Bioconversion of waste-to-resources (BWR-2021): Valorization of industrial and agro-wastes to fuel, feed, fertilizer, and biobased products

The mitigation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emission is one of the major focuses of The Glasgow Climate Pact, a global agreement that is believed to accelerate climate action. Following the energy sector, industrial and agro-wastes are the major contributors to global GHG emission. With the rapid growth in population, affluence, and urbanization, the GHG emission from waste sector is likely to be further aggravated if timely measures are not taken to address this burning issue. Thus, a significant research and development efforts are being made in shifting conventional waste treatment approach to resource recovery from waste, incorporating a circular bio-economy concept. There have been significant advances in technologies such as anaerobic digestion, composting, pyrolysis, algae farming, and microbial fuel cell for recovering resources from organic wastes. This virtual special issue (VSI), Bioconversion of Waste-to-Resources (BWR-2021), contains 25 manuscripts covering various aspects of wastes and residual biomass valorization to high value products, including development of new technologies, optimization of current technologies for more efficient utilization of wastes and residues. The key findings of each manuscript are briefly summarized here, which can serve as a valuable resource for researchers in the field of resource recovery from wastes.

Automated summary

Mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is a major focus of the global agreement, The Glasgow Climate Pact. Industrial and agro-waste contribute significantly to global GHG emissions, and if timely measures are not taken, the waste sector's GHG emissions are likely to worsen due to population growth, affluence, and urbanization. Efforts are being made to shift from conventional waste treatment to resource recovery, adopting a circular bio-economy concept. Technologies such as anaerobic digestion, composting, pyrolysis, algae farming, and microbial fuel cells have advanced resource recovery from organic wastes. This virtual special issue (VSI) contains 25 manuscripts covering various aspects of waste and biomass valorization, providing valuable resources for researchers in the field.