Biofuels From Bio-Waste and Biomass

Abstract

The planet's limited natural fossil fuel reserves are anticipated to be very soon owing to massive usage. Biofuels would be a critical alternative source that may reduce global warming and CO2 emissions. The food-versus-fuel dilemma is, however, one of the key drawbacks of first-generation biofuels like corn ethanol, sugarcane ethanol, etc. Cellulose and hemicellulose, the primary constituents of lignocellulosic feedstocks, could be reduced to sugars by either thermochemical/biological processes before being fermented to generate biofuels. However, owing to structural heterogeneity, more complicated operational techniques are required before the production technology can be commercialized, and several challenges must be addressed. This chapter provided an assessment of various feedstocks, availability, various processing techniques, obstacles, and current technical developments in the generation of biofuels from biomass.