Life-Cycle Assessment of Biorefineries

Life-Cycle Assessment of Biorefineries, the sixth and last book in the series on biomass-biorefineries discusses the unprecedented growth and development in the emerging concept of a global bio-based economy in which biomass-based biorefineries have attained center stage for the production of fuels and chemicals.

It is envisaged that by 2020 a majority of chemicals currently being produced through a chemical route will be produced via a bio-based route. Agro-industrial residues, municipal solid wastes, and forestry wastes have been considered as the most significant feedstocks for such bio-refineries. However, for the techno-economic success of such biorefineries, it is of prime and utmost importance to understand their lifecycle assessment for various aspects.

Provides state-of-art information on the basics and fundamental principles of LCA for biorefineriesContains key features for the education and understanding of integrated biorefineriesPresents models that are used to cope with land-use changes and their effects on biorefineriesIncludes relevant case studies that illustrate main points

1. Classification of Biorefineries Taking into Account Sustainability Potentials and Flexibility 2. Fundamentals of Life Cycle Assessment and Specificity of Biorefineries 3. Life-Cycle Assessment of Agricultural Feedstock for Biorefineries 4. Life Cycle Assessment of Sugar Crops and Starch-Based Integrated Biorefineries 5. Life Cycle Assessment of Vetiver-Based Biorefinery With Production of Bioethanol and Furfural 6. Life Cycle Assessment of Thermochemical Conversion of Empty Fruit Bunch of Oil Palm to Bio-Methane 7. Life Cycle Assessment of Algal Biorefinery 8. Life Cycle Assessment and Land-Use Changes: Effectiveness and Limitations 9. Modeling Land-Use Change Effects of Biofuel Policies: Coupling Economic Models and LCA 10. Towards an Integrated Sustainability Assessment of Biorefineries