

This dataset provides a detailed assessment of U.S. biomass production potential and their potential for conversion into liquid hydrocarbon fuels under various market scenarios. It builds on the dataset from the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Agriculture's Billion Ton Report 2023 (BTR2023), by incorporating additional sources of carbon: adjusting BTR2023 assumptions and considering more speculative biomass resources. The dataset is organized in the following columns, each resource is assessed based on its abundance within the corresponding market case:

Class / Sub-Class / Resource: Categorises biomass resources into classes and sub-classes, based on those found in the BTR2023, with speculative additions appended.

Dry Feedstock Mass: On a resource-by-resource basis, quantifies biomass production across five market scenarios, ranging from current production to speculative upper-bound estimates. It includes contributions from agriculture, forestry, and waste sectors, with additional speculative sources from practices such as double cropping, reclaimed land, and macroalgae cultivation. (million dry tons per year)

Energy from Burning: Presents the maximum recoverable energy from burning the dry biomass resources. (quadrillion BTU per year)

Dry Feedstock Mass Carbon: Presents the percentage carbon content of each biomass resource. (%)

Dry Mass Carbon: Presents the (theoretical maximum) absolute carbon content of each resource (available for conversion into liquid hydrocarbons). (billion kg per year)

Mass Diesel: Presents the equivalent mass of produced liquid hydrocarbons of diesel, according to the IEA standard. (billion kg)

Mol Carbon: Presents the annual available amount of biomass-derived carbon. (mol C per year)

Equivalent Diesel Energy Estimate: Estimates the amount of diesel-equivalent fuel that could be produced from available biomass under the assumption of ideal conversion process, and external, low-carbon hydrogen and heat inputs. (million barrel per year & quadrillion BTU per year)

Hydrogen Demand: Provides annual hydrogen requirements for each scenario, reflecting the role of hydrogen in removing oxygen from biomass during conversion processes. (billion kg per year)

This dataset supports a systematic evaluation of how U.S. biomass resources, when paired with massive external heat and hydrogen inputs, could meet a significant portion of national liquid hydrocarbon demand while achieving net-negative carbon emissions. It is intended for policymakers, researchers, and industry stakeholders to explore sustainable pathways for decarbonizing the transportation and chemical sectors.