Advanced Catalysis for Green Fuel Production from Biomass and Wastes

Lucília S. Ribeiro ^1,2,*

1. LSRE-LCM – Laboratory of Separation and Reaction Engineering - Laboratory of Catalysis and Materials, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal

2. ALiCE – Associate Laboratory in Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal

* Correspondence: Lucília S. Ribeiro

Special Issue: Advanced Catalysis for Green Fuel Production from Biomass and Wastes

Received: August 19, 2024 | Accepted: August 19, 2024 | Published: August 22, 2024

Catalysis Research 2024, Volume 4, Issue 3, doi:10.21926/cr.2403012

Recommended citation: Ribeiro LS. Advanced Catalysis for Green Fuel Production from Biomass and Wastes. Catalysis Research 2024; 4(3): 012; doi:10.21926/cr.2403012.

© 2024 by the authors. This is an open access article distributed under the conditions of the Creative Commons by Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is correctly cited.

The limited fossil fuel resources and growing energy demands associated with environmental concerns have led to a significant rise in the search for sustainable alternatives, such as biomass [1,2,3,4]. Biomass is nature's most abundant renewable organic carbon resource [5]. Considering its availability, there is a tremendous worldwide potential for fuels and chemical production from biomass, which would be a promising approach to fulfill the demanding global task of diminishing carbon footprint, helping to reduce fossil resource dependency [6]. In this case, the chemicals and fuels produced from biomass are considered green since the carbon dioxide released upon combustion gets captured through photosynthesis [7].

Within this framework, the catalytic conversion of biomass and wastes into green fuels based on the development of sustainable catalytic processes is undoubtedly a hot topic. Furthermore, their conversion into high-value fuels also solves the urgent waste management problem. In this sense, catalysis is central to sustainable biomass processing. Therefore, advances in low-cost, eco-friendly, efficient and selective catalysts are paramount in this area.

This Special Issue, “Advanced Catalysis for Green Fuel Production from Biomass and Wastes,” aims to present and disseminate the most recent findings and advancements in this field of study. Thus, we invite submissions in a broad range of subjects, from original research articles reporting the development and synthesis of new catalysts and catalytic processes for the conversion of biomass and wastes, including the techno-economic and life cycle assessment analyses, to review articles that provide comprehensive overviews of the topic. Moreover, short communications and perspective articles are also welcome, offering insights into trends and future directions in this emerging field. Accordingly, this Special Issue aims to compile cutting-edge developments on new catalysts and processes along with theoretical discoveries that enlarge our knowledge of the underlying mechanisms.

In conclusion, as we face the challenges of growing energy demands and environmental degradation, developing advanced sustainable catalytic processes for biomass conversion gains paramount importance. The works in this Special Issue aim to present a significant step toward a future where renewable biomass-derived fuels will be fundamental to our energy economy. So, we are excited about the groundbreaking contributions that will help reach this goal.

Acknowledgments

L.S. Ribeiro would like to thankfully acknowledge the authors for their advanced scientific contributions to this Special Issue and the reviewers who kindly dedicated their time to providing precious scientific input that was fundamental to achieving high-quality papers.

L.S. Ribeiro wishes to thank the financial resources provided by LSRE-LCM, UIDB/50020/2020 (DOI: 10.54499/UIDP/50020/2020) and UIDP/50020/2020 (DOI: 10.54499/UIDP/50020/2020); and ALiCE, LA/P/0045/2020 (DOI: 10.54499/LA/P/0045/2020), funded by national funds through FCT/MCTES (PIDDAC).

Author Contributions

The author did all the research work for this study.

Competing Interests

The author declares no conflict of interest.