Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

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Waste Management
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/wasman

A spent coffee grounds based biorefinery for the production of biofuels,

biopolymers, antioxidants and biocomposites
Sanjib Kumar Karmee
School of Chemical and Minerals Engineering, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Spent coffee grounds are composed of lipid, carbohydrates, carbonaceous, and nitrogen containing com-
Received 3 March 2017 pounds among others. Using n-hexane and n-hexane/isopropanol mixture highest oil yield was achived
Revised 26 September 2017 during soxhlet extraction of oil from spent coffee grounds. Alternatively, supercritical carbon dioxide can
Accepted 25 October 2017
be employed as a green solvent for the extraction of oil. Using advanced chemical and biotechnological
Available online xxxx
methods, spent coffee grounds are converted to various biofuels such as, biodiesel, renewable diesel,
bioethanol, bioethers, bio-oil, biochar, and biogas. The in-situ transesterification of spent coffee grounds
Keywords:
was carried out in a large scale (4 kg), which led to 80–83% biodiesel yield. In addition, a large number of
Spent coffee grounds
Biofuels
value added and diversified products viz. polyhydroxyalkanoates, biosorbent, activated carbon, polyol,
Biorefinery polyurethane foam, carotenoid, phenolic antioxidants, and green composite are obtained from spent cof-
Waste valorization fee grounds. The principles of circular economy are applied to develop a sustanaible biorefinery based on
Circular economy valorisation of spent coffee grounds.
Ó 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
2. Chemical composition of spent coffee grounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3. Valorization of spent coffee grounds to biofuels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.1. Extraction of oil from spent coffee grounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.2. Biodiesel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.2.1. Base and acid catalysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.2.2. Lipase catalysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.2.3. Ultrasound-assisted biodiesel production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.2.4. In-situ biodiesel preparation from spent coffee grounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.3. Renewable diesel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.4. Bioethanol and bioethers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.5. Bio-oil and biochar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
3.6. Biogas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
4. Biopolymer, carotenoid, biosorbent, antioxidant, and biocomposite from spent coffee grounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
5. A sustainable biorefinery based on spent coffee grounds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
6. Future prospects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
7. Spent coffee grounds management using circular economy and policy considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
8. Conclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 00

E-mail address: sanjibkarmee@gmail.com

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2017.10.042
0956-053X/Ó 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article in press as: Karmee, S.K. A spent coffee grounds based biorefinery for the production of biofuels, biopolymers, antioxidants and bio-
composites. Waste Management (2017), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2017.10.042
2 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

1. Introduction
Coffee is an essential agricultural product and a widely con-
sumed drink. Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, Indonesia, Ethiopia, India,
and Honduras are primary producers of coffee beans (Fig. 1) (ICO,
2016). International coffee organization (ICO) data shows that
80% of the coffee produced globally comes from ten countries. Bra-
zil alone produces 2,859,502 tonnes of coffee every year and it is
also a major coffee exporting country (Figs. 1 and 2) (ICO, 2016).
Statistical evaluation reveal that around 50% of coffee produced
worldwide is used for drinking purposes (Ramalakshmi et al.,
2009). During ‘fruit to cup’ transformation of coffee beans, the pro-
cessing and utilization steps generate huge quantities of wastes,
such as coffee silver skin and spent coffee grounds (Mussatto
et al., 2011a, 2011b). According to Murthy and Naidu (2012)
around 650 kg of spent coffee grounds is produced from 1 ton of
green coffee beans. Furthermore, during the preparation of 1 kg
of soluble coffee approximately 2 kg of wet spent coffee grounds
are obtained (Pfluger, 1975). In 2014 around nine million tonnes
of spent coffee grounds were dumped in landfills. The life cycle
assessment of coffee shows formation of coffee waste and spent
coffee grounds (Salomone, 2003, Fig. 3.)
In the above context, spent coffee grounds are a nonedible
resource, which is not entering into food chain. Therefore, it will
not impact food prices. The generated spent coffee grounds can
be converted to biofuels and value added products such as, food
additives, polyhydroxyalkanoates, carotenoids, biosorbents, acti-
vated carbons, polyols, polyurethane foams, phenolic antioxidants,
composites, and nutraceuticals. In addition, biological treatment of
organic wastes, namely composting can be used as a method for
spent coffee grounds valorisation.
Currently, the circular economy concept is becoming an integral
part of industrial green technological processes. In this regard, var-
ious companies are undertaking efforts for the utilization of spent
coffee grounds as a resource for fuels, biopolymers, biosorbents,
activated carbons, polyols, polyurethane foams, carotenoids,
antioxidants, and composites production.
Conversion of spent coffee grounds to biofuels and value added
products is gaining importance from the point of view of sustain-
able waste management policy (Mussatto et al. (2011a, 2011b);
Campos-Vega et al., 2015). As a result, multiple research groups
are engaged in complete valorisation of spent coffee grounds, since
it contains high quantities of carbohydrate, oil, carbon, and nitro-
gen containing substances (Oliveira et al., 2008; Vardon et al.,
2013; Kondamudi et al., 2008; Speer and Kölling-Speer (2006);
Jenkins et al., 2014). The oil and carbohydrate containing portions
can be converted to biodiesel and bioethanol. Furthermore, using
pyrolysis, spent coffee grounds can be converted to bio-oil.
In this article, technical feasibility of producing biofuel and
value added products from spent coffee grounds is evaluated.

Guatemala
Mexico
Uganda
Honduras
India
Ethiopia
Indonesia
Coloumbia
Vietnam
Brazil
0 500000 1000000 1500000 2000000 2500000 3000000
Tons/ Year
Fig. 1. World’s major coffee producing countries (ICO, 2016).

Guatemala
Peru
Uganda
Honduras
India
Ethiopia
Indonesia
Coloumbia
Vietnam
Brazil
0 500000 1000000 1500000 2000000
Tons/ year
Fig. 2. World’s major coffee exporting nations (ICO, 2016).

