Emerging Technologies in Bioenergy Production from Agricultural Residues in Developing Countries: A Review Paper
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Abstract
Agricultural residues represent a considerable yet untapped source of sustainable bioenergy, particularly in developing countries, where biomass accounts for 0.01-4% of global energy demand, with 2% in rural areas. This review is guided by the PRISMA 2020 guidelines and examined more than 600 papers, of which 60 were selected. Thermochemical conversion technologies, such as pyrolysis and gasification, achieve higher ef iciencies (60-80%) and are ideal for industrial applications, whereas biochemical technologies, such as anaerobic digestion (efficiencies of 50-70%), are best suited for decentralized rural areas. Improvements in biorefinery technology, precision agriculture, and biotechnology can increase biomass output by up to 20% and reduce costs by 15-30%. However, challenges such as capital expenses, limited technical know-how, and competition forfood-energy uses persist, withmost technologies having Technology Readiness Levels(TRLs) between 4 and 7
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