Environment of Lignocellulosic Waste to Biofuel

Abstract

Under the major crises of environmental degradation and global warming, the world’s environment is failing. Green energy solutions must be taken into consideration in order to address these issues, which calls for increased efforts to minimize carbon dioxide emissions. Reducing dependence on fossil fuels and lowering greenhouse gas emissions are two major goals of renewable energy sources. Attention has already been drawn globally to the use of renewable biomass resources for the manufacture of biofuels. Current research and technology advancements have made it possible to produce second-generation biofuels from a variety of feedstocks, including agricultural waste, crop leftovers, and cellulosic biomass from high-yielding grass species. An environmentally responsible, sustainable, and possibly effective alternative to fossil fuels is the manufacture of biofuels from lignocellulosic biomass. However, because of their heterogeneous multiscale structure, lignocellulosic materials are difficult to valorize and show resistance to enzyme hydrolysis or saccharification. Various pretreatment techniques involving chemical, physical, and biological methods have been widely used to overcome this problem. These pretreatment methods can be combined to increase the yield of second-generation biofuels. The second generation has the greatest potential for producing biofuels; hence, this chapter primarily concentrates on modern techniques in research and development.