Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047

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Journal of Cleaner Production

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jclepro

Review

Potential for sustainable utilisation of agricultural residues for

bioenergy production in Pakistan: An overview
Aisha Abdullah a, 1, Ashfaq Ahmed b, c, 1, Parveen Akhter a, Abdul Razzaq c, Murid Hussain c,
Nazia Hossain d, Muhammad Saifullah Abu Bakar e, Shahzad Khurram c, Khaliq Majeed c,
Young-Kwon Park b, *
a
Department of Chemistry, The University of Lahore, 1-km Defence Road, Off Raiwind Road, Lahore, Pakistan
b
School of Environmental Engineering, University of Seoul, Seoul, 02504, Republic of Korea
c
Department of Chemical Engineering. COMSATS University Islamabad, Lahore Campus, Defence Road, Off Raiwind Road, Lahore, Pakistan
d
School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne VIC, 3001, Australia
e
Faculty of Integrated Technologies, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong, BE1410, Brunei Darussalam

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

Article history: Pakistan’s current energy portfolio is problematic due to a lack of proper management and imple-
Received 16 March 2020 mentation of appropriate energy policies. This densely populated country has a high energy demand that
Received in revised form rises yearly and is expected to increase three-fold by 2050. However, fossil fuel resources are continu-
12 October 2020
ously depleting by global overuse while negatively impacting the environment through increasing
Accepted 6 November 2020
Available online 10 November 2020
greenhouse gas emissions. This study reviewed the potential for agricultural residues to be used as
renewable energy sources for bioenergy production in Pakistan to address the energy-related challenges
Handling editor: Prof. Jiri Jaromir Kleme
s that would also help in addressing the economic and environmental concerns. First, a comparison was
made between the current energy situation, potential renewable energy scenarios, and global trends.
Keywords: Second, greenhouse gas (i.e., CO2) emissions in Pakistan were summarised and compared with other
Agricultural residues regions. Third, the thermochemical properties of different agricultural residues were reviewed along
Thermochemical conversion with varying the options of processing to produce renewable energy such as thermochemical conversion
Biochemical conversion approaches (combustion, pyrolysis, gasification, and liquefaction) and biochemical conversion options
Pyrolysis
(anaerobic digestion, and fermentation). Pakistan being an agricultural-based economy, produces vast
Gasification
quantities of agricultural residue biomass, which is mostly underutilized as animal feed, conventional
fuel substitutes, left to rot in fields or burnt to get rid, resulting in the vast emissions of greenhouse gases
causing severe environmental pollution and smog formation. A considerable share of Pakistan’s national
energy demand can be fulfilled if these feedstocks are adequately managed and exploited through the
energy sector and converted into large-scale bioenergy.
© 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contents

1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
2. Energy scenario in Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
3. Biomass from the agricultural residues in Pakistan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4. Thermochemical properties of agricultural residues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
5. Overview of the technologies for energy recovery from agricultural residues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5.1. Thermochemical conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5.1.1. Pyrolysis of agricultural residues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
5.1.2. Gasification of agricultural residues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
5.1.3. Direct combustion of agricultural residues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: catalica@uos.ac.kr (Y.-K. Park).
1
Co-first authors.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.125047
0959-6526/© 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al. Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047

5.1.4. Liquefaction process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

5.2. Biochemical conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
5.2.1. Anaerobic digestion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
5.2.2. Ethanol production from the fermentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
6. Recommendations from Pakistan’s perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
7. Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Declaration of competing interest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Acknowledgment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Bioenergy is the leading renewable energy source and accounts for

