Current Happenings ENVS News

Rampant exploitation of resources has indisputably contributed to an enormous rise in solid waste generation. It has been estimated that solid waste generation will shoot up from 1.3 billion tons to 2.2 billion tons in 2025. While 16% of the high-income countries’ population corresponds to 34% of waste being generated, only 5% of the waste generated is attributed to the low-income countries. However, it is a meagre volume of 39% that is collected leaving the rest to rot. This open dumping affects the environment and creates pollution. In addition, improper waste disposal techniques have resulted in emissions of 1.6 billion tons of CO2eq in 2016. Effective waste management is thus a matter of concern in third-world countries.

Assistant Professor Dr Karthik Rajendran and his post-doctoral scholar Dr V S Vigneswaran from the Department of Environmental Science in collaboration with Dr Mukesh Kumar Awasthi from the College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, PR China, have published their research papers on solid waste management in the journal Bioresource Technology having an Impact Factor of 11.8. This is the second-best journal in the Environmental Engineering category according to SCImago Journal Rank (SJR). The journal aims to disseminate knowledge in the areas of biomass, biological waste treatment, bioresource systems analysis, and technologies associated with conversion or production.

The paper titled “Recovery of value-added products from biowaste: A review” introduces microbial biotechnology for the valorisation of solid wastes. Microbial biotechnology offers several solutions for the utilisation of waste resources. The carbon present in solid and gaseous wastes can be utilised by the microbes as carbon feedstock for their growth. During the growth of microbes on wastes, it produces primary and secondary metabolites, which are of significant use to humankind. The microbes can also be engineered biotechnologically to use waste resources and produce new compounds. Microbial biotechnology, with the use of various genetic engineering tools, can be efficiently explored for the microbes’ modification to utilise different wastes thereby making the environment clean by reducing GHG emissions.

Abstract of the Research

This review provides an update on the state-of-the art technologies for the valorization of solid wastes and its mechanism to generate various bio-products. The organic content of these wastes can be easily utilized by the microbes and produce value-added compounds. Microbial fermentation techniques can be utilized for developing waste biorefinery processes. The utilization of lignocellulosic and plastic wastes for the generation of carbon sources for microbial utilization after pre-processing steps will make the process a multi-product biorefinery. The C1 and C2 gases generated from different industries could also be utilized by various microbes, and this will help to control global warming. The review seeks to expand expertise about the potential application through several perspectives, factors influencing remediation, issues, and prospects.

Read the full article here

Food waste in solid forms has been generated throughout the entire food life cycle, from the agricultural production process to the distribution of processed foods and even to their consumption in the market. Considering that approximately 1.3 billion tons of edible food waste is leftover annually, recycling it in the biorefinery will contribute both economically and socially. Another of their publication “Myco-biorefinery approaches for food waste valorization: Present status and future prospects” discusses various types of food waste sources and their evaluation targets. Food waste can be evaluated in fungi-based bioproduction processes for this purpose. In addition, potential biorefinery systems, circular bioeconomy processes, techno-economic studies, and social/ethical aspects of food wastes in the evaluation of valuable products are discussed.

Abstract of the Research

The increase in population and urbanization leads to the generation of a large amount of food waste (FW) and its effective waste management is a major concern. Its putrescible nature and high moisture content are the major limiting factors for cost-effective FW valorization. Bioconversion of FW for the production of value-added products is an eco-friendly and economically viable strategy for addressing these issues. Targeting the production of multiple products will solve these issues to a greater extent. The article provides an overview of the bioconversion of FW to different value-added products.

Read the full article here

Worldwide, 1.3 billion tons of bio-waste are generated annually. By 2025, this is predicted to be increased by 2.2 billion tons/year. The emerged biowaste biorefinery has proved as a sustainable approach for integrated bioproducts, such as bioenergy, biopolymers, biochemicals, bioplastics, and biofertilizers further used for industrial, commercial, agricultural, and energy applications. Integrating biorefinery concepts into biowaste management is promising for a circular bioeconomy. Recent research at the Department of Environmental Sciences investigates the potential of sustainable biorefinery approaches. Assistant professor Dr Karthik Rajendran and his PhD scholar Mr. Prabakaran G published a paper, Sustainable biorefinery approaches towards circular economy for conversion of biowaste to value added materials and future perspectives, in Fuel, a Q1 journal, with an impact factor of 8.03. For this paper, they have collaborated with Dr Mukesh Kumar Awasthi from the College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, China.

Biorefinery is designed to improve the economic potential and achieve a circular bioeconomy by integrating various technologies such as pyrolysis, anaerobic digestion, gasification, incineration, and aerobic composting to gain energy, nutrients, and material recovery. Biowaste biorefinery contributes as a driving force to cope with challenges of resource scarcity, climate changes, and increased demand. The sustainable biorefinery approaches toward circular bioeconomy require a comprehensive understanding of the biowaste across the value chain. Based on the carbon neutralized biowaste biorefinery concept, this paper explained biowaste generation and utilization as a renewable resource through biorefinery techniques from the perspective of energy, nutrients, and material recovery. Meanwhile, clarify the implementation status, public engagement, and prospects of biowaste recycling with the central concept of biorefinery circular bioeconomy.

Abstract

With the colossal energy demand inevitably exacerbating the non-renewable resources depletion and ecological-social challenges, renewable energy has become a crucial participant in sustainable strategy. Biorefinery emerged as a sustainable approach and recognized promising transformation platforms for products to achieve a circular bioeconomy that focuses on biomass efficiency and sustainable valorisation, promotes resource regeneration, and restorative. The emerged biowaste biorefinery has proved as a sustainable approach for integrated bioproducts and further applied this technology in industrial, commercial, agricultural, and energy sectors. Based on carbon-neutral sustainable development, this review comprehensively explained biowaste as renewable resource generation and resource utilisation technologies from the perspective of energy, nutrient, and material recovery in the concept of biorefinery. Integrating biorefinery concepts into biowaste management is a promise for the conversion of biowaste into value-added materials. It contributes as a driving force to cope with resource scarcity, climate changes, and huge material demand in a circular bioeconomy. In practice, the optimal of biorefinery technologies depends on environmentally friendly, economic and technical feasibility, and social and policy acceptance. Additionally, policy interventions are necessary to promote biowaste biorefinery implements for a circular bioeconomy and contribute to a low-carbon cleaner environment.

Read the full article here.