About this Research Topic
Biomass resources are abundant in most parts of the world – these contain significant energy and are available for energy conversion processes at a large scale. Alternative fuels may be derived from biomass resources, such as lignocellulosic biomass, algae, food wastes, manures, and organic wastewaters, and termed “biofuels”. Gaseous biofuels have superior greenhouse gas emission reductions and produce low pollutant emissions, which may play a significant role in the energy system in the future.
Biological conversion offers an attractive option for gaseous biofuels production from biomass. There are a number of existing biological approaches capable of producing gaseous biofuels; however, most of the processes are in their infant stages and are not commercially available. Biogas production via anaerobic digestion is a mature technology and has been widely applied in many countries, while the gas production rate, the feedstock utilization efficiency, and the process stability still need to be improved.
An energy-efficient and eco-friendly biomass pre-treatment and hydrolysis processes may be advantageous for microbial access and utilization to improve biofuel conversion. Advanced reactor designs would be beneficial for heat and mass transfer of biological and chemical reactions, thereby boosting the production rates of biofuels. It is crucial to fully understand the mechanisms of the biofuel conversion process to propose effective enhancement strategies. Also, the biomass pre-treatment, gaseous biofuel production and upgrading should be integrated and optimized to ensure sustainability, maximize efficiency and minimize the cost of the gaseous biofuel system.
The Topic Editors welcome submissions of original research articles, communications, reviews, perspectives, opinion articles and industrial and country case studies. The themes covered in this Research Topic include but are not limited to the following:
- Innovative biomass pre-treatment and saccharification technologies
- Advanced fermentation and biogas upgrading technologies for methane and hydrogen production
- Microalgae based biofuels conversion systems
- New enzymatic technologies and processes
- Novel bioreactors and systems design
- Emerging bio-inspired technologies
- Heat and mass transfer enhancement and process intensification
- Systems and process integration of gaseous biofuel production
- Technical, economic and life cycle assessments and simulation methodologies
Biological conversion offers an attractive option for gaseous biofuels production from biomass. There are a number of existing biological approaches capable of producing gaseous biofuels; however, most of the processes are in their infant stages and are not commercially available. Biogas production via anaerobic digestion is a mature technology and has been widely applied in many countries, while the gas production rate, the feedstock utilization efficiency, and the process stability still need to be improved.
An energy-efficient and eco-friendly biomass pre-treatment and hydrolysis processes may be advantageous for microbial access and utilization to improve biofuel conversion. Advanced reactor designs would be beneficial for heat and mass transfer of biological and chemical reactions, thereby boosting the production rates of biofuels. It is crucial to fully understand the mechanisms of the biofuel conversion process to propose effective enhancement strategies. Also, the biomass pre-treatment, gaseous biofuel production and upgrading should be integrated and optimized to ensure sustainability, maximize efficiency and minimize the cost of the gaseous biofuel system.
The Topic Editors welcome submissions of original research articles, communications, reviews, perspectives, opinion articles and industrial and country case studies. The themes covered in this Research Topic include but are not limited to the following:
- Innovative biomass pre-treatment and saccharification technologies
- Advanced fermentation and biogas upgrading technologies for methane and hydrogen production
- Microalgae based biofuels conversion systems
- New enzymatic technologies and processes
- Novel bioreactors and systems design
- Emerging bio-inspired technologies
- Heat and mass transfer enhancement and process intensification
- Systems and process integration of gaseous biofuel production
- Technical, economic and life cycle assessments and simulation methodologies
Keywords: gaseous biofuels, fermentation, enzymatic catalysis, process integration, microalgae
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