Please cite this article in press as: Karmee, S.K. A spent coffee grounds based biorefinery for the production of biofuels, biopolymers, antioxidants and bio-
composites. Waste Management (2017), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2017.10.042
 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx 3

Fig. 3. Coffee life cycle shows formation of coffee waste and spent coffee grounds. (adapted from Salomone, 2003).

Additionally, industrial viability of selected processes is examined.

Furthermore, a biorefinery based on spent coffee grounds and pro- Arabinose
spects of utilising spent coffee grounds by applying circular econ-
omy concept are presented.
Glucose

2. Chemical composition of spent coffee grounds

Galactose
The chemical composition of spent coffee grounds is dependent
on the types of coffee plants, geographic location where coffee
plants are cultivated, age of coffee plant, climate of the place and Mannose
soil conditions of the region (Murthy and Naidu, 2012; Jenkins
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
et al., 2014). Analysis of spent coffee grounds shows that it contain
lipid, carbohydrate (cellulosic biomass), non-protein nitrogen and %
other carbon containing materials (Fig. 4) (Oliveira et al., 2008;
Fig. 5. Different types of sugars in spent coffee grounds (Ballesteros et al., 2014).

Behenic acid (C22:0)

Eicosenoic acid (C20:1)
Arachidic acid (20:0)
α-Linolenic acid (18:3)
Linoleic acid (18:2)
Oleic acid (18:1)
Stearic acid (18:0)
Palmic acid (16:0)
0 10 20 30 40 50
%

Fig. 4. Chemical composition of spent coffee grounds (g/100g dry material, Fig. 6. Fatty acid profile of lipids extracted from spent coffee grounds (Vardon et al.,
Ballesteros et al., 2014). 2013).

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4 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

Fig. 7. Production of bioethanol, biodiesel, bio-oil, biochar, renewable diesel, and biogas from spent coffee grounds.

Kondamudi et al., 2008; Vardon et al., 2013; Pujola et al., 2013;
Ballesteros et al., 2014). Spent coffee grounds are composed of dif-
ferent types of sugars, namely, mannose, galactose, glucose, and
arabinose (Fig. 5). The lipid extracted from spent coffee grounds
is analysed to determine the fatty acid profile, which predomi-
nantly contain linoleic and palmitic acid (Fig. 6). Therefore,
researchers are working on the conversion of spent coffee to biofu-
els and other value added compounds (Fig. 7) (Caetano et al., 2012;
Zuorro and Lavecchia, 2012; Caetano et al., 2013; Mahmood and
Hussain, 2010; Burton et al., 2010; Al-Hamamre et al., 2012;
Calixto et al., 2011).
et al., 2016). However, some of the nonedible biofuel crops require
resources, such as, water, fertilizer, and land for cultivation. These
have led to more controversies, since some policy makers describ-
ing growing of biofuel crops as a ‘‘crime against humanity”
(Mathews, 2008). To avoid these negative issues, application of
organic waste materials, namely, food waste and spent coffee
grounds for biofuel production is paramount (Karmee, 2016a,
2016b; Karmee, 2017). In this regard, spent coffee grounds are
industrially utilised as a fuel in boilers because of its high calorific
value (Silva et al., 1998, Table 1).

3.1. Extraction of oil from spent coffee grounds

3. Valorization of spent coffee grounds to biofuels
The amount of oil in the spent coffee grounds is dependent on
Environmental pollution in combination with depletion of fossil the type of coffee (Jenkins et al., 2014). Spent coffee grounds con-
fuels are driving researchers to perform cutting edge research on tain around 7–15% oil (Jenkins et al., 2014; Kondamudi et al.,
alternative energy. So far, various types of edible feedstocks are 2008). Other feedstocks used for biodiesel preparation such as
explored for the preparation of biofuels (Gui et al., 2008; Nigam rapeseed, palm and soybean contain 20–50% oil (Gui et al., 2008).
and Singh, 2011; Issariyakul and Dalai, 2014; Favaro et al., 2015). This data clearly indicates that spent coffee oil is a potential biofuel
However, use of edible feedstocks for biofuel production has a feedstock (Table 2, Kondamudi et al., 2008; Alleman and
direct impact on food prices, generating food versus fuel debate McCormick, 2007).
(Mathews, 2008; Koizumi, 2015). Alternatively, nonedible feed- Three different methods: conventional, soxhlet and
stocks are being exploited for biofuel production (Karmee et al., supercritical-extraction are used to extract oil from spent coffee
2004; Karmee and Chadha, 2005; Karmee et al., 2006; Wang grounds (Fig. 8). For conventional extraction, spent coffee grounds
et al., 2013; Cripwell et al., 2015; Barik and Murugan, 2015; Shah are mixed with n-hexane or diethyl ether, then, it is stirred vigor-
ously, and transferred into a separating funnel. The combined
organic layer is decanted and evaporated under reduced pressure
Table 1
to obtain the oil. Soxhlet extraction was found to be more effective
Heat value of spent coffee grounds and other biomass residues. than the conventional extraction process (Table 3). Banerjee et al.
extracted coffee oil using n-hexane under reflux condition, which
Biomass Heat value Reference
gave 6% oil; whereas, soxhlet extraction gave 14% oil yield
kcal/kg dry kJ/kg dry (Banerjee et al., 2013). The main limitation of such methods is
Rice husks 3805.3 15906.1 Kumar et al. (1984) the use of volatile organic solvents, which are harmful towards
Coconut fibre 4707.8 19678.7 Kumar et al. (1984) environment and human health (Table 3). Thus, development of
Wheat straw 4185.0 17493.3 Kumar et al. (1984)
green extraction methods is necessary.
Wood 5450.0 22781.0 Anon (1971)
Spent coffee grounds 5960.0 24912.8 Anon (1971) In the above context, supercritical fluids, particularly supercrit-
ical carbon dioxide (scCO2) is used as a green solvent for chemical

Table 2
Comparison of spent coffee oil with other low-cost nonedible feedstocks.

