Interest in anaerobic digestion (AD), the process of energy production through the production of biogas, has increased rapidly in recent years. Agricultural and other organic waste are important substrates that can be treated by AD. This book is one of the first to provide a broad introduction to anaerobic digestion and its potential to turn agricultural crops or crop residues, animal and other organic waste, into biomethane. The substrates used can include any non-woody materials, including grass and maize silage, seaweeds, municipal and industrial wastes. These are all systematically reviewed in terms of their suitability from a biological, technical and economic perspective. In the past the technical competence and high capital investment required for industrial-scale anaerobic digesters has limited their uptake, but the authors show that recent advances have made smaller-scale systems more viable through a greater understanding of optimising bacterial metabolism and productivity. Broader issues such as life cycle assessment and energy policies to promote AD are also discussed.

Anaerobic biotechnology is a cost-effective and sustainable means of treating waste and wastewaters that couples treatment processes with the reclamation of useful by-products and renewable biofuels. This means of treating municipal, agricultural, and industrial wastes allows waste products to be converted to value-added products such as biofuels, biofertilizers, and other chemicals. Anaerobic Biotechnology for Bioenergy Production: Principles and Applications provides the reader with basic principles of anaerobic processes alongside practical uses of anaerobic biotechnology options. This book will be a valuable reference to any professional currently considering or working with anaerobic biotechnology options.

This book focuses on biogas production by anaerobic digestion, which is the most popular bioenergy technology of today. Using anaerobic digestion for the production of biogas is a sustainable approach that simultaneously also allows the treatment of organic waste. The energy contained in the substrate is released in the form of biogas, which can be employed as a renewable fuel in diverse industrial sectors. Although biogas generation is considered an established process, it continues to evolve, e.g. by incorporating modifications and improvements to increase its efficiency and its downstream applications. The chapters of this book review the progress made related to feedstock, system configuration and operational conditions. It also addresses microbial pathways utilized, as well as storage, transportation and usage of biogas. This book is an up-to-date resource for scientists and students working on improving biogas production.

This open access book presents papers displayed in the 2nd International Conference on Energy and Sustainable Futures (ICESF 2020), co-organised by the University of Hertfordshire and the University Alliance DTA in Energy. The research included in this book covers a wide range of topics in the areas of energy and sustainability including: • ICT and control of energy;• conventional energy sources;• energy governance;• materials in energy research;• renewable energy; and• energy storage. The book offers a holistic view of topics related to energy and sustainability, making it of interest to experts in the field, from industry and academia.

Continuously increased consumption of fossil fuels, decreased availability of easily accessible fossil fuels, significant contributions to climate change and wildly fluctuating fuels prices have combine to challenge the reliability and sustainability of our current energy supply. A possible solution to this energy challenge, biomass energy producti

Biogas Production covers the most cutting-edge pretreatment processes being used and studied today for the production of biogas. As an increasingly important piece of the "energy pie," biogas and other biofuels are being used more and more around the world in every conceivable area of industry and could be a partial answer to the energy problem and the elimination of global warming. This book will highlight the recent advances in the pretreatment and value addition of lignocellulosic wastes (LCW) with the main focus on domestic and agro-industrial residues. Mechanical, physical, and biological treatment systems are brought into perspective. The main value-added products from lignocellulosic wastes are summarized in a manner that pinpoints the most recent trends and the future directions. Physico-chemical and biological treatment systems seem to be the most favored options while biofuels, biodegradable composites, and biosorbents production paint a bright picture of the current and future bio-based products. Engineered microbes seem to tackle the problem of bioconversion of substrates that are otherwise nonconvertible by conventional wild strains. Although the main challenge facing LCW utilization is the high costs involved in treatment and production processes, some recent affordable processes with promising results have been proposed. Future trends are being directed to nanobiotechnology and genetic engineering for improved processes and products.

Biofuel and bioenergy produced from biowastes and biomass is a clean energy source which can be produced renewably. The 21 chapters of this book provide state-of-the-art reviews, current research, and technology developments with respect to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd generation biofuels and bioenergy. The book focuses on the biological/ biochemical pathway, as this option has been reported to be the most cost-effective method for biofuel/bioenergy production. The opening chapter covers the overview of the current status of biofuel and bioenergy production. The rest of the chapters are grouped into seven categories; they cover biomethane production, microbial fuel cells, feedstock production, preprocessing, biomass pretreatment, enzyme hydrolysis, and syngas fermentation. Algal processes for biofuel production, biobutanol production, bioreactor systems, and value-added processing of biofuel residues are included. This book addresses life cycle analyses (LCA) of 1st and 2nd generation biofuels (from corn, soybean, jatropha, and cellulosic biomass) and the emerging applications of nanotechnology in biofuel/bioenergy production. The book is organized in such a way that each preceding chapter builds a foundation for the following one. At the end of each chapter, current research trends and further research needs are outlined. This is one of the first books in this emerging field of biofuel/bioenergy that provides in-depth technical information on the broad topics of biofuel and bioenergy with extensive illustrations, case studies, summary tables, and up-to-date references. This book will be valuable to researchers, instructors, senior undergraduate and graduate students, decision-makers, professionals, and others interested in the field of biofuel/bioenergy.