more than 50% of the renewable energy mix globally (Global Bio-
Nomenclature energy Statistics, World Bioenergy Association, 2019). The projected
use of bioenergy and other renewable resources through the years
GHG Greenhouse gas 2017e2023 is given in Fig. 1. The availability of biomass from
NEPRA National Electric Power Regulatory Authority different subdivisions is presented in Fig. 2 which shows the
GWEC Global Wind Energy Council abundancy of agricultural, forestry, wastes and other biomass is
27%, 23%, 30% and 20% respectively (Ladanai and Vinterba €ck, 2009).
IEA International Energy Agency
PBS Pakistan Bureau of Statistics Pakistan is primarily relying on the fossil energy fuels especially
GOP Government of Pakistan in the transportation and power generation sectors. Likewise, the
PV Photovoltaic energy demand in Pakistan continues to escalate and is expected to
AEDB Alternative Energy Development Board rise to 142 MTOE by 2025 (Ali et al., 2020), due to the multiple
WB World Bank factors such as rising population and economic development
GDP Gross Domestic Product (Rehman and Deyuan, 2018; Zameer and Wang, 2018). The majority
MC Moisture content of the Pakistani population (62%) is living in the rural areas and
VM Volatile matter meet their daily household energy needs through the combustion
FC Fixed carbon of wood and agricultural residues; resulting in the emission of
HHV Higher heating value hazardous gases causing environmental pollution and respiratory
GL Giga liters diseases such as asthma and tuberculosis (Chowdhury et al., 2020a;
Gumartini, 2009; Naqvi and Yan, 2015; Tareen et al., 2018).
Despite the availability of renewable resources, the country has
still not been able to use these resources due to the lack of
1. Introduction appropriate planning (Raza et al., 2017). CO2 emissions mainly
come from the consumption of non-renewable sources and should,
Energy is a basic need that acts as the backbone of a country’s therefore, be minimized by the inclusion of bioenergy to the energy
economy. At the present approximately 85% of the world’s primary mix (Taghizadeh-Alisaraei et al., 2017). Moreover, the fluctuating
energy requirements are being met by the fossil fuel consumption prices of petroleum-based fuels keep on disturbing the country’s
(Agbulut et al, 2019, 2020,bib_Ag bulut_et_al_2020). Non- energy-related budgets, requiring the country’s energy sector to
renewable fossil fuels, such as petroleum and coal, were formed seek for the alternative sources (Rafique and Rehman, 2017). Along
over the long periods by the slow alteration of organic materials. with the biomass energy, other renewable resources such as solar
While the utilisation of these fossil fuels for energy applications energy, wind energy, hydropower, and biomass can also be used to
causes tremendous greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions into the sort out the energy related issues in Pakistan (Valasai et al., 2017). In
environment (Hossain et al., 2020; McKendry, 2002a). In addition 2006, Government of Pakistan introduced a renewable energy
to these kerbs, there is a limited stock for the fossil-based-fuels, and policy and planned to add 800 MW energy to the system but this
it is predicted that these reserves will completely be exhausted policy was not successful in general as it did not cover the broader
during this century (Abu Bakar et al., 2020; Ag bulut et al., 2020). areas and was poorly planned (Farooq and Shakoor, 2013). Along
Furthermore, the variabilities in the price and accessibilities of with the policy lacks, the other major challenge hindering the usage
petroleum-based fuels reasoning from the geopolitical situations of bioenergy is the properties of the biofuels which make them
present severe apprehensions for the developing nations like unsuitable to use in the existing energy systems and internal
Pakistan to ensure the sustainable and affordable energy supplies combustion engines (Ahmed et al., 2020a; Ansari et al., 2020;
(Taghizadeh-Hesary et al., 2019). Consequently, a significant focus Moogi et al., 2020).
on the search for energy production from renewable resources has As an agriculture-dependent economy, different crops are
been set globally in the recent past due to their sustainable and cultivated in Pakistan including wheat, rice, cotton, sugarcane,
environmentally friendly nature (Chowdhury et al., 2020b; Karago €z barley, maize, bajra, dry chili and different lentil crops. A study by
et al., 2020). The alternative resources such as biomass, solar, tidal, Ghafoor et al. reported that Pakistan’s agriculture sector produces
and wind energy have been recognized as the potential sources that approximately 81 million ton of agricultural residues annually
can effectively contribute to minimize the dependency on the fossil (Ghafoor et al., 2016). These enormous quantities of residues can be
resources (Abdullah et al., 2020). Among these resources, biomass a potential feedstock to produce biofuels by the application of
have superior benefits as its processing can produce biofuels in different energy recovery processes (Azhar et al., 2019; Karago €z
physical phases such as liquid, solid and gaseous phase with et al., 2020; Meryem et al., 2013; Naqvi et al., 2017; Rehman
comparatively better energy density (Ahmed et al., 2020b). et al., 2013). In line with the Vision 2025, Pakistan is ambitiously
working to seek the the reduction of electricity production cost by
2
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al.
Fig. 1. Share of renewable energy sources in 2017 and predictions for 2023 (Tareen et al., 2019; International Energy Agency, 2018).
Fig. 2. The global availability of biomass resources from different subdivisions (Ladanai
and Vinterba €ck, 2009).
25% and increase power generation by 50% from the indigenous
resources (Pakistan 2025 One Nation - One Vision GoP, 2017). The
conversion of agricultural residues biomass to energy can provide a
potential route to achieve the energy-related postulates of the
aforementioned vision. Nevertheless, to gain a deep understanding
and policy development insights, it would be crucial to assess the
potential of each type of biofuel produced from a specific pro-
cessing technology and agricultural residue along with considering
the economical feasibilities of the conversion processes.
The schematic illustration of the possible pathways for the
conversion of agricultural residues to bioenergy energy is given in
Fig. 3. The thermochemical conversion of biomass includes
3
Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047
processes such as pyrolysis, gasification, direct combustion and
liquefaction. The biofuel type and quality produced from the ther-
mochemical process depend on the process selected and the rele-
vant process parameters adopted during the process. The
combustion of biomass produces heat, gasification produces syn-
gas, and pyrolysis produces oil, gases, and bio-char. The major
advantage of the pyrolysis process amongst these processes is the
recovery of liquid pyrolysis oil, which is assumed to have the po-
tential to replace liquid petroleum-based fuels such as diesel and
gasoline. Still, there are numerous challenges regarding the com-
mercial use of pyrolysis oil as its properties are not up to the re-
quirements and need the up-gradation of its properties which is
still in the research phases (Moogi et al., 2020). The other major
processes employed for energy recovery from biomass are
biochemical conversion processes, including the anaerobic diges-
tion and ethanol production.
The main objective of the present study was to review the po-
tential utilisation of agricultural residues biomass in Pakistan as
feedstock of different energy recovery processes to provide a
beneficial management solution by producing sustainable energy
supplies in the country. A comparison between the current energy
situation, potential renewable energy scenarios, and global trends
was also made. Subsequently, carbon dioxide gas emissions in the
country were summarised and compared with other regions. As
biomass characteristics and sustainable supplies are of significant
importance for determining the suitability as feedstock and po-
tential value, a detailed discussion on these aspects of the agri-
cultural residues in Pakistan was also encompassed prior to the
confab on the technological aspects of different conversion pro-
cesses. Afterwards the technical aspects of thermochemical and
biochemical conversion processes specific to the valorization of
agricultural residues along with the recommendations from Paki-
stan’s perspective were discussed. This study is expected to provide
a useful dataset in line with utilising the agricultural residues in
Pakistan to cope with the energy supply issues, ultimately helping
the country to make progress on achieving the goals of renewable
energy production from the indigenous resources. The utilisation of
domestic agricultural residues will also be helpful in addressing the
economic and environmental concerns of the country. Neverthe-
less, the sustainable and renewable energy production in Pakistan
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al. Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047

Fig. 3. The schematic illustration for the conversion of agricultural biomass residues into energy.

would require significant efforts, proper management, and plan-
ning from the concerned authorities.
2. Energy scenario in Pakistan
There is a major gap between the energy production and energy
requirements of Pakistan which is being bridged by importing the
fossil fuels, and it requires substantial revenue of the state to be
spent for these imports. During the fiscal year 2014e2015, Pakistan
imported 13.57 MTOE of petroleum, eventually putting a tremen-
dous pressure on the economy by increasing the import bills. As the
major consuming sectors of fossil fuels in Pakistan are trans-
portation and power generation sectors. The higher prices of fuels
often result in hike in the transport costs and utilities bills for the
public and commercial consumers, ultimately posing the socio-
economic challenges for the nation. The electricity generation ca-
pacities from different energy sources in Pakistan is shown in Fig. 4,
which depicts that most of the energy is being produced from the