Feedstock Amount (million liter/ Comments Biodiesel production methodsa

year)
Tallow, brown grease, pork 20.81 Feedstocks are derived from wastes, less expensive and shows Two step: E followed by TE
fat, oxidative stability.High sulfur and FFA content.Not easily
lard, fish oil, poultry fat acessable. Purification of feedstock is required.
Waste cooking oil 10.59 Feedstock is derived from waste, less expensive and easily Two step: E followed by TE.
available.High FFA.
Coffee oil 11.05 Fedstock is derived from spent coffee grounds and defective coffee Single step: TE.Two step: E followed by
beans, less expensive with high stability.Efficient oil extraction TE.
methods from spent coffee grounds is required.
a
For high free fatty acid (FFA) containing feedstocks two step method viz esterification (E) followed by transesterification (TE) is required. However, using lipases both
esterification (E) and transesterification (TE) can be carried out in one-pot.

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composites. Waste Management (2017), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wasman.2017.10.042
 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx 5

Fig. 8. Different methods for the extraction of oil from spent coffee grounds.

Table 3
Soxhlet extraction of oil from spent coffee grounds using organic solvents.

Solvent Dielectric Solvent to SCG ratio Time/ Oil Toxicity Reference

constant (e) (ml g-1) h yield/%
n-hexane 1.88 4.16 0.5 15.28 CNS effect Al-Hamamre et al.
(2012)
n-hexane 1.88 8 6 19.73 CNS effect Haile et al. (2013)
n-hexane 1.88 15 6 10.95 CNS effect Yordanov et al.
(2013)
Petroleum ether 2.0 – 6 12.5 CNS effects, Respiratory and digestive systems Cruz et al. (2012)
toxicities
n-pentane 1.84 4.16 0.5 15.18 Can irritate nose and throat; vomiting and Al-Hamamre et al.
nausea. (2012)
n-hexane 1.88 3 1 13.4 CNS effect Calixto et al. (2011)
Toluene 2.38 4.16 0.5 14.32 CNS effects and and electrolyte imbalances Al-Hamamre et al.
(2012)
Chloroform 4.81 4.16 0.5 8.60 Unconsciousness, CNS depression, and Al-Hamamre et al.
carcinogenic. (2012)
n-hexane/ isopropanol – 20 3 21.5 CNS effects Caetano et al.
(50:50, vol/vol) (2012)
Acetone 21 4.16 0.5 12.92 CNS effects, and unconsciousness. Al-Hamamre et al.
(2012)
Isopropanol 18 4.16 0.5 11.43 Neurotoxicity, eye and skin irritant. Al-Hamamre et al.
(2012)
Ethanol 30 4.16 0.5 11.90 Anti-foaming agent in the lungs, and low order of Al-Hamamre et al.
acute toxicity. (2012)

reactions and extraction purposes (Karmee et al., 2008; Karmee
et al., 2014; Karmee et al., 2010; Karmee et al., 2009) (Fig. 8.). scCO2
is a nonpolar solvent. Its solvent properties can be adjusted by
changing pressure and temperature to extract oil from spent coffee
grounds (Fig. 8) (Julio and Araujo, 2006; Couto et al., 2009; Calixto
et al., 2011; Akgün et al., 2014.). Couto et al. reported that using
scCO2, up to 15.4 g of oil is extracted from 100 g of dry spent coffee
grounds (Couto et al., 2009).
3.2. Biodiesel
3.2.1. Base and acid catalysis
After extraction, the obtained spent coffee oil is converted to
biodiesel using chemical and biocatalytic methods (Fig. 9). Base
(KOH and NaOH) and acid (H2SO4 and HCl) catalysts are exten-
sively used as chemical catalysts for biodiesel preparation
(Table 4).
Haile reported the use of spent coffee oil for biodiesel synthesis
using a two-step catalytic process (Haile, 2014). First, an acid cat-
alyzed esterification was carried out to bring down the acid value
of oil. Subsequently, the resulting mixture was transesterified to
biodiesel in 82% w/w yield (Haile, 2014). Furthermore, oil extracted
from defective coffee beans was converted to biodiesel via NaOH
catalyzed transesterification using methanol and ethanol as acyl
acceptors (Oliveira et al., 2008). The maximum biodiesel yield
was 73% (Oliveira et al., 2008). Also, Vardon et al. (2013) observed
that oil extracted from spent coffee grounds exhibit high acid value
(11.27 mg KOH g 1 initial). Therefore, acid catalyzed pretreatment
of the spent coffee oil was carried out before KOH catalyzed trans-
esterification (Vardon et al., 2013). The final biodiesel yield was 96
wt% (Vardon et al., 2013). Kondamudi et al. converted spent coffee
oil to biodiesel with excellent (100%) yield using KOH as a catalyst
at 70 °C (Kondamudi et al., 2008) (Table 4).
According to Jenkins et al. (2014) coffee biodiesel contains
around 50% saturated esters. So the pour point will be close to that
of palm oil. The biodiesel produced from spent coffee ground can
be used in USA and EU after suitable blending (Jenkins et al.,
2014). Assuming spent coffee grounds contain 16 wt% oil and use

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6 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

Fig. 9. Preparation of biodiesel from spent coffee grounds by chemo- and bio-catalytic routes.

Table 4
Production of biodiesel from spent coffee oil using chemical catalysts.

