Abstract
Bio-refining is the production process of general-purpose chemicals and fuels using biomass as a raw material. Bio-refineries were initially expected to become an alternative to petroleum refineries to cope with the rapid increase in oil prices. Thereafter, the carbon-neutral characteristics of bio-refining came to the fore and when the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) were adopted at the United Nations Summit in 2015, bio-refining was seen to support and help to achieve several of the goals.
In addition, through the use of biodegradable plastics, bio-refining has recently been effective in alleviating the problem of marine pollution caused by microplastics. Although it has various advantages, bio-refining has not been widely utilized, except for in bioethanol production from edible crops that compete with foods such as sugar cane and corn. For widespread bio-refining, it will be essential to procure large quantities of inexpensive raw materials and develop cost effective conversion processes. This study examines the procurement of three raw materials for bio-refinery: resources that have been unutilized, resources prepared for production of energy and materials, and waste materials. Finally, the paper investigates some problems associated with the use of these materials.