Bioenergy: Biomass to Biofuels and Waste to Energy, Second Edition presents a complete overview of the bioenergy value chain, from feedstock to end products. It examines current and emerging feedstocks and advanced processes and technologies enabling the development of all possible alternative energy sources. Divided into seven parts, bioenergy gives thorough consideration to topics such as feedstocks, biomass production and utilization, life-cycle analysis, energy return on invested, integrated sustainability assessments, conversions technologies, biofuels economics, business, and policy. In addition, contributions from leading industry professionals and academics, augmented by related service-learning case studies and quizzes, provide readers with a comprehensive resource that connect theory to real-world implementation.Bioenergy: Biomass to Biofuels and Waste to Energy, Second Edition provides engineers, researchers, undergraduate and graduate students, and business professionals in the bioenergy field with valuable, practical information that can be applied to implementing renewable energy projects, choosing among competing feedstocks, technologies, and products. It also serves as a basic resource for civic leaders, economic development professionals, farmers, investors, fleet managers, and reporters interested in an organized introduction to the language, feedstocks, technologies, and products in the biobased renewable energy world. - Includes current and renewed subject matter, project case studies from real world, and topic-specific sections on the impacts of biomass use for energy production from all sorts of biomass feedstocks including organic waste of all kinds - Provides a comprehensive overview and in-depth technical information of all possible bioenergy resources: solid (wood energy, grass energy, waste, and other biomass), liquid (biodiesel, algae biofuel, ethanol, waste to oils, etc.), and gaseous/electric (biogas, syngas, biopower, RNG), and cutting-edge topics such as advanced fuels - Integrates current state of art coverage on feedstocks, cost-effective conversion processes, biofuels economic analysis, environmental policy, and triple bottom line - Features quizzes for each section derived from the implementation of actual hands-on biofuel projects as part of service learning

The depletion of fossil fuel reserves and concerns for environmental degradation due to the fossil fuel burning have led the scientific community to look for alternative renewable energy sources. Among the available renewable energy sources, bioenergy derived from biomass and waste resources have great potential to not only prevent environmental pollution but also be a carbon neutral energy source. In addition, adaptation of this technology could streamline new green products, alternative energy sources into real-world applications and promote a circular economy towards zero-waste approach. This book tries to bridge the existing knowledge gap in the area of bioenergy resources. The first two chapters provide introduction to the anaerobic digestion (AD) technologies and direct interspecies electron transfer in AD. The next three chapters are on biomass pretreatment technologies for process improvement. The sixth to eighth chapter discuses biogas and other by-product production from specific wastes such from dairy, food and agricultural solid waste. The following two chapters focuses on the downstream processing of anaerobic digestate and on biochar production. Integration of AD in biorefineries using bioelectrochemical systems, syngas fermentation and electricity production are discussed in the next three chapters. The final two chapters elaborates on life cycle assessment of AD based technologies.

Ranging from biofuels to building materials, and from cosmetics to pharmaceuticals, the list of products that may be manufactured using discards from farming and fishery operations is extensive. Byproducts from Agriculture and Fisheries examines the procedures and technologies involved in this process of reconstitution, taking an environmentally aware approach as it explores the developing role of value-added byproducts in the spheres of food security, waste management, and climate control. An international group of authors contributes engaging and insightful chapters on a wide selection of animal and plant byproducts, discussing the practical business of byproduct recovery within the vital contexts of shifting socio-economic concerns and the emergence of green chemistry. This important text: Covers recent developments, current research, and emerging technologies in the fields of byproduct recovery and utilization Explores potential opportunities for future research and the prospective socioeconomic benefits of green waste management Includes detailed descriptions of procedures for the transformation of the wastes into of value-added food and non-food products With its combination of practical instruction and broader commentary, Byproducts from Agriculture and Fisheries offers essential insight and expertise to all students and professionals working in agriculture, environmental science, food science, and any other field concerned with sustainable resources.