Biotechnological Approaches for Sustainable Biomass and Mineral Resource Valorization

Dear Colleagues,

The transition toward a circular and sustainable economy requires innovative approaches to transform underutilized biomass, industrial residues, and mineral resources into valuable products while minimizing environmental impacts. Biotechnology and bioengineering provide promising pathways for resource valorization by integrating biological processes with chemical, catalytic, and engineering strategies to improve resource recovery, renewable energy production, waste management, and environmental sustainability. This Special Issue, “Biotechnological Approaches for Sustainable Biomass and Mineral Resource Valorization,” aims to bring together recent advances in the biological and bioengineering-based valorization of renewable biomass and mineral-containing residues. Particular emphasis is placed on approaches that convert waste and residual resources into energy, fuels, chemicals, materials, or recovered critical elements while improving resource efficiency and reducing environmental impacts. The Special Issue welcomes contributions addressing, but not limited to, the following topics:

1. Biomass pretreatment, fractionation, and biorefinery processes;
2. Biogas and biomethane production, upgrading, and utilization;
3. Microbial consortia, metabolic engineering, and process optimization for resource recovery;
4. Bioleaching, biosorption, bioprecipitation, and other biological approaches for mineral recovery;
5. Recovery and valorization of rare earth elements and other critical minerals;
6. Mining residues, tailings, and industrial wastes as secondary resources;
7. Environmental mobility, fate, and transformation of metals and critical elements;
8. Circular bioeconomy and integrated waste-to-resource systems;
9. Life-cycle assessment, techno-economic analysis, and environmental impact assessment of resource recovery processes.

We invite original research articles, review articles, communications, and perspectives presenting innovative biotechnological and bioengineering approaches for sustainable resource valorization. Contributions that bridge biological conversion, process engineering, resource recovery, and environmental sustainability are particularly encouraged. 

Dr. Inès Esma Achouri
Guest Editor

Name: Ms. Vaibhavi Bele
Affiliation: Group of Research on Technologies and Processes (GRTP), Department of Chemical and Biotechnological Engineering, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC J1N 0J8, Canada
E-mail: vaibhavi.bele@usherbrooke.ca
Interests: Biogas production; lignocellulosic biomass; agricultural residue; circular bioeconomy; biogas upgrading; sustainable waste valorization; anaerobic microorganisms.
Guest Editor Assistant

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