A paradigm shift towards production of sustainable bioenergy and advanced products from Cannabis/hemp biomass in Canada

Abstract

The global cannabis ( Cannabis sativa ) market was 17.7 billion in 2019 and is expected to reach up to 40.6 billion by 2024. Canada is the 2nd nation to legalize cannabis with a massive sale of $246.9 million in the year 2021. Waste cannabis biomass is managed using disposal strategies (i.e., incineration, aerobic/anaerobic digestion, composting, and shredding) that are not good enough for long-term environmental sustainability. On the other hand, greenhouse gas emissions and the rising demand for petroleum-based fuels pose a severe threat to the environment and the circular economy. Cannabis biomass can be used as a feedstock to produce various biofuels and biochemicals. Various research groups have reported production of ethanol 9.2–20.2 g/L, hydrogen 13.5 mmol/L, lipids 53.3%, biogas 12%, and biochar 34.6% from cannabis biomass. This review summarizes its legal and market status (production and consumption), the recent advancements in the lignocellulosic biomass (LCB) pre-treatment (deep eutectic solvents (DES), and ionic liquids (ILs) known as “green solvents”) followed by enzymatic hydrolysis using glycosyl hydrolases (GHs) for the efficient conversion efficiency of pre-treated biomass. Recent advances in the bioconversion of hemp into oleochemicals, their challenges, and future perspectives are outlined. A comprehensive insight is provided on the trends and developments of metabolic engineering strategies to improve product yield. The thermochemical processing of disposed-off hemp lignin into bio-oil, bio-char, synthesis gas, and phenol is also discussed. Despite some progress, barricades still need to be met to commercialize advanced biofuels and compete with traditional fuels.

Biodiesel production: An updated review of evidence

“…Cannabis biomass can be used as a feedstock to produce various biofuels and biochemicals 151]. Various research groups have reported production of ethanol 9.2-20.2 g/L, hydrogen 13.5 mmol/L, lipids 53.3%, biogas 12%, and biochar 34.6% from Cannabis biomass [89][90][91][92][93][94][95][96]. Biodiesel can be primarily produced from hemp seed oil 151].…”

Enviro‐economic and feasibility analysis of industrial hemp value chain: A systematic literature review

“…Scientific queries on the feasibility analysis of hemp seed and fibers (Aydoğan et al., 2020; Fortenbery & Bennett, 2004; Fortenbery & Mick, 2014; Hanchar, 2019; Schluttenhofer & Yuan, 2017) show regional variability in profit (Dogbe & Revoredo‐Giha, 2022; Johnson, 2013). Additionally, many studies (e.g., Brar et al., 2022; Finnan & Styles, 2013; Prade, 2011; Rehman et al., 2013) are unequivocal about the economic benefit of hemp feedstocks for bioenergy generation. Recent studies comparing the cost efficiency of manufactured hemp‐based products against the slew of bio‐based and synthetic bio‐based products has resulted in ambiguity about the relative competitiveness of individual hemp products.…”

Exogenous application of stress-related signaling molecules affect growth and cannabinoid accumulation in medical cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.)

“…Cannabis sativa L. is an annual and predominantly dioecious species originating from Asia, with a long domestication history because of its many traditional uses, including textile fibre source, seeds for nutrition, and medicinal or recreational drug use ( Andre et al., 2016 ; Ren et al., 2021 ). In modern times the interest in this multi-purpose plant has experienced a continuous expansion due to the increasing new applications in different areas, such as nutrition, food additives, and nutraceuticals ( Ascrizzi et al., 2020 ; Rupasinghe et al., 2020 ); emerging green materials ( Moscariello et al., 2021 ; Sorrentino, 2021 ); production of bioethanol and biofuels ( Brar et al., 2022 ); or bioremediation and restoration of contaminated water and soils ( Loffredo et al., 2021 ; Pudełko et al., 2021 ). However, the most economically attractive feature is the plant richness in different bioactive phytochemicals with promising pharmacological and therapeutic applications such as flavonoids, terpenes, and, particularly, phytocannabinoids ( Andre et al., 2016 ).…”

“…However, the most economically attractive feature is the plant richness in different bioactive phytochemicals with promising pharmacological and therapeutic applications such as flavonoids, terpenes, and, particularly, phytocannabinoids ( Andre et al., 2016 ). So far, the cannabis market has experienced continuous growth, and it is expected to reach up to 40.6 billion by 2024 ( Brar et al., 2022 ).…”