Scale of reaction Catalyst Acyl acceptor: oil molar ratio Temp./ °C Time/h Yield/% References
100 ml KOH 1:9 65 4 85.50 Al-Hamamre et al. (2012)
– 1:13 70 0.16 100 Calixto et al. (2011)
– KOH – 70 2 100 Kondamudi et al. (2008)
– NaOH 1:6 60 1 96 Vardon et al. (2013)
– NaOH – 60 3 86 Caetano et al. (2013)

of this oil as a feedstock can produce about 0.9 million tonnes of
biodiesel. It is around 3.5% of biodiesel market shared to the
world’s total fuel supply (world’s biodiesel production is 26 million
tonnes in 2014) (Phimsen et al., 2016). More importantly, biodiesel
from spent coffee grounds is advantageous because it contains nat-
ural antioxidants and phenolics, which prevents its oxidation dur-
ing storage and transportation (Yanagimoto et al., 2004). This will
cause further cost reduction since the use of external antioxidants
for biodiesel stabilisation is not necessary.
3.2.2. Lipase catalysis
Various preparation of lipases were used for the production of
biodiesel from oil extracted from spent coffee grounds (Table 5)
(Ferrario et al., 2013; Banerjee et al., 2013; Caetano et al., 2017).
Under optimized reaction conditions, 88% biodiesel conversion
was achieved in 24 h (Banerjee et al., 2013). In addition, combi-
CLEA (crosslinking enzyme aggregates) was used for the valoriza-
tion of spent coffee oil to biodiesel with 83% conversion
(Banerjee et al., 2013).
3.2.3. Ultrasound-assisted biodiesel production
Application of unconventional methods such as microwave irra-
diation and ultrasound assisted process intensification are gaining
importance for biofuel synthesis. Oil from spent coffee grounds
was extracted using ultrasound in n-hexane medium (Rocha
et al., 2014). A 12% yield of oil mainly composed of palmitic and
linoleic acids was obtained. Sonication was carried out for 45
min at 40 kHz using a 2.7 L ultrasonic bath (160 W, UltraCleaner
1450A, Unique, Brazil) (Rocha et al., 2014). After extraction, organic
solvent was removed from the oil at 104 °C. The resulting oil was
subjected to saponification by mixing with alcoholic KOH (30
g L 1) in an ultrasonic bath (40 kHz, 160 W) for 30 min (Rocha
et al., 2014). Subsequently, the mixture was acidified using
H2SO4 solution. The supernatant containing free fatty acids was
collected and remaining aqueous layer was discarded. Subse-
quently, the obtained free fatty acids were esterified with metha-
nol using H2SO4 under ultrasonic condition for 60 min at 60 °C to
yield 97% biodiesel (Rocha et al., 2014).
3.2.4. In-situ biodiesel preparation from spent coffee grounds
In-situ biodiesel preparation from spent coffee grounds is cur-
rently being investigated. In such a system, extraction of coffee
oil and its simultaneous utilization via transesterification/esterifica
tion reactions occur in one-pot (Fig. 10). This avoids use of excess
organic solvent and isolation of oil step. In-situ biodiesel produc-
tion from wet, dry and deacidified spent coffee grounds using
acidic and basic catalysts in a single solvent system is investigated
(Fig. 10, Table 6).
In-situ transesterification of spent coffee grounds was per-
formed in large scale (Tuntiwiwattanapun et al., 2017). Two
batches of in-situ transesterification of spent coffee grounds (4
kg) were carried out in a 38 L steam jacketed kettle with an anchor
shaped agitator. The yields (% mass based on oil in SCG) of two
pilot-scale batches were 80.7% and 83.0%. This is an important step
towards commercialisation of in-situ transesterification process.
3.3. Renewable diesel
Renewable diesel has many advantages over biodiesel such as
high cetane number, flexibility of feedstock during preparation
and oxidative stability. Also, a major difference between renewable
diesel and biodiesel is that renewable diesel is not an oxygenated
fuel, making it closer to petroleum based fuel with respect to
chemical structure (Knothe, 2010). The hydrotreating process is

Table 5
Production of biodiesel from spent coffee oil using lipase catalysis.

Lipase Preparation Reaction time/h Yield/ References

%
Candida antarctica (CAL-B) Immobilized on styrenic porous material 30 72 Ferrario et al. (2013)
Novozyme-435 Immobilized on acrylic resin 24 88 Banerjee et al. (2013)
1:1 ratio of Novozyme-435 + 1,3 specific RMIM (Mucor miehei) lipase Mixture of Immobilized and free form 24 86 Banerjee et al. (2013)
Combi-PCMC of CAL-B and Palatase Combi-protein coated micro crystals 48 83 Banerjee et al. (2013)

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 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx 7

