"This book provides an overview of conventional biomass processing techniques as well as a description of technologies that utilize voltages and currents to enhance processing capabilities. The term plasma processing of biomass is usually associated with thermal plasma torches used for gasification of organic material. This book not only describes thermal plasma processing of biomass, but it also presents applications where nonthermal plasma discharges can be utilized in biomass processing plants, and applications where Joule heating of carbonaceous materials can be implemented. The book is intended for senior level undergraduate students and first year graduate students, who might not have a background in plasma, but are familiar with concepts of calculus, differential equations, and numerical algorithms. Chapter 1 provides a description of relevant properties of biomass, biochar, and activated carbon, while Chapter 2 gives a description of conventional methods of processing biomass and biochar. Chapter 3 provides an introduction to plasmas for thermal and nonthermal discharges, and Chapter 4 describes technologies that are suitable for utilizing the effects of applied voltages to enhance biomass processing. As properties of biomass vary after thermochemical decomposition, yielding a material with better electrical properties, Chapter 5 focuses on the analysis of the effects of applying voltages in processing of biochar. Thermal runaway behavior can be obtained with heating rates not achievable by conventional heating techniques. Chapter 6 provides an introduction of numerical simulation of plasmas. Finally, the inherit variability and even chaotic behavior of thermal arcs are analyzed in Chapter 7 in the context of the development of control techniques that can stabilize these discharges"-- Provided by publisher.