Fig. 4. The energy production capacity of Pakistan 2014e15 to 2018e19 (Economic Survey of Pakistan 2018-19, 2019)

4
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al.
Table 1
CO2 emissions in Pakistan and other countries of the world (“World Bank Country
Indicators, CO2 Emissions,” n.d.).
CO2 emissions (metric ton per capita)
Country
2004 2009 2014
Japan 9.881 8.632 9.481
France 6.12 5.438 4.573
Pakistan 0.840 0.905 0.934
Bangladesh 0.275 0.373 0.477
Hong Kong 6.149 5.987 6.328
China 4.038 5.677 7.544
India 1.022 1.428 1.723
Spain 7.908 6.217 5.034
thermal power stations by consuming the traditional fossil fuels.
At the present, the indigenous resources of Pakistan contribute
only up to 15% of the energy requirements of the country (Pakistan
Bureau of Statistics, 2018). Pakistan approximately expends 60% of
its currency exchange for importing the fuels to meet the energy
needs and if the indigenous alternative energy resources are used
adequately, these import bills can be significantly reduced (Rafique
and Rehman, 2017). The energy demand in Pakistan is expected to
rise by > 9% annually which is posing a serious challenge to the
country’s present energy production arrangements (Irfan et al.,
2019). It is outright that the energy import bills will rise signifi-
cantly if indigenous energy supplies are not included to the energy
mix of the country.
Furthermore, the excessive use of fossil resources are turning
the environmental situations worse, which are expected to be
further exacerbated with the energy demands going up in the
future as predicted (Shi et al., 2020). The CO2 emissions per capita
in Pakistan and various other countries of the world are given in
Table 1. The energy scenario of Pakistan offers a highly favorable
circumstances for utilising the renewable energy resources such as
biomass from agricultural residues in the country to produce en-
ergy. The exploitation of renewable energy in the country is very
low in comparison to the share being used globally as a consider-
able portion of global energy requirements are being obtained from
the renewable energy sources (Kumar et al., 2010; Naqvi et al.,
2017). Furthermore, the European Renewable Energy Council
(EREC) has projected that about 50% of global energy needs would
be met through the renewable energy resources by 2040 (Tareen
et al., 2018). Hence in order to grasp with the global development
pace the scenario is requiring the developing countries like
Pakistan to progress with the energy recovery from the renewable
resources.
3. Biomass from the agricultural residues in Pakistan
Materials left over after crop harvest are called as agricultural
residues which are divided into the categories of primary and
secondary residues. The primary residues are obtained directly
from the harvest (sugarcane tops, rice straw, wheat straw etc.)
while the latter are obtained from the post-harvest processing
(bagasse, rice husk, wheat husk etc.). Pakistan has two crop
growing seasons, the Kharif and Rabi. In the Kharif season, rice,
sugarcane, maize, cotton, mong, mash, bajra, and jawar crops are
cultivated, whereas in the Rabi season, wheat, masoor, tobacco,
rapeseed, barley, and mustard crops are cultivated. The sowing
season for Kharif runs from April to June and the harvesting season
from October to December, while the sowing season for Rabi runs
from October to December and the harvesting season from April to
May (K. Ahmed et al., 2018). Pakistan is the fourth-largest producer
of cotton lint, the fifth-largest producer of sugarcane, and the
Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047
eleventh largest producer of rice crop (Butt et al., 2013). According
to the Pakistan Renewable Energy Society (PRES), Pakistan contains
a broad range of biomass in its agricultural residues. The annual
estimated production of crop residues in Pakistan for the year
2015e2016 from different crops is shown in Table 2. The quantities
2016
of residues were calculated from the crops produced by applying
8.944
N/A the correlation stated by Singh and Gu (2010) and employed by
0.988 (Bhutto et al. (2011)). These solid residues mainly comprise over the
0.533 organic compounds, inorganic compounds, water, minerals and
5.949
metal oxides which can cause severe disposal issues and environ-
7.176
1.818 mental pollution if not managed properly. Nevertheless, if these
5.249 resources are recycled and reused appropriately, they can be used
as a beneficial renewable resource as suggested by the numerous
studies reported in literature (Abdullah et al., 2020; Ashraf et al.,
2019; Naqvi et al., 2019). According to the economic survey of
Pakistan for 2012e2013, the agriculture sector acted as backbone
for the economy, contributing over 22% of the gross domestic
product (GDP) (Shaukat et al., 2016) and resulted in producing 69
million tons of crop residues (Ali et al., 2016a). While another study
by Ghafoor et al. reported that the country annually produces 81
million ton of agricultural residues from crop harvest (Ghafoor
et al., 2016). The production of the major agricultural crops in
Pakistan is predicted to rise in the coming years which will result in
the increased accumulation of the agricultural residues in the
country providing more feedstock available for energy conversion
in the future (Meryem et al., 2013). Furthermore, the alternating
schedule of cultivation and harvest of the agricultural crops in
Kharif and Rabi seasons is also of great advantage to ensure the
sustained supplies of biomass feedstock round the year which is a
basic requirement for the continuous energy production employing
energy recovery processes (Malladi and Sowlati, 2018).
4. Thermochemical properties of agricultural residues
The evaluation of biomass properties is an essential step for
assessing the energy potential and appropriate selection of con-
version process. The properties of biomass depend on several fac-
tors, change frequently and widely affect the processing related
costs, thermal decomposition behaviour of biomass, the yields and
quality of the biofuels produced from conversion process (Ahmed
et al., 2018b; Naik et al., 2010). The basic properties of agricul-
tural residues including the proximate, ultimate, and compositional
analyses reported in various studies in literature, are summarised
in Table 3. The proximate analysis of the different residues
including the cotton, rice, wheat, maize and bagasse showed the
moisture, volatile matter, fixed carbon, and ash content in the range
of 1.14e10.68 wt%, 53.1e82.38 wt%, 4.95e30.24 wt% and
1.14e20.02 wt%, respectively.
The moisture content in biomass plays a vital role in selecting an
appropriate conversion process (Radenahmad et al., 2018; Reza
et al., 2019). The lower moisture content in feedstock is preferred
for the recovery of energy through the thermochemical conversion
route, particularly through the pyrolysis process as it effects quality
of bio-oil produced. It affects the quality in the multiple ways such
as by affecting the stability and reducing the heating values of bio-
oil produced from pyrolysis. It also reduce the heating values of the