extensively investigated for renewable diesel production. In this
regard, oil with high FFAs extracted from spent coffee grounds is
used for hydrotreatment. For instance, Pd/C catalyst gave higher
olefins, whereas, NiMo/c-Al2O3 gave higher isoparaffins liquid
fuels (Fig. 11) (Phimsen et al., 2016). Similarly, spent coffee oil
was used for the production of hydrocarbon based fuel using poly-
methylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) as a cheap reductant under mild
reaction conditions (Fig. 12) (Döhlert et al., 2016). Using this
method, the fatty acid methyl esters obtained from spent coffee
oil can be transformed to hydrocarbon based fuels.
3.4. Bioethanol and bioethers
Coffee beans and spent coffee grounds are known to contain
substantial amount of carbohydrates (Redgwell and Fischer,
2006; Mussattoa et al., 2011). This makes spent coffee grounds
an ideal feedstock for bioethanol production (Mussattoa et al.,
2011; Choi et al., 2012; Tehrani et al., 2015; Gurram et al., 2016).
Firstly, lignocellulosic material present in the feedstock is pre-
treated (hydrolysed) to obtain small sugars. The pretreatment
(hydrolysis) of spent coffee grounds is performed using acid, base,
and enzyme catalyzed methods (Fig. 13). For instance, using 1%
H2SO4, pretreatment of spent coffee grounds was carried out by
Kwon et al., 2013. The obtained galactose and mannanose rich
hydrolysate had final sugar concentration of 58.4 gL 1 (Kwon
et al., 2013). The hydrolysate was subjected to fermentation using
yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to produce bioethanol in 0.46 gg 1
yield. Machado et al. valorized spent coffee grounds for ethanol
production with 50% yield (Machado, 2009; Mussatto et al.
(2011a, 2011b)). Sampaio et al. also reported production of dis-
tilled beverage from spent coffee waste (Sampaio, 2010). Further-
more, Gouvea et al. evaluated the feasibility of bioethanol
production from coffee husks using Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a
biocatalyst. Best results were obtained while using 3 g of yeast
per litre of substrate at 30 °C (Gouvea et al., 2009). Ultrasound
assisted potassium permanganate pretreatment of spent coffee
grounds is reported. In this study, potassium permanganate con-
centration and reaction time were optimized to obtain high cellu-
lose and hemicellulose recovery while achieving maximum lignin
removal (Ravindran et al., 2017).
The obtained bioethanol can be converted to bioethers destined
for the EU gasoline market (http://www.biofuelstp.eu/etbe.html).
Ethyl tert-butyl ether (ETBE) is prepared via a reaction between
ethanol (EtOH) and isobutylene or tert-butyl alcohol
(Assabumrungrat et al., 2002; Assabumrungrat et al., 2003;
Kiatkittipong et al., 2002). The ETBE is used as a fuel additive in
several EU nations, such as France, the Netherlands, Germany,
Spain and Belgium (Yee et al., 2013). A suitable process for its

Fig. 10. In-situ biodiesel production from wet spent coffee grounds.

Table 6
Transesterification of spent coffee grounds for biodiesel production using in-situ method.

Nature of SCG Production scale/g of SCG Catalyst Solvent Reaction conditions Yield/wt.% References
Wet 0.6 H2SO4 CHCl3 2 h, 95 °C 16.75 of SCG Park et al. (2016)
Deacidified 30 NaOMe NaOMe/MeOH 3 h, 50 °C 14.6 of SCG Tuntiwiwattanapun et al. (2017)
Dry 50 H2SO4 MeOH 12 h, 70 °C 17.08 of SCG Liu et al. (2017)
Dry 25 NaOH MeOH 1.5 h, 60 °C 96.0 of oil in SCG Najdanovic-Visak et al. (2017)

Fig. 11. Hydrotreatment of extracted oil from spent coffee grounds.

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8 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

preparation is the etherification of iso-olefins (Hidalgo et al., 2014).
The whole FCC (fluid catalytic cracking) gasoline can be used as an
iso-olefins source for etherification. A wide range of ether produc-
tion is achivable by FCC self-etherification with ethanol which can
enhance the octane number and sustain the demand of oxygenated
ethers (Kiatkittipong et al., 2002; Kiatkittipong et al., 2008;
Kiatkittipong et al., 2009; Kiatkittipong et al., 2011).
3.5. Bio-oil and biochar
Using pyrolysis, carbon containing materials are converted to
bio-oil and biochar. In line with this, spent coffee grounds were uti-
lized as a source for bio-oil and biochar production. Vardon et al.
reported the valorization of defatted coffee grounds by slow pyrol-
ysis to yield bio-oil and biochar (Vardon et al., 2013). Tsai et al. pre-

Fig. 12. Conversion of spent coffee oil and biodiesel to hydrocarbons using PMHS.

Fig. 13. Pretreatment of spent coffee grounds using chemical and enzymatic methods.

Fig. 14. Chemical compounds formed during the pyrolysis and hydrothermal liquefaction of spent coffee grounds.

