The diagram illustrates the process underlying biofuel production, in particular the how alcohol is made.
Overall, the full process contains six different phases. It starts with the growth of trees, which is made possible through the energy provided by sunlight and carbon dioxide combined, and it finishes with the use of ethanol as biofuel releasing again carbon dioxide into the environment, which is recycled as energy to participate in plants photosynthesis and growth.
The process starts with the plants’ growth (step 1), which requires sunlight and carbon dioxide, elements necessary for the photosynthesis. After, trees will be harvested (step 2) and preprocessed in order to extract the cellulose (step 3). Cellulose processing will result in the obtention of sugar (step 4), which is combined in culture with microbes (step 5) in order to produce ethanol.
Ethanol can used as biofuel in different means of transportation, such as cars and airplanes. Its use leads to the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere (step 6), which will be again used to participate in plants photosynthesis and at the start of the cycle.