syngas produced from the gasification process (Demirbas, 2007). In
contrast, the feedstock with higher moisture values is preferred for
the hydrothermal liquefaction and biochemical conversion
processes.
The volatile matter content in the biomass feedstock is also a
vital indicator for the selection of process for the optimum recovery
of energy. The higher content of volatile matter shows the potential
of biomass to produce higher yields of vapours from the decom-
position of biomass indicating its ease of combustion and higher
5
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al.
Table 2
The estimated biomass production from different agricultural residues in Pakistan during 2015e2016 (Ministry of Finance, 2016).
Name of crop Annual production (thousand MT)
Rice 6801
Cotton 9917
Wheat 25,633
Sugarcane 65,482
Maize 5271
yields of liquid and gaseous fuels resulting from the processing
(Odetoye et al., 2013). While the higher content of fixed carbon
content indicates the suitability of feedstock for producing the
higher yields of solid biofuels such as biochar (Ahmed et al., 2018b).
The ash content is also a very important component of biomass
which doesn’t decompose during its processing and it must be kept
in mind while selecting the technology for conversion of biomass. It
also effects the quality of biofuels produced from the processing of
biomass. Biomass with high ash content produce more residual
weight than the product as it cannot be converted into energy
(Mansaray and Ghaly, 1998). Biomass with lower ash content makes
it easier to process while the high ash content in biomass requires a
pre-treatment step and an ash removal process prior to the energy
recovery processing, thus adding the extra cost to the process.
The ultimate and compositional analyses are also vital indicators
to be assessed for the optimum recovery of energy. The ultimate
analysis of the aforementioned agricultural resides reported the
carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulphur and oxygen content in the
range of 28.55e47.25 wt%, 3.98e7.35 wt%, 0.15e2.63 wt%,
0e0.55 wt% and 34.00e65.71 wt% respectively. While the compo-
sitional analysis reported the content of cellulose, hemicellulose
and lignin contnet in the range of 26.90e45.12 wt%, 9.16e34.10 wt%
and 5.71e40.16 wt% respectively.
Compositional analysis indicate the suitability of feedstock for a
specific conversion process and also provide an idea about the
composition of the biofuels products. Biomass having higher cel-
lulose and hemicellulose contents tend to produce higher yields of
bio-oil, while higher lignin content indicate more potential to
produce solid biofuels such as biochar (Mohan et al., 2006). The
carbon and hydrogen are the desired components in the biomass as
they contribute to increase the quality and value of biofuels pro-
duced while the nitrogen, sulphur and oxygen are the undesired
components in the biomass. The higher nitrogen and sulphur
content result in the harmful emissions while the oxygen contrib-
utes to the oxygenated compounds formation in the bio-oil
contributing for the instability and reduction in the heating value
of biofuels (Jamil et al., 2020; Naik et al., 2010). From the
perspective of utilisation of agricultural residues in Pakistan, the
thermochemical properties listed in Table 4 indicate a decent po-
tential and suitability for a variety of recovery of processes. The
higher carbon content (41.23e46.81%) in cotton stalk, wheat straw
and rice straw indicate their better potential to use in pyrolysis and
gasification processes. While, the negligible concentrations of ni-
trogen and sulphur indicate the environmentally friendly nature of
the agricultural residues for energy production. The more specific
confab about the impact of the properties of agricultural residues
on the energy conversion processing, the yield and the quality of
the biofuels produced from the thermochemical and biochemical
processes are discussed in the upcoming sections.
6
Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047
Residue obtained Amount of available residue (thousand MT)
Husk 1360.2
Stalk 10201.5
Straw 10201.5
Boll shell 10908.7
Husk 10908.7
Stalk 37684.6
Pod, 7689.9
Stalks 38449.5
Bagasse, 21609.06
Top and leaves 3274.1
Cobs, 1581.3
Stalks 10,542
5. Overview of the technologies for energy recovery from
agricultural residues
The selection of an appropriate conversion process for bio-
energy production is an important and crucial prerequisite to
consider and depends on many factors such as the type, availability
and properties of the biomass feedstock; selectivity, market de-
mand, characteristics, environmental standards of the desired
product; investment availability, and the project specific factors
€rgens,
such as investment availability and various other factors (Go
Marion Carrier, 2014; McKendry, 2002b). In order to achieve a
meaningful conclusion the scope of this study was limited to re-
view the thermochemical and biochemical conversion options for
converting the agricultural residues which are discussed in the
subsequent sections.
5.1. Thermochemical conversion
Thermochemical conversion processing involves the application
of heat to decompose the biomass by converting the high-
molecular-weight compounds to lower-molecular-weight com-
pounds ultimately producing the desired biofuel products (Ahmed
et al., 2017; Mishra and Mohanty, 2019). Thermochemical conver-
sion technologies can be effectively used for the energy production
from agricultural residues in Pakistan. Based on the application of
heat and recovery of the products and these processes are sub-
divided include pyrolysis, gasification, direct combustion, and
liquefaction processes.
5.1.1. Pyrolysis of agricultural residues
Pyrolysis is the thermal decomposition of a feedstock at higher
temperature in the absence of oxygen (Demirbas, 2005; Reza et al.,
2019). Pyrolysis products include liquid bio-oil, solid biochar, and
non-condensable gases (A. Ahmed et al., 2018a). This process can be
further classified into slow pyrolysis, fast pyrolysis, and flash py-
rolysis depending on the heating mechanism of biomass and the
condensation of the vapours produced. Different reactor types have
been used for the pyrolysis, including fixed bed reactor, auger
reactor, fluidized bed, and circulating bed reactor. The properties
and composition of products depend on the process parameters
and the properties of feedstock used. This process has gained more
attention among the other techniques due to the production of
liquid bio-oil, which can be upgraded to have properties compa-
rable to the liquid fossil fuels (Persson et al., 2019; Wang and Song,
2018). Biochar is also a valuable product of pyrolysis with many
potential applications, while non condensable gases can be used
directly as fuel source or to heat the feedstock biomass to increase
its temperature to the desired value (Ding et al., 2017).
A schematic illustration of the pyrolysis process is shown in
 A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al. Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047