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 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx
Fig. 15. Anaerobic co-digestion of spent coffee grounds with different waste feedstocks for biogas preparation .
pared biochar from exhausted coffee residue from a soluble coffee
factory in southern Taiwan (Tsai et al., 2012). The yields of pre-
pared biochar products were between 25–40 wt% and the calorific
value was 31.9 MJ/kg. Indeed, according to the reported values,
calorific value of biochar prepared from coffee grounds lies at the
upper limit of coal (28–32 MJ/kg) (Li et al., 2014).
Bio-oil synthesized from spent coffee grounds show increase in
carbon density and less oxygen content in-comparison to starting
material. Bio-oil is a complex mixture of organic compounds con-
taining carboxylic acids, esters, ketones, phenols, and aromatics
(Fig. 14). Upgraded bio-oil can be used as a transportation fuel.
Yang et al. (2016) reported the hydrothermal liquefaction of spent
coffee grounds in water medium for bio-oil preparation. Along this
line, spent coffee grounds produced in a cafeteria of an educational
institution was studied for synthesis of bio-oil. The maximum bio-
oil yield was 66 wt% at 630 °C (Li et al., 2014). Analysis of the
resulting bio-oil revealed that it contained 21 chemical com-
pounds, mainly dominated by palmitic and linoleic acids, indicat-
ing its potential application in biodiesel production (Li et al.,
2014) (Fig. 14).
Kelkar et al. examined fast pyrolysis of spent coffee grounds
using a screw conveyor reactor (Kelkar et al., 2015). High bio-oil
yield (61.8%) was obtained at 500 °C. The bio-oil was found to con-
tain hydrophobic compounds, viz. fatty acids, fatty acid esters,
medium chain paraffins, olefins, and caffeine (Kelkar et al., 2015).
Similarly, coffee grounds were subjected to fast pyrolysis at 550
°C to prepare biocrude oil in 54.85% yield (Bok et al., 2012). GC–
MS analysis of biocrude oil produced from coffee grounds shows
that it is a complex mixture of 40 chemical compounds (Bok
et al., 2012). Cho et al., used CO2 as a reaction medium during
the thermo-chemical conversion of spent coffee grounds. The
experiments revealed that CO2 expedited cracking of volatile
organic compounds produced during the thermal degradation of
spent coffee grounds (Cho et al., 2015).
3.6. Biogas
Anaerobic digestion as an organic waste treatment method has
a huge potential. Production of biogas from spent coffee grounds is
reported (Girotto et al., 2017). Slurries containing 20% (w/v) coffee
waste solids were treated anaerobically in one- and two-phase
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9
thermophilic methane fermentation systems. It was observed that
a two-phase methane fermentation could be repeated in a stable
fashion in closed system without discharging anything but the cof-
fee waste residues (Kida et al., 1992). Furthermore, anaerobic
biomethanation process of instant coffee wastes along with acti-
vated sludge from a wastewater treatment plant were carried out
under mesophilic conditions. During these studies, methane yields
in the range of 0.24–0.28 m3 CH4(STP/kg VS (volatile solids)initial
were obtained (Neves et al., 2006). The thermophilic anaerobic
codigestion of spent coffee grounds and sludge was carried out
by Qiao et al. A 25 day batch experiment using mature but unaccli-
mated thermophilic sludge and a 185 day long experiment using a
12 liter continuously stirred tank reactor were performed. The
experimental results establish a long term thermophilic codiges-
tion system for bioenergy production (Qiao et al., 2015).
Kim et al. (2017) studied feasibility of anaerobic codigestion of
spent coffee ground with different organic wastes, such as food
waste, Ulva, waste activated sludge, and whey for biomethane pro-
duction (Fig. 15). The experimental results indicated that charac-
teristics and composition of substrate mixture had a significant
impact on performance of biomethanation process (Kim et al.,
2017). Many commercial anaerobic digesters can accept a range
of substrates viz. organic wastes, spent coffee grounds, food
wastes, and dairy manure with similar total solids, volatile solids,
chemical oxygen demand, and moisture content. Such digesters
can be used for co-digestion of spent coffee grounds with other
organic wastes for industrial scale biogas production. In this
regard, to perform co-digestion industrially close collaboration
between academia, industries, and municipalities is required.
4. Biopolymer, carotenoid, biosorbent, antioxidant, and
biocomposite from spent coffee grounds
Value added products such as biopolymers, biosorbents,
polyphenols, and biocomposites are obtained from spent coffee
grounds. Currently, applications of biobased polymers namely
polyhydroxyalkanoates are becoming significant since they are
biodegradable and their thermoplastic and elastomeric properties
can be manipulated. Along this line, spent coffee grounds are con-
verted to hydrolysate via acidic hydrolysis. The obtained hydroly-
sate is then biotechnologically transformed into
10 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

Fig. 16. Few biologically active compounds found in coffee beans and spent coffee grounds.

polyhydroxyalkanoates using Bacillus megaterium and Burkholderia
cepacia microorganisms (Obruca et al., 2015). Complete isolation of
polyphenols from spent coffee grounds prior to hydrolytic reaction
led to 25% increase in polyhydroxyalkanoates yield. In addition,
Obruca et al., (2014) investigated utilization of spent coffee oil
for the production of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) using Cupriavidus
necator H16. Additionally, liquid polyols can be prepared from
spent coffee grounds via sulfuric acid based liquefaction method
using PEG 400/glycerol as solvents (Soares et al., 2015). The prop-
erties of synthesized polyols are similar to the properties of petro-
leum based polyols used for industrial production of polyurethane
foams. These spent coffee derived polyols are used for the synthe-
sis of biobased polyurethanes. In order to achieve this, isocyanate
was reacted with the polyols obtained from spent coffee grounds
to yield polyurethane foams and the degree of polymerization
was monitored by infrared spectroscopy (Gama et al., 2015).
Carotenoids are pigments widely used in food, pharmaceutical
and cosmetics industries. Various microbes like yeasts, filamentous
fungi, bacteria, and algae are capable of producing pigments by uti-
lizing organic wastes as a carbon source. Spent coffee grounds
hydrolysate was consumed as a substrate by the carotenogenic
yeast Sporobolomyces roseus for the production of carotenoids
(Obruca et al., 2015).
Sustainable biosorbents have demonstrated potential applica-
tions for liquid waste treatment. In this regard, spent coffee
grounds can be used as an inexpensive adsorbent for removal of
dyes, heavy metals and pollutants (Anastopoulos et al., 2017).
Safarik et al. prepared magnetic form of spent coffee grounds via
magnetic fluid treatment. The magnetic spent coffee grounds was
used as an adsorbent for the removal of water soluble dyes viz.
crystal violet, malachite green, amido black 10B, Congo red, Bis-
marck brown Y, acridine orange and safranin O (Safarik et al.,

Fig. 17. A sustainable biorefinery based on spent coffee grounds.

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 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx 11

