Waste-to-Energy Production through a Biorefinery System

Reuse, Recycle and Recover are the 3 R's that need to be implemented for strategic waste management system. The consequential impact of rapid population growth and urbanization in the developed and developing countries is observed through increased rate of waste generation and energy demand. There are many waste to energy (WtE) technologies in existence for the treatment and concomitant generation of energy and value added products (VAP) from waste that contribute to the reduced dependence on fossil fuels. Waste to energy production is a process where the waste material is efficiently utilized as a resource for the generation of energy and VAP by employing various thermal and non-thermal treatment WtE technologies. Integrating these technologies through a biorefinery approach to valorize the waste for the recovery of resource and energy is one of the significant options to ascertain environmental and economic benefit. A biorefinery plays a significant role in the production of fuels, power and various value added chemicals from waste with a potential to displace several existing industries currently based on the depleting finite fossil fuel resources. This chapter fundamentally focuses on the integration of WtE technologies to evolve a hybrid biorefinery system for the generation of waste derived VAP in the form of heat, electricity, bioenergy, various platform chemicals and materials. An insight on the environmental benefit, sustainability and economic viability of the biorefinery system to strengthen the biorefinery concept will be presented. This chapter also provides an insight on the classification of the biorefinery systems based on the variety of feedstock and technology