Production of Bioethanol from Fruit Wastes: Recent Advances

The enormous reduction of fossil fuel resources has resulted in the human race depending on energy sources which are renewable with bioethanol being one of them. Ethanol is a clear liquid alcohol. This is obtained via the fermentation of varied biological substances. This alcohol has several uses. One of its use in particular is gaining more importance. One of the most important renewable fuels is ethanol. It contributes to a reduction of the negative environmental impacts which occur as a result of the global use of fossil fuels. Production of fuel ethanol has gained attention worldwide. This is so, as several nations are looking for cutting down oil imports, boosting the economies at rural level and enhancing the quality of air. The huge usage of fuel ethanol globally requires a production technology which is cheap and sustains in the environment at the same time. The present research capacities for enhancing fuel ethanol production finds link to the nature of raw materials being used, the steps involved in processing and the process engineering issues which are related to this. The world ethanol production has reached about 29.03 billions of gallons. Presently during the energy crisis, ethanol production using cheaper sources of raw material employing efficient fermentative microorganisms is the way out for meeting increasing demand for ethanol. Producing value-added products by using wastes from agro-industries and the food processing units is gaining attention. In addition to production of energy, it curbs environmental pollution. Enormous quantities of wastes in the form of fruit peels, seeds, pomace, rags, kernels, etc. are generated by the food industry. These wastes are biodegradable in nature. To produce bioethanol, fruit waste serves as a promising lignocellulosic material. This is so, as it falls amongst the abundant renewable resources. Good-quality bioethanol is obtained from several fruit wastes. These wastes include banana peels, mango waste, apple pomace, kinnow peels, orange peels, grape pomace, papaya waste, etc. This fuel can be used in the engines for transportation purpose and curb the emissions. The pretreatment methods’ choice serves an important role for improving output of the enzymatic saccharification. This makes the entire procedure economically reasonable. Employing recombinant cellulases to produce bioethanol is a way out for controlling the price of enzyme.