Waste Valorisation

1Overview of Waste Valorisation Concepts from a Circular Economy Perspective

Jinhua Mou¹, Chong Li², Xiaofeng Yang³, Guneet Kaur⁴, and Carol Sze Ki Lin¹

¹School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

²Shenzhen Branch, Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Genome Analysis Laboratory of the Ministry of Agriculture, Agricultural Genomics Institute at Shenzhen, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shenzhen, China

³School of Biology and Biological Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China

⁴Department of Biology, Hong Kong Baptist University, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong

1.1 Introduction

Petroleum is one of the most important reserves used as a fundamental raw material for various industries. It has been in a predominant position in the world energy consumption structure since the 1970s. Petroleum‐derived products, such as plastics, synthetic fiber, and synthetic rubber, are widely utilized in the agricultural, chemical, and pharmaceutical sectors, and have already become necessities in our daily life. Most industries, like the chemical industries and transportation, are heavily dependent upon petroleum and other fossil resources.

However, this fossil‐based economy is facing two serious problems. On one hand, fossil resources are not renewable – they have limited availability on our planet and are running out at a rapid rate. On the other hand, the industrial utilization of fossil ...