Fig. 5, while a summary of the recent studies into the pyrolysis of

agricultural residues available in literature is given in Table 4.
Shoaib et al. investigated the pyrolysis of rice, corn agricultural
residues at 500
C and reported the yields of bio-oil in the range of
51e59% (Sohaib et al., 2017a) and in another study they reported
Ioannidou and Zabaniotou (2007)

Ioannidou and Zabaniotou (2007)

Reference

the pyrolysis of sugarcane bagasse producing the yield of bio-oil

up to 60.4% (Sohaib et al., 2017b). Despite the several benefits of
pyrolysis oil, the presence of higher oxygenated compounds is a
Mohiuddin et al. (2016)

challenge that results in deteriorating the bio-oil quality and

Sohaib et al. (2017b)

Danish et al. (2015)

Danish et al. (2015)

Danish et al. (2015)

Danish et al. (2015)

Danish et al. (2015)

Bhutto et al. (2015)
Naqvi et al. (2016)

Calvo et al. (2004)

Calvo et al. (2004)

making it unsuitable for the use in internal combustion engines.
Ali et al. (2016a)
Ali et al. (2014)

Ali et al. (2019)

Ali et al. (2019)

The catalytic co-pyrolysis of biomass with hydrogen enriched
feedstock such as plastic wastes has been acknowledged as an
effective upgrading technique that increases the yield of bio-oil
and improves its properties (Anuar Sharuddin et al., 2016). From
the Pakistan’s perspective, the country accumulates huge quan-
tities of waste plastics which cause sever disposal problems. These
Lignin

plastic wastes can be copyrolysed with the agricultural residues in

22.00

40.16
37.41
37.41

30.34

17.02
8e15
7.89

17.2

22.0

5.71

the presence of appropriate catalysts to produce bio-oil with

e

e
e
e

improved qualities comparable to the liquid fossil fuels (Sun et al.,

2018). The plastic wastes have high volatile matter (>96 wt%) and
Hemi-cellulose
Compositional analysis (wt%)

low ash content (0e4 wt%) along with possessing the higher
carbon (81e90 wt%) and hydrogen (8e15 wt%) content (Anuar
20e30

Sharuddin et al., 2016). Hence, plastic wastes can offer more

19.10
25.19

15.20

11.14

20.91

21.49
9.16
9.16
34.1

8.42

hydrogen to enhance the hydrogenation reaction to improve the

e

e
e
e

bio-oil’s hydrocarbon content. The higher volatile matter of plastic

waste can influence the yield of bio-oil during the pyrolysis pro-
Cellulose

cess. Also, plastic waste has very low or no oxygen content, which
35e45
26.90
44.75

29.70

38.35
45.12
45.12
43.20

32.03
39.04

43.87

is also a very desirable aspect and can lead to a positive synergistic

e

e
e
e

effect resulting in the upgraded properties of bio-oil for energy

production. The agricultural residues can be employed to produce
upgraded bio-oil which can be used in the transportation sector to
The summary of the proximate, ultimate and compositional analyses of agricultural residues reported in the literature.

51.01
46.81
34.00
47.51
42.55
50.40
46.68
46.68

65.71

36.60
34.87
46.67
46.72
34.87
1.80

2.11

fuel the vehicles (Meyer et al., 2020) and run the engines con-
e
O

nected to the tube wells to acquire the water for irrigation pur-
poses and to produce various other useful chemicals (Sakthivel
0.04
0.04

0.12
0.55
0.07
0.18
0.18

0.61

0.08
0.14

0.23
0.14

et al., 2019). The solid biochar resultant from the agricultural

e

e
e

e
S

residues pyrolysis can be used as solid fuel in the existing coal

fired power stations by co-feeding with the coal. This biochar can
1.15
0.67
2.63
0.92
0.28
0.39
0.61
0.61
0.34

1.15
0.48
0.70
0.63
0.15
0.28
0.63

also be employed in many other vale added applications such as

e
N
Ultimate analysis (wt%)

process catalyst, adsorbent, and in agriculture sector to improve

the fertility of the lands (Ahmed et al., 2020a).
5.59
5.67
5.03
5.68
5.51
5.01
5.28
5.28
5.10

3.98
5.62
4.63
4.61
7.92
5.81
4.61
e
H

5.1.2. Gasification of agricultural residues

Gasification is a technology that uses steam, heat, and a
42.21
46.81
41.23
40.72
36.74
44.13
47.25
47.25
45.50

28.55
43.20
41.80
37.87
45.39
46.96
37.87

controlled supply of oxygen to convert biomass into the valuable

gaseous product called as syngas. Syngas is a mixture of carbon
e
C

monoxide and hydrogen. The hydrogen produced from the

biomass gasification is often called as bio-hydrogen (Fernandez
13.95

13.30

14.80
14.02

17.00
10.10
20.02

13.40
19.07

19.07
7.12

4.20

4.99
4.99

8.90

2.94
8.02
Ash

et al., 2020). This process can be carried out either as catalytic

gasification (in the presence of a catalyst) or non-catalytic gasifi-
cation (in the absence of a catalyst), the latter requires compara-
30.24
20.40
23.71
20.97
20.97

14.77

12.98

12.98

tively a high temperature (Naik et al., 2010; Gao et al., 2009). In the
6.19
4.95