2012). Similarly, various heavy metals such as Cd (II), Cu(II), Pb(II), composites, where one of the natural fillers viz. spent coffee
Cr(VI), Ni(II), and Zn(II) are removed using spent coffee grounds grounds and bamboo flour is mixed with polylactic acid in pres-
and coffee wastes. Davila-Guzman et al. described that spent coffee ence of a coupling agent 4,4-methylene diphenyl diisocyanate
grounds pretreated using sodium hydroxide is exploited as a (Baek et al., 2013). The coupling agent was used to enhance the
biosorbent for removal of Cu(II) from aqueous solutions. FT-IR interface bonding between natural fillers and polymer. These com-
studies revealed that carboxyl and hydroxyl functional groups pre- posites can find applications in industries and as interior decorat-
sent in the spent coffee grounds are responsible for isolation of ing materials.
copper (Davila-Guzman et al., 2013). The effect of roasting temper-
ature on the adsorptive properties of spent coffee grounds was
5. A sustainable biorefinery based on spent coffee grounds
studied. Coffee beans were roasted between 170 °C to 220 °C
(Utomo and Hunter, 2006). The results indicate that for Cd(II), Cu
There are numerous possibilities for converting spent coffee
(II) and Pb(II) an increase in adsorption occurred with increase in
grounds to fuels and value added chemical compounds (Fig. 17).
roasting temperature above 170 °C (Utomo and Hunter, 2006). In
After extraction of oil from spent coffee grounds, the remaining
addition, activated carbons obtained from thermal treatment of
defatted coffee grounds is obtained. It is a potential resource for
spent coffee grounds can be used for adsorption purposes
bio-oil and bioethanol production. After hydrolysis of defatted cof-
(Lamine et al., 2014).
fee grounds the obtained sugar rich hydrolysate can be used as a
Plants polyphenols are important chemical compounds because
nutrient for growing various microorganisms. The lipid from the
these are potent antioxidants with ability to prevent cancer devel-
biomass of microorganisms can be converted to biodiesel
opment (Dai and Mumper, 2010). In this regard, coffee beans and
(Fig. 17). Furthermore, the oil extracted from spent coffee grounds
spent coffee grounds are enriched with bioactive compounds such
can be saponified and neutralized to form free fatty acids (Fig. 17),
as polyphenols. For instance, chlorogenic acid and its derivatives
which can be used as starting materials for the synthesis of spe-
viz. caffeoylquinic acids, feruloylquinic acids, p-coumaroylquinic
cialty chemicals, such as, fatty acid vinyl esters, fatty acid ascorbyl
acids, and esters of caffeic and ferulic acids with quinic acid are
esters, epoxy fatty acids, fatty acid 2-oxazolines and other deriva-
present in coffee beans and spent coffee grounds (Zuorro and
tives. The glycerol produced during biodiesel preparation can be
Lavecchia, 2012; Panusa et al., 2013) (Fig. 16). Chlorogenic acid
subjected to lipase catalysis to prepare structured tri-,di-, and
partially undergoes isomerisation and dehydration during roasting
mono-glycerides (Fig. 17). In addition, the crude glycerol by-
of coffee beans resulting in quinolactone and isomerised com-
product can be valorized for bio-oil and biohydrogen production.
pounds (Farah and Donangelo, 2006). These antioxidants can be
Also, ongoing research shows that polyhydroxyalkanoates, carote-
used for the production of functional foods and value added dietary
noids, electrode material, and activated carbon adsorbents are pre-
supplements. A study by Zuorro and Lavecchia demonstrated that
pared from spent coffee grounds (Rufford et al., 2008; Plaza et al.,
around 90% phenolic extracts can be obtained from spent coffee
2012; Obruca et al., 2014; Obruca et al., 2015; Ramasahayam et al.,
ground using aqueous ethanol during solvent-extraction method
2015; Kante et al., 2012; Kemp et al., 2015). A suitable combination
(Zuorro and Lavecchia, 2012). The recovery of phenolic compounds
of these processes will be instrumental in building a sustainable
can be further improved by applying response surface optimiza-
biorefinery based on spent coffee grounds (Fig. 17).
tion. Along this line, a solid-liquid extraction process using metha-
There is an increase in generation of spent coffee grounds in
nol as a solvent is reported. However, methanol is a toxic
metropolis since coffee consumption is rising. Bio-bean, a new
compound. Therefore, applications of antioxidants obtained by this
company based in London has industrialised the process of recy-
method is limited in food and life sciences industries (Mussatto
cling spent coffee grounds into biofuels such as biomass briquettes
et al., 2011a, 2011b).
and pellets (www.bio-bean.com/). This is a significant step for a
New biocomposites prepared using wood, waste papers, agri-
highly populous city, where waste disposal is a major concern.
cultural wastes, and regenerated cellulosic fibres have generated
immense interest in recent years because of the drive towards sus-
tainability and circular economy concept. These materials are 6. Future prospects
renewable, recyclable, and biodegradable. In this regard, fabrica-
tion of polyvinyl alcohol/spent coffee grounds nanocomposites is Spent coffee grounds contain natural antioxidants, lipid, carbo-
reported, whose tensile strength and Young’s modulus properties hydrate, proteins and non-protein nitrogen compounds, and other
can be compared with polyvinyl alcohol/carbon black nanocom- components (Fig. 18) (Campos-Vega et al., 2015). Valorization of
posites (Lee et al., 2015). Baek et al., reported preparation of green spent coffee grounds to liquid biofuels is reported by many

Fig. 18. Spent coffee grounds as a source of natural products.

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12 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx

research groups in labortory scale (Silva et al., 1998; Deligiannis
et al., 2011; Haile et al., 2013). To validate the industrial viability
of these methods, large scale preparation of biofuels from spent
coffee grounds need to be carried out. These large scale trial exper-
iments will provide important scientific inputs about catalyst sta-
bility, activity, and inhibition under process conditions. All this
information, will be useful during the selection of catalysts for
industrial biofuel preparation.
Novel, sustainable, and, low-cost volorization technologies
should be developed to make these processes commercially viable.
From the catalyst point of view, heterogeneous catalysts and
enzymes can be used efficiently for biodiesel production. As such,
naturally existing heterogeneous catalysts such as, eggshell based
catalysts are used for biodiesel synthesis (Tan et al., 2015).
Although lipases are used as sustainable biocatalysts for biofuel
production, they are expensive compared to chemical catalysts.
To decrease the cost of enzymes, suitable immobilization can be
performed; so that, lipases can be reused.
So far, reported methods describe the use of different yeast
strains, namely, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Pichia stipitis and Kluy-
veromyces fragilis as biocatalysts for bioethanol preparation from
spent coffee grounds (Mussatto et al., 2012). Similarly, other
potential strains need to be screened for bioethanol preparation
(Favaro et al., 2013; Jang et al., 2014). Recent research is focused
on use of genetically modifying yeast and other microorganisms
for bioethanol production from biomass to enhance breakdown
process, improve yields, and lower the costs. The genetic engineer-
ing technique enables modification of existing strains to adopt the
substrate and can operate under reaction conditions. Along this
line, genetically engineered bacteria and yeast are used to improve
bioethanol yield from organic wastes such as husks, and wood-
chips. In this case, genetic engineering can also be applied to pro-
duce robust microbial strains for achieving high yield of ethanol
during fermentation of spent coffee grounds (Sanda et al., 2011;
Buschke et al., 2013). In addition, catalytic cascade reactions
involving both chemical and biocatalysts can be exploited for the
preparation of biofuel in a single reaction system.
Supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO2) can be used as a solvent for
the reaction and as a medium for selective extraction of products
(Karmee et al., 2008; Karmee et al., 2014; Karmee et al., 2010;

Fig. 19. A proposed cascade reaction for biofuel production from spent coffee grounds using supercritical fluid technology.

