Introductory Chapter: A Brief Insight about Glycerol

Abstract

Over the last century, oil-based economy drove the mankind on the edge of environmental collapse [1, 2]. Moreover, the continuous increment of oil consumption has rapidly decreased the worldwide reserves [3]. During the last decades, the increased accountability of companies with regards to environmental issues has represented a formidable driving force for the development of sustainable industrial processes together with innovative products. As a consequence, the production of fuels and chemicals has started to use recycled or renewable feedstocks in place of oil-based raw materials attempting to improve process sustainability [4]. Biodiesel commodities have been of the main driving forces of the sustainable economy simultaneously decreasing the emission of carbon dioxide and producing affordable biofuels for worldwide market. Actually, biodiesel production is mainly performed through transesterification of triglycerides using small chains alcohols (i.e., methanol, ethanol, etc.) leading to the massive production of glycerol as byproduct. A general estimation based on the actual production evaluate for 2020 an annual surplus of glycerol around to 4.2 × 106 ton/year [5].