8.47
3.82
FC

first stage of gasification, pyrolysis takes place below 600
C,

e

e
e

e
e
Proximate analysis (wt%)

volatile compounds are released, and char is formed containing

fixed carbon and inorganic compounds. In the second stage, car-
69.27
81.08

62.94
53.10
54.39
65.59
65.59

58.25

69.30
67.95
82.38
79.39
67.95
VM

bon present in the char reacts with air, steam, or oxygen. If steam
e

e
e

is used, this step is called reforming and produces synthetic gas

containing hydrogen and carbon dioxide. The agriculture residues
10.68

11.70

biomass with the moisture content of ~5e30% can be gasified to

6.85
6.00
1.14

7.88
8.45
8.45

6.96

2.50
7.43
6.21
8.77
7.43
MC

e
e

produce syngas. This process is an expansion of pyrolysis, as it

produces energy in the form of a gas rather than oil or char, and
takes place in a gasifier (Nguyen et al., 2013). Gasification is based
Agri. Residue

Wheat straw
Wheat straw
Wheat straw
Wheat straw
Cotton stalk
Cotton stalk
Cotton stalk
Maize stalk

on the principle of partial combustion and partial oxidation.

Rice straw
Rice straw
Rice straw
Rice straw

Rice straw
Rice husk
Rice husk

Bagasse
Bagasse

A schematic diagram of the gasification process to convert

Table 3

agricultural residues to syngas is given in Fig. 6. Syngas enriched

with hydrogen is recognized as a clean and renewable fuel source
7
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al. Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047

Table 4
Summary of the recent studies on the pyrolysis of different agricultural residues reported in literature.

Agri. residue Yields of products/temperature Research outcomes Reference

Bio-oil (%) N.C Bio-

gases char (%)
(%)

Rice straw Corn 51 (500
C) 19 30 The yields of bio-oil and gases yield were increased from 250 to 500
C. After that, the yield of Sohaib et al.
Stover 59 (500
C) (500
C) (500
C) bio-oil decreased resulting in a further increase of gases. (2017a)
20 21
(500
C) (500
C)
Sugarcane bagasse 500 C (60.4%) 800 C 400 C The increase in temperature resulted in a decrease of the Biochar yields and increases the Sohaib et al.
800 C (25.2%) (58.2%) (47.2%) yield of gases. Increasing particle size from 0.1 to 0.5 yield increased by 5.1%. (2017b)
800 C
(34.7%)
Maize stalk 490
C (42%) e e By increasing the size of the particle and the yield of biochar increase, while that of bio-oil and Ali et al. (2016b)
gas decreased
Cotton stalk 366e537
C (14 35e78% 8e44% The yield of bio-oil can be increased by decreasing the residence time of volatiles from the Ali et al. (2014).
e21%) reactor outlet.
Rice straw Rice husk e e 30% Rice straw produced a large quantity of water and less quantity of tar while the corncob Worasuwannarak
Corn cob 47% produces the largest amount of tar et al. (2007)
19%
Rice husk ~40% e e The properties and yields depend on the catalyst used Abu Bakar and
Titiloye (2013)
Rice straw, cotton e 57% 25% Sawdust biomass produced a higher yield of the gaseous product while the rice straw Chen et al. (2003)
talk, pine 64% 15% produced lower yield
sawdust 58% 17%

as its combustion does not emit GHG emissions except water as
byproduct. Furthermore, the high energy density (120e142 MJ/kg)
and better engine efficiencies of bio-hydrogen support the better
value of its use an energy source (Martín-Gamboa et al., 2016;
Rean~ o, 2020). Moreover,
ͦ the International
ͦ ͦEnergy Agency (IEA) has
ͦ
forecasted a major role of hydrogen as a fuel resource in future
ͦ
energy scenarios (International Energy Agency (IEA), 2019). At the
present, hydrogen production is mainly centered on the conversion
of natural gas which is a fossil fuel and the conversion process re-
quires the substantial involvement of energy hence hampers the
benefits of hydrogen as a renewable fuel (Rean ~ o, 2020; Zou et al.,
2018). Pakistan produces 81 million ton of agricultural residues
annually that have the potential to generate ~4.4 million m3/d of
syngas (Ghafoor et al., 2016). This syngas can be used in the power
stations to produce electricity. Gasification is a preferable process
compared to the direct combustion of agricultural residues as it is
more environmentally friendly (Sheikh, 2009). However, it does
have a higher initial setup cost, and the operation is more
complicated (Chandak et al., 2015).
5.1.3. Direct combustion of agricultural residues
In the combustion process biomass is burnt directly in excess air,
releasing heat and flue gases. The heating values of biomass indi-
cate the energy content released during its combustion. The heat-
ing values of different agricultural residues reported in literature
are given in Table 5. The agricultural residues are reported to have
the heating values in the range of 15.00e19.01 MJ/kg (Table 5),
which are comparable to the heating values of woody biomass and
leaf litters studied for energy production (Akhtar et al., 2015; Naik
et al., 2010).
The direct combustion of agricultural residues is a convenient
but not an efficient option for recovering energy as most of the
energy produced through the combustion is wasted to the sur-
roundings. It is the oldest process known to humankind for energy
production from the biomass. Despite the drawbacks, this process
is being widely used in Pakistan to produce electricity. Various
bagasse based electricity generation plants are in operation in the
different locations of the country, mostly attached to the sugar
mills. Bagasse residues from the sugar mills are combusted in a

Fig. 5. Schematic diagram to produce energy and value-added products via pyrolysis process (Beneroso et al., 2017).

