shows that in terms of net energy generation the
benefit of converting a given amount of stover to ethanol stands
in between the ones for power generation from two electricity
options, disregarding the further use of end products, here only
ethanol and electricity. The energy cost for stover–ethanol and
electricity production is higher, but so are its energy proceeds. If
the application of ethanol and electricity is considered, the
efficiency of ethanol use may be much lower than the one of
electricity use, as combustion process have a low energy
efficiency score. Also the possibility of using low temperature
steam for urban heating is not specified here. Creating more
valuable products from lignocellulosic biomass than only energy
seems a promising option as well however, but then leaving the
domain of energy product analysis. With further optimization of
the ethanol production process, higher net energy value can be
achieved.