Wood pellets are a type of wood fuel

Wood fuel

Wood fuel is wood used as fuel. The burning of wood is currently the largest use of energy derived from a solid fuel biomass. Wood fuel can be used for cooking and heating, and occasionally for fueling steam engines and steam turbines that generate electricity. Wood fuel may be available as...

, generally made from compacted sawdust

Sawdust

Sawdust is a by-product of cutting lumber with a saw, composed of fine particles of wood. It can present a hazard in manufacturing industries, especially in terms of its flammability....

 or other wastes from sawmill

Sawmill

A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....

ing and other wood products manufacture, but also sometimes from sources such as whole-tree removal or tree tops and branches leftover after logging and which otherwise help replenish soil nutrients. Pellets are manufactured in several types and grades as fuels for electric power plants, homes, and other applications in between.