The following terms are being developed into an ASAE Standard:

Bio oil: A product of pyrolysis of biomass. It is a dark brown, water miscible liquid which contains many oxygenated organic compounds.

Biobased product (biobased industrial product, bioproduct ) : Any product such as fuels, chemicals, building materials, electric power or heat that can be industrially produced from biomass.

Biodiesel: This is the mono-alkyl esters of fatty acids derived from vegetable oils or animal fats. It is obtained when a vegetable oil or animal fat is chemically reacted with an alcohol.

Bioenergy: Energy (electricity; liquid, solid and gaseous fuels; and heat) obtained from biomass.

Bioethanol: A biofuel (ethanol) produced by the fermentation of biomass rich in sugar/starch.

Biofuel (or biomass fuel): Any fuel that is derived from biomass.

Biogas: A methane-bearing gas from the digestion of biomass.

Biomass: Organic materials that are plant or animal based, and are available on a renewable or recurring basis. These include but not limited to dedicated energy crops, agricultural crops and trees, food, feed and fiber crop residues, aquatic plants, industrial, municipal and agricultural solid wastes, forestry residues and other non-fossil organic materials. They are primarily produced in a sustainable manner from water and carbon dioxide mostly by the process of photosynthesis. Biomass materials are renewable at a rate that makes them available for use by next and future generations. There are three main categories of biomass: primary, secondary and tertiary biomass (see definitions below).

Biopower: Generation of electricity or industrial process heat and steam from biomass or intermediate bioproducts.

Biorefinery: A facility or a process that processes and converts biomass into value-added streams. These can range from biomaterials to fuels such as ethanol and fuel gases, or key intermediates for the production of chemicals and other materials. Biorefineries are based on a number of processing platforms using mechanical, thermal, chemical and biochemical processes.

Biosolids: A nutrient-rich organic material resulting from the treatment of wastewater and from anaerobic digestions of animal manures or food processing wastes.

Black liquor: A solution of lignin-residue and the pulping chemicals used to extract lignin during the manufacture of paper.

Carbonization: A process similar in nature to pyrolysis, but using a low temperature and long residence time. The products obtained have approximately equal amounts of liquid, tar, and gas products.

Char: A residue resulting from pyrolysis, carbonization, and gasification of biomass.

Charcoal: A residue resulting from pyrolysis of biomass.

Co-Firing: The simultaneous use of two or more different fuels in the same combustion chamber of a power plant.

Coke: A residue resulting from pyrolysis of biomass.

Combustion: Thermal conversion of organic matter with an oxidant (excess air) to produce primarily carbon dioxide and water.

Conversion: Any number of processes by which biomass feedstocks can be altered into more useable form or specific higher-value components can be extracted. End products from biomass conversion can include biofuels, electricity, heat, chemicals, feed, and food.

Devolatilization: Process (usually pyrolysis or gasification) whereby volatile materials are removed from the organic biomass.