Biorefinery Approach in Industrial Waste Management and Its Technoeconomic Viability

The emergence of the agro/industrial waste biorefinery concept is a response to the urgent need to enhance the circularity of industrial systems, particularly in light of limited resource availability and climate change concerns. To foster the development of sustainable industrial processes centered on the valorization of industrial waste, several critical aspects must be carefully considered such as technical feasibility at industrial scale, technoeconomic potential, availability of waste feedstock, and environmental assessment. Addressing these critical aspects is essential for advancing the development and deployment of sustainable agroindustrial waste biorefinery processes. Collaboration among stakeholders, including researchers, industry partners, policymakers, and environmental organizations, is key to overcoming technical, economic, and regulatory challenges and realizing the full potential of waste valorization as a strategy for enhancing resource efficiency, reducing environmental impacts, and promoting a circular economy. The goal of this chapter is to provide an overview of comprehensive examination of the biorefinery approach in industrial waste management, with a specific focus on assessing its technoeconomic viability and to analyze to which extent these aspects have been considered in the literature.