Is biofuel expansion in developing countries reasonable? A review of empirical evidence of food and land use impacts

Das, Prantika; Gundimeda, Haripriya

doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.133501

Cited by 28 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 100 publications

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“…However, bioindustrial chemical production by bacterial fermentation is still not economically competitive for many commodity products due in part to the high costs associated to the carbon substrates used for these organisms ( Lee et al, 2022 ). Extensive research efforts have been expended to identify new plant species or to improve biomass processing technologies and increase the yield of fermentable sugars from plant feedstocks (e.g., improving carbohydrate recovery from cellulosic materials; Sun et al, 2022 ) and to overcome other land-use problems of plant-based feedstocks ( Das and Gundimeda, 2022 ). Thus, there is an increased interest on the search for alternative, economical and environmentally sustainable sources as carbohydrate feedstocks.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cyanobacteria as cell factories for the photosynthetic production of sucrose

2023

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Biofuels and other biologically manufactured sustainable goods are growing in popularity and demand. Carbohydrate feedstocks required for industrial fermentation processes have traditionally been supplied by plant biomass, but the large quantities required to produce replacement commodity products may prevent the long-term feasibility of this approach without alternative strategies to produce sugar feedstocks. Cyanobacteria are under consideration as potential candidates for sustainable production of carbohydrate feedstocks, with potentially lower land and water requirements relative to plants. Several cyanobacterial strains have been genetically engineered to export significant quantities of sugars, especially sucrose. Sucrose is not only naturally synthesized and accumulated by cyanobacteria as a compatible solute to tolerate high salt environments, but also an easily fermentable disaccharide used by many heterotrophic bacteria as a carbon source. In this review, we provide a comprehensive summary of the current knowledge of the endogenous cyanobacterial sucrose synthesis and degradation pathways. We also summarize genetic modifications that have been found to increase sucrose production and secretion. Finally, we consider the current state of synthetic microbial consortia that rely on sugar-secreting cyanobacterial strains, which are co-cultivated alongside heterotrophic microbes able to directly convert the sugars into higher-value compounds (e.g., polyhydroxybutyrates, 3-hydroxypropionic acid, or dyes) in a single-pot reaction. We summarize recent advances reported in such cyanobacteria/heterotroph co-cultivation strategies and provide a perspective on future developments that are likely required to realize their bioindustrial potential.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cyanobacteria as cell factories for the photosynthetic production of sucrose

2023

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“…This review of the viability of non-edible oilseed plants and agricultural wastes as feedstocks for biofuel production is based on a thorough scientific literature study approach. 27 A thorough search of the literature was carried out to identify studies related to the techno-economic analysis of biofuel production using feedstocks derived from nonedible oilseed plants and agricultural waste. A Boolean operator ('OR' and ' AND') with a combination of keywords 'biofuel' AND ' Africa' AND 'bioethanol' AND 'Biodiesels' AND 'non-edible' OR 'oil seeds plants' AND 'agricultural wastes' AND 'feedstocks' OR 'techno-economic' was set for Scopus, PubMed, HINARI, African Journals OnLine (AJOL), Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Google Scholar, and other databases to retrieve related information.…”

Section: Review Methodologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This review of the viability of non‐edible oilseed plants and agricultural wastes as feedstocks for biofuel production is based on a thorough scientific literature study approach 27 . A thorough search of the literature was carried out to identify studies related to the techno‐economic analysis of biofuel production using feedstocks derived from non‐edible oilseed plants and agricultural waste.…”

Section: Review Methodologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further to that, increasing biofuel production in sub-Saharan African countries, as well as in developing countries worldwide, necessitates integrated policy decisions. 27 In a unified framework, these integrated policy decisions must take into account, among other things, concerns about energy, transportation, and other socioeconomic issues. It will be possible to offer initial incentives for the development of domestic technology and the beginning of the biofuel industries if African nations adopt supportive policies and programs that favor the production of biofuels.…”

Section: Supportive Policies and Programmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Das and Gundimeda 27 state that the interaction between food prices brought on by biofuels and food security, potential land availability, sources of guaranteed feedstock supply, trade, and political climate, among other factors, will have a significant impact on the development of biofuels specifically in developing countries. In light of these influencing factors, the limited amount of land available for biofuel feedstock production will ultimately determine our ability to expand biofuel production in response to anticipated demand and thus reduce our dependence on conventional fuels.…”

Section: Bioenergymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Viability of non‐edible oilseed plants and agricultural wastes as feedstock for biofuels production: a techno‐economic review from an African perspective

Kichonge

Kivevele

2023

Biofuels Bioprod Bioref

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Given the benefits of biofuels over conventional fuels, there is concern that widespread production of biofuels from edible feedstocks to meet demand will lead to food insecurity and other socioeconomic challenges. Thus, the goal of this research is to look into the techno‐economic potential of non‐edible oilseed plants and agricultural wastes as primary feedstocks for biofuel production in Africa. The inability of biofuel to cope in the fuel market has been demonstrated to be due to the high production costs, which limit profitability because the end price is heavily influenced by that of conventional fuel. However, the high production costs are entirely due not only to components such as feedstock, conversion processes, and infrastructure but also to a lack of techno‐economic assessment (TEA). African biofuel production can be competitively industrialized through the adoption of strong supportive policies and programs. Adoption of these policies and programs is critical for capitalizing on the benefits of non‐edible feedstocks in biofuel production while also boosting rural development through job creation. Techno‐economic assessment of conversion processes and infrastructure is recommended to provide a clear picture of the techno‐economic aspects, serving as a blueprint for the design of biofuel production facilities. Further, TEA has been shown to be a useful tool in the development process of new technologies aimed at lowering overall production costs and making biofuel more affordable. The combination of TEA and enabling policies and programs will increase the price competitiveness of biofuels, allowing them to capture a sizable share of the fuel market.

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Biodiesel from Sewage Sludge

Sondhi,

Sharma

2024

Sewage and Biomass From Wastewater to Energy

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Is biofuel expansion in developing countries reasonable? A review of empirical evidence of food and land use impacts

Cited by 28 publications

References 100 publications

Cyanobacteria as cell factories for the photosynthetic production of sucrose

Cyanobacteria as cell factories for the photosynthetic production of sucrose

Viability of non‐edible oilseed plants and agricultural wastes as feedstock for biofuels production: a techno‐economic review from an African perspective

Biodiesel from Sewage Sludge

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