A Sustainable Perspective on Biowaste-to-Biofuel for a Bio-based Economy

The increase in global population coupled with improved living conditions is driving up the demand for energy worldwide. Most of the developments depends on fossil fuels, despite the fact that these fuels contribute to worsening environmental issues. Therefore, exploring renewable energy options that are kinder to the environment is essential. The global economy is also undergoing a gradual shift from a reliance on fossil fuels to a more sustainable circular bioeconomy model. The concept of the circular bioeconomy encompasses the interdependent relationship between the bioeconomy and the circular economy, recognizing their intrinsic connection and mutual reliance. Biowaste, a plentiful and valuable resource for producing bioenergy in an environmentally friendly manner, holds great potential as a feedstock for the thriving bio-based economy. The current imperative lies in directing attention towards the establishment of a circular bioeconomy that is based upon the sustainable utilization of biowaste. Within the field of sustainable energy planning, it is of utmost importance to embrace a comprehensive and multifaceted viewpoint, thereby facilitating participation in informed and judicious decision-making procedures. Multiple criteria decision-making (MCDM) is a crucial methodology widely employed in various fields of sustainable engineering due to its immense significance. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP), which is one of the types of the MCDM, offers a more structured representation of sustainability-relevant factors. The concepts of bioenergy obtained from biowaste, the bio-circular economy, the operation of biorefineries, and the significance of multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) for sustainable development are discussed in this chapter.