Nanotechnological Advancements for Enhancing Lignocellulosic Biomass Valorization

The rise in human population, fast industrialization, excessive utilization of fossil fuel, and anthropogenic activities have led to serious threats to the environment such as air pollution, global warming, greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs), and acid rain. This destruction in environmental sustainability can be averted by a paradigm shift in the fuel production from fossil resources to bioenergy . Among different forms of bioenergy , lignocellulosic biomass can be utilized as an attractive substrate for the production of several high-value products owing to its abundance, easy availability, and renewability. Additionally, the utilization of these waste biomasses reduces the environmental hazards associated with its disposal. The impedance of lignin and the crystalline nature of cellulose pose major bottlenecks in biomass-based energy. Though several physio-chemical processes are recommended as mitigation routes, none of them seems to be promising for large-scale application. In recent years, a right fusion of biological treatment combined with nanotechnology for efficient pretreatment and subsequent hydrolysis of biomass by ubiquitous enzymes seems to be a promising alternative. In addition, to overcome these difficulties, nanotechnology-based methods have been recently adopted in the catalytic valorization of lignocellulosic biomass . This chapter discusses the application of nanobiotechnology in lignocellulosic biomass valorization in terms of pretreatment and hydrolysis . A detailed discussion on the application of various nanoparticles in these processes, enzyme immobilization , and end-production utilization is presented in this chapter. Finally, this chapter emphasizes the major challenges of this process along with different routes and recommendations to address the issues.