8
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al.
Fig. 6. The schematic illustration for the gasification process to utilize the agricultural residues to produce energy (Zhang et al., 2013).
Table 5
The heating values (moisture dry basis) of different agricultural residues reported in
literature.
Agricultural residue Heating value (MJ/kg) Reference
Wheat Straw 17.25 Danish et al. (2015)
Bagasse 18.40 Bhutto et al. (2015)
Corn Leaf 17.37 Danish et al. (2015)
Rice husk 15.00 Mohiuddin et al. (2016)
Rice straw 18.74 Baxter et al. (1998)
Cotton Stalks 19.01 Danish et al. (2015)
boiler to generate steam, which then turns the turbine connected to
a generator that produces electricity.
In order to kerb the energy scarcity, government of Pakistan has
granted permission (license) to various industries (Table 6) to
generate electricity by burning the agricultural residues along with
the bagasse. Although this initiative would help in production of
electricity to meet the needs to some extent but the lower energy
recovery efficiencies and the environmental impacts in terms of
emissions of GHG and the particulate matter would still be the
challenges resulting in severe pollution and smog formation in the
country (Ramanathan and Carmichael, 2008).
5.1.4. Liquefaction process
Liquefaction is a process which converts biomass to biofuels at
lower temperatures (250e400
C) and higher pressures
(5e20 MPa) compared to the other techniques, producing mainly
bio-oil and small fractions of gases and char. In this process the
reactor feed consists of feedstock biomass in the form of a slurry,
reducing agents, and a catalyst. Water is the most common solvent
used in the liquefaction process while the other solvents used
include creosote oil, ethylene glycol, and methanol. Different cat-
alysts used in this process include alkalis (carbonate and bicar-
bonate), metals (copper, zinc, nickel, iodine, and cobalt sulfide), and
heterogeneous catalysts of Ru and Ni (Huber et al., 2006). From the
perspectives of using agricultural residues, freshly cut cotton stalk
can be the used as feedstock of liquefaction process as it contains
higher moisture content. A schematic diagram for the hydrother-
mal liquefaction of agricultural residues is given in Fig. 7. The
biomass is decomposed into small fragments in the presence of
water or another solvent; these tiny fragments are unstable and
reactive, polymerizing with each other to form new products. This
9
Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047
process takes place in the following pathways: 1) biomass de-
polymerized into monomers, 2) monomer molecules decomposed
into small fragments, and 3) rearrangement and polymerization of
small molecules to form new compounds. This process is similar to
pyrolysis in that both result in liquid products (bio-oil) but it differs
in terms of operating parameters such as it does not require drying
step (Demirbaş, 2000; Zhang et al., 2010). Liquefaction is an
expensive process compared to pyrolysis of agricultural residues
and it has the energy conversion efficiency of 28e36% (Kulshrestha
et al., 2015).
5.2. Biochemical conversion
Biochemical conversion occurs when organic material present
in the biomass is decayed by the action of microorganisms action
and converted into biofuels in either the presence or absence of
oxygen (Naqvi et al., 2017). The outlook of biochemical conversion
processes to utilize agricultural residues for energy production is
shown in Fig. 8.
5.2.1. Anaerobic digestion
In anaerobic digestion process carbon-containing molecules in
biomass are broken up in the absence of oxygen, producing CH4,
CO2, NH3, and other gases often called as biogas. CH4 formed
through this process is called bio-methane and is a clean source of
energy but this process is not widespread as it requires extensive
time as compared to the other processes (Lopes et al., 2004). From
Pakistan’s perspective this technology can be used in the rural areas
to meet the daily energy needs of the people.
The schematic diagram for the anaerobic digestion of agricul-
tural biomass is given in Fig. 9. A digester is used for the digestion of
biomass by microorganisms for conversion into biogas, which can
be used for cooking and domestic heating and as industrial fuel
(Amjid et al., 2011; Naqvi et al., 2017). The biogas can be upgraded
into bio-methane as a transportation fuel (Surendra et al., 2014). In
addition to the direct applications, biogas can also be converted
into methanol, which can be converted into other secondary
products such as anhydride, ethylene, polyols, and other aromatic
compounds (Ra €uchle et al., 2016). The feedstock having higher
moisture content are considered more suitable for anaerobic
digestion. The liquor produced from the anaerobic digestion of
agricultural residues could also very beneficial as it can be used for
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al. Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047

Table 6
The permissions (license) granted to different industries for producing electricity by co-firing biomass and agricultural residues with bagasse (“National
Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA), Pakistan,” 2019; Tareen et al., 2018).

Sr. No Capacity (MW) Company name and Location

1 12.00 SSID Bioenergy Limited, Mirpur Khas, Sindh

2 12.00 Lumen Energia (Pvt.) Limited, Jhang, Punjab
3 12.00 Shakarganj Mills Limited-II, Jhang, Punjab
Pak-Ethanol (Pvt.) Limited, Tando Muhammad Khan, Sindh
4 9.132 JDW Sugar Mills Limited, Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab
5 26.35 JDW Sugar Mills Limited, Ghotki, Sindh
6 62.40 Chiniot Power Limited, Chiniot, Punjab
7 30.00 RYK Mills Limited, Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab
8 15.00 Hamza Sugar Mills Limited, Rahim Yar Khan, Punjab
9 30 Alliance Sugar Mills (Pvt.) Limited, Ghotki, Sindh
10 30 Ansari Powergen Company (Pvt.) Limited, Tando Muhammad Khan, Sindh
11 30 TAY Powergen Company (Pvt.) Limited, Tando Allayar, Sindh
12 30 Bandhi Powergen Company (Pvt.) Limited, Shaheed Benazirabad, Sindh
13 74.40 Etohad Power Generation Limited, RYK, Punjab
14 20.00 The Thal Industries Corporation Limited, Chiniot, Punjab
15 41.00 The Thal Industries Corporation Limited, Layyah, Punjab
16 36 Almoiz Industries Limited, Mianwali, Punjab

Fig. 7. The schematic illustration of hydrothermal liquefaction of agriculture biomass (Gollakota et al., 2018; Zhu et al., 2014).

the soil amendment to improve the crop yields of the agricultural 5.2.2. Ethanol production from the fermentation
lands to increase the crop production. In fermentation process, sugar and starch-containing molecules
of biomass are converted into useful products (mainly ethanol)
through the hydrolysis process. This process can be used at

Fig. 8. Biochemical conversion outlook of agriculture residues biomass to produce different fractions of energy (Cai et al., 2017).

