Advancing Green Chemistry in Bio-Circular Economies: Sustainable Solutions for Waste Valorization and Resource Efficiency

Dear Colleagues,

The Special Issue focuses on advancing green chemistry principles within the framework of bio-circular economies to address pressing global challenges such as environmental degradation, resource depletion, and climate change. It emphasizes the development of sustainable, resilient, and closed-loop systems that convert biological and waste materials into valuable bioproducts, thereby reducing reliance on finite resources and minimizing environmental pollution. The Special Issue highlights innovative technologies, methodologies, and applications that integrate waste valorization, renewable resource utilization, and green chemical processes to promote a circular bioeconomy.

The scope of the Special Issue encompasses a wide range of topics, including but not limited to, the following:

• Green chemistry approaches for waste valorization and resource efficiency.
• Conversion of agricultural, industrial, and food waste into high-value bioproducts (e.g., biofuels, bioplastics, and chemicals).
• Development of biodegradable plastics and functional biomaterials from renewable resources.
• Carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies within bio-circular systems.
• Lignocellulosic biomass conversion to biofuels and biochemicals.
• Upcycling of food waste into functional bioproducts.
• Biocatalysis and green solvents for sustainable chemical manufacturing.
• Production of biochar from agricultural residues for soil health and carbon sequestration.
• Sustainable conversion of CO₂ into biofuels and other value-added products.
• Functionalized carbon materials for environmental remediation and pollutant removal.

The purpose of this Special Issue is as follows:

• Showcase cutting-edge research and innovations in green chemistry and bio-circular economies.
• Provide a platform for interdisciplinary discussions on sustainable chemical processes and waste-to-wealth technologies.
• Highlight practical applications of bio-circular systems in industries such as agriculture, food production, and environmental remediation.
• Inspire future developments in sustainable chemical engineering and contribute to the transition toward a circular bioeconomy.
• Support the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by promoting resource efficiency, waste minimization, and pollution reduction.

This Special Issue will usefully supplement the existing literature as follows:

• Bridging Gaps: while there is a growing body of literature on green chemistry and circular economies, this Special Issue specifically focuses on the integration of bio-circular systems with green chemistry principles, offering a unique perspective on waste valorization and renewable resource utilization.
• Interdisciplinary Insights: by combining insights from chemical engineering, biotechnology, environmental science, and industrial applications, this Special Issue will provide a holistic view of sustainable solutions that are often addressed in isolation in the existing literature.
• Practical Applications: this Special Issue emphasizes real-world applications and case studies, offering actionable insights for researchers, policymakers, and industry leaders, which are often lacking in theoretical discussions.
• Emerging Technologies: it highlights emerging technologies and methodologies (e.g., biocatalysis, green solvents, and CO₂ conversion) that are not yet extensively covered in the current literature, providing a forward-looking perspective.
• Global Relevance: by aligning with the United Nations’ SDGs, this Special Issue contextualizes its contributions within a global framework, making it relevant to a wide audience and addressing gaps in localized or sector-specific studies.

Dr. Ashish Kumar Nayak
Prof. Dr. Charu Arora
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.