Room: Poster Area
Date: Friday, 22 May 2026
Time: 13:45 - 14:45 CEST
Session code 1DV.6
Valorization of organic waste streams and residues into energy and materials
Valorization of Sugarcane Agro-Industrial Residues into Metal-Doped Carbon Quantum Dots for Biohydrogen Enhancement: A Circular Bioeconomy Approach
Short Introductive summary
This study addresses the dual challenges of industrial waste management and sustainable bioenergy production by valorizing sugarcane agro-industrial residues into functional nanomaterials. Molasses and spent yeast—abundant by-products from sugar processing—were converted into metal-doped carbon quantum dots (C-dots) using optimized microwave-assisted synthesis. The strategic incorporation of iron and nickel at a 100:1 ratio created catalytic nanomaterials that significantly enhanced biohydrogen production through dark fermentation. Spent yeast-derived C-dots demonstrated superior performance, achieving 157% enhancement in hydrogen yield compared to undoped controls. Comprehensive characterization confirmed uniform nanostructure (3.5±0.9 nm) with successful metal-carbon coordination. This work exemplifies circular bioeconomy principles by transforming low-value waste streams into high-performance materials that enhance renewable energy production, contributing to Europe’s climate neutrality objectives and demonstrating practical integration of nanotechnology with biological hydrogen production for sustainable transport fuel applications.
Presenter
Alissara REUNGSANG
Khon Kaen University, Biotechnology Dpt., THAILAND
Presenter's biography
Prof. A. Reungsang is the Head of the Research Group for Development of Microbial Hydrogen Production Process from Biomass-Khon Kaen University. Her research interest is in anaerobic digestion (methane, biohydrogen, biohythane).
Biographies and Short introductive summaries are supplied directly by presenters and are published here unedited
Co-authors:
S. Sittijunda, Mahidol University, Nakhon Pathom, THAILAND
A. Reungsang, Khon Kaen University, THAILAND
Session reference: 1DV.6.1