10
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al.
industrial scale to produce high yield of bio-ethanol. The recent
studies reported on the conversion of agricultural residues in
Pakistan and worldwide are summarised in Table 7. Sana et al. re-
ported the recovery of bioethanol from rice husk and wheat straw
given as 15.22 and 25.02 mg/ml respectively (Sana et al., 2017).
While Irfan et al. studied the bioethanol production from the
agricultural residues such as sugarcane bagasse, rice straw and
wheat straw by Sacchromyces cervisae microorganism and reported
the yields of bioethanol as 77, 62, and 44 g/L using medium
composition of 0.25% (NH4)2SO4, 0.1 KH2PO4, 0.05 MgSO4, 0.25%
yeast extract. Bioethanol can be blended with gasoline to use as fuel
directly without considering any engine adjustment at a mix ratio
of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline; this is called E10 and commonly
known as gasohol (Bao et al., 2014). As per the study reported by
Khan et al. Pakistan can produce 4.91 GL of ethanol from the agri-
cultural biomass resources (Khan et al., 2011). Proper utilisation of
agricultural residues resources to produce bioethanol can lead to
good profits in terms of reducing the import bills related to the
energy imports while improving the quality of environmental
standards in the country.
6. Recommendations from Pakistan’s perspective
Utilisation of agricultural residues in Pakistan as renewable
energy resource can offer a sustainable route to contribute to the
country’s energy mix to meet the ever-increasing energy needs.
The energy production via the appropriate and efficient technolo-
gies can divulge multiple positive impacts at Pakistan in terms of
economic aspects, 1) by saving huge investments being made for
energy imports; 2) in terms of environmental aspects, by reducing
the harmful gas emissions and 3) in terms of social aspects by
empowering the people of the country. It can offer the multiple
work opportunities for the peoples working in the agricultural
sector, transportation sector, daily wagers along with opening new
employment and investment opportunities in multiple other sec-
tors. However, the persistent efforts on the policy and technological
fronts would be needed to overcome the exiting gaps to grasp the
maximum benefits from the recovery of these vital indigenous
resources. Various important steps and measures have to be taken
promptly such as the launching the generous research and devel-
opment programs at the universities and research institutions of
the country specific to the research activities to use renewable re-
sources in the country. Effective collaborations and technology
transfer agreements have to be signed with the states and
Fig. 9. The schematic diagram for the anaerobic digestion of agriculture residues.
11
Journal of Cleaner Production 287 (2021) 125047
international organisation who have been successful in developing
the efficient processes and technologies for converting the biomass
residues to bioenergy.
Moreover, the public awareness programs should be launched to
sensitize the people about the importance of renewable energy
resources along with the basic education regarding the handling of
these resources effectively (Nguyen et al., 2020). As it has been
frequently noticed that farmers burn the agricultural residues in
the open fields without knowing the importance of these vital re-
sources and contributing to deteriorate the environment in which
they breathe. Furthermore, the agricultural residues are spawned in
the open fields in rural areas which typically lack in proper logistic
structure, the efficient biomass collection, and transportation sys-
tem would also be needed to move the residues biomass to the
energy recovery processing facilities.
Along with this, distinct financial support programs should be
offered to motivate the business investments in the renewable
energy production sector. Furthermore, the other barriers that need
to be overcome to make progress in renewable energy develop-
ment in Pakistan include the legislation gaps, institutional devel-
opment, information technology, financial, policy, and regulatory
barriers as stated by Tareen et al. (2019).
Nevertheless, an action plan by the concerning authorities at the
government level is needed to be chalked out on an emergency
basis. If appropriately planned and worked efficiently, it could
revive and redefine the whole energy, social and economic scenario
of the country by offering new employment and business oppor-
tunities in multiple sectors such as the agriculture, transportation,
engineering, and research and development sectors (Giwa et al.,
2017).
7. Conclusions
Being a developing country, Pakistan is facing acute energy
crises that badly affects the country’s economic growth. Along with
exposure to the severe environmental impacts, the government has
to spend a significant part of its revenue to import energy needs.
The situation demands the responsible authorities to bring efforts
into action to produce energy from the indegenous resources and
tackle the energy crisis. Along with the other renewable sources for
energy production such as wind power, solar power, and hydro-
power, biomass residues from the agriculture sector of the country
have a great potential to contribute to the country’s energy mix and
future energy deficiency. This review summarised the potential and
A. Abdullah, A. Ahmed, P. Akhter et al.
Table 7
Summary of the fermentation of different agricultural reported and products obtained.
Biomass Yield of product Research findings
Rice hulls 15.22 mg/ml With an increase in temperature, the loss in mass decreased due to the loss of volatile matter. Sana et al.
Wheat straw 25.02 mg/ml
Sugarcane bagasse Rice 77 g/l The highest yield of ethanol was obtained from sugarcane than the rice straw and least from the Irfan et al.
straw 62 g/l wheat straw respectively.
Wheat straw 44 g/l
Wheat straw The use of fermented wheat straw reduced the energy required for processing up to 80e90%
Rice straw 0.45 g/g at 60 h (dilute acid Different yields of ethanol can be produced by using different hydrolysates with Pichia Stipit is as Li (2012)
hydrolysates) a fermenting strain.
0.50 g/g at 48 h
possibilities of agricultural residues biomass conversion to biofuels
through the thermochemical and biochemical processes. This
article also provides necessary information about the agriculture
sector of Pakistan, where a significant amount of agriculture
biomass in the form of waste is produced in large quantities. Large-
scale utilisation of these agriculture biomass resources could help
to improve Pakistan’s energy situation and strengthen the economy
by reducing the energy import bills and mitigating the environ-
mental challenges being posed to the country. However, the poli-
cymakers must act on an emergency basis, plan and frame long and
short-term policies for producing more energy by using the
indigenous biomass resources to cut down the energy crisis in the
country.
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing
financial interests or personal relationships that could have
appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgment
The financial support from the National Research Foundation of
Korea under the project (NRF-2020R1I1A1A01072793) is gratefully
acknowledged. Also, this work was supported by the National
Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grants funded by the Korea
government (MSIT) (NRF-2019R1A4A1027795).
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