Chapter 2 - A perspective on the biorefinery approaches for bioenergy production in a circular bioeconomy process

Abstract

The progressive enervation of fossil energy reserves and the growing concern over environmental problems associated with the excessive utilization of fossil resources has led to a transit from a fossil fuel-based economy toward a bioeconomy. In this context, the exploration of biomass-derived bioenergy through a biorefinery approach has garnered a great interest. The successful implementation of waste-to-energy concept will introduce a zero-waste discharge policy, which is a substantial approach toward the sustainable development of bioenergy. Waste management is a pivotal juncture while addressing the issues related to waste generation and ad interim, the valorization of biomass constitutes one of the critical aspects in the perspective of a circular bioeconomy. The lignocellulosic wastes generated as by-products from various agroindustrial processes are attractive sources of various high-value products like sugars, lignin, protein, etc. Thus the utilization of these biorefinery wastes for the production of bioenergy will not only provide an opportunity to address the current dearth of energy but also introduce a zero-waste policy for the lignocellulosic biorefineries, thus ensuring a circular bioeconomy. In this chapter, various processes for the utilization of biorefinery wastes toward the production of energy have been discussed, which holds the concept of zero-waste circular economy for the efficient management of biorefinery waste along with the production of green energy. Furthermore, this chapter also emphasizes the various types of biorefinery with industrial feasibility focusing on bioenergy production.