Fig. 20. Implementation of the circular economy concept for spent coffee grounds management.

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 S.K. Karmee / Waste Management xxx (2017) xxx–xxx
Karmee et al., 2009; Julio and Araujo, 2006). In this regard, scCO2
can be efficiently employed for the preparation of biodiesel and
bioethanol from spent coffee grounds via multi-step cascade reac-
tions (Fig. 19). During the first step, in a scCO2/H2O biphasic media,
the non-polar coffee oil can be extracted using scCO2 by adjust-
ment of pressure and temperature (Fig. 19). In the subsequent step,
the obtained oil can be subjected to uncatalyzed transesterifica
tion/esterification reactions under supercritical methanol
(scMeOH) condition to obtain biodiesel. Uncatalyzed biodiesel pro-
duction under supercritical condition is extensively reported for
edible and nonedible feedstocks. Thus, uncatalyzed biodiesel pro-
duction under supercritical conditions can be tested for spent cof-
fee oil. The remaining carbohydrate residue in the aqueous phase
can be hydrolyzed under acidic condition to obtain sugar rich (such
as glucose, xylose etc.) hydrolysate (Fig. 19), which can be further
fermented to obtain bioethanol. The resulting bioethanol can be
sepated from the fermentation broth using scCO2 (Guvenc et al.,
1998). This proposed reaction system avoids the use of toxic
organic solvents and provides an opportunity for sustainable spent
coffee grounds valorization (Fig. 19). Such a method, if sucessful
will demonstrate the true potential of cascade reactions and judi-
cious use of a single solvent for reaction and extraction purpose.
7. Spent coffee grounds management using circular economy
and policy considerations
The circular economy is fast replacing the previously adopted
linear economy of ‘take, make and dispose’, where resources are
recycled circumventing the need for virgin resources. Main objec-
tive of circular economy concept is to recover and regenerate
resources at the ‘end’ of their life. In this regard, circular economy
can be applied to waste management, in particular to the manage-
ment of spent coffee grounds, as it can be subjected to a closed-
loop recycling system to generate fuel, bio-products and feeds
(Girotto et al., 2017) (Fig. 20).
Economics of biofuel production from spent coffee grounds
depends on the cost of different components, such as feedstock,
transportation of feedstock, operation of oil extraction process,
labor and energy need, and biofuel production. For sustainable bio-
fuel production an ideal feedstock should have the following prop-
erties: low-cost and nonedible, abundant and easily accessible, and
must not contain toxic chemical compounds, namely sulphur and
nitrogen. Taking these points into consideration, spent coffee
grounds is a potential feedstock for biofuel preparation. Certainly,
a minimal cost resource as a feedstock will have a significant
impact on the final cost of biofuels (Karmee et al., 2014; Karmee
et al. (2015a, 2015b)).
So far, many research groups have reported production of biofu-
els and value added products from spent coffee grounds in lab
scale. Techno-economic analysis of reported methods will present
a better picture about the final cost of biofuels, mass balance, and
industrial viability of the processes. The costs of final products are
dynamic and production costs are likely to decrease over years,
because of technological improvements and increase in production
scale (van Eijck et al., 2014).
Organic wastes and spent coffee grounds collections can be
challenging especially for small business. However, there are com-
panies such as ‘‘bio-bean London, UK” that provide caddies, bins,
refuse sacks, vehicles and collection service to independent cafés,
coffee chains, universities and instant coffee factories for the col-
lection of spent coffee grounds. Instead of using the conventional
waste collection facilities the generated spent coffee grounds could
be collected through a parcel collection service. This system can be
similar to the collection of printer cartridges and ink toner program
run by Planet Ark Environmental Foundation, Australia. Countries
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13
that are large consumers of coffee should focus on attaching
small-scale biofuel production plants to coffee chains and super-
markets. By doing so, the local economy is expected to rise because
the coffee chain owners will get a chance to prepare their own fuel.
Such target oriented policies will empower many in different parts
of the world (Malik et al., 2009).
8. Conclusions
Spent coffee grounds is used as a no-cost resource for biofuels
and chemical compounds production. As a first step, implementa-
tion of environmentally benign coffee oil extraction process using
scCO2 is necessary. Utilization of spent coffee grounds for biodiesel,
renewable diesel, bioethanol, bio-oil and biochar production has
been successfully carried out in laboratory scale. In situ transester-
ification of spent coffee grounds is performed in pilot-scale (4 kg)
and the yield (% mass based on oil in spent coffee grounds) was
80–83%. Furthermore, valued added products such as, biopolymers,
carotenoids, biosorbents, antioxidants, and biocomposites can be
obtained from spent coffee grounds. A biorefinery based on spent
coffee grounds is possible by using a combination of compatible
chemical, biotechnological, and thermochemical methods. The cir-
cular economy concept is applied for spent coffee grounds man-
agement and valorization. Hitherto, most of the spent coffee
grounds valorisation methods report preliminary experimental
results. Future research needs to focus on techno-economic analy-
sis and feasibility of industrial scale fuel and chemical production.
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