Biomass

• Biomass is the total mass of living material in a specific area at a given time.
• It can be difficult to measure biomass due to varying amounts of water, so measuring dry mass can help overcome this issue.
• Biomass is measured in grams per square metre (g m^-2).
• The chemical energy store in dry mass can be estimated using calorimetry.
• In bomb calorimetry, a sample of dry material is weighed and burned in pure oxygen within a sealed chamber called a bomb.
• In calorimetry, the bomb is surrounded by a water bath and the heat of combustion causes a small temperature rise in this water.