Multisectoral Optimization of Residual Resource Valorization for the Bioeconomy

Abstract

Efficient use of constrained biomass and waste resources is a central challenge in circular bioeconomy planning. As biobased technologies increasingly enable the recovery of diverse products and services, identifying optimal valorization strategies becomes a high-dimensional problem. This study proposes a scalable, multisectoral constrained optimization approach for assessing the large-scale allocation of residual biomass under technical and demand constraints, here applied to metropolitan France. Environmental performances of optimal residual biomass valorization strategies were evaluated for 13 streams and 31 valorization pathways targeting nutrient, food, feed, power, and heat recovery across five prospective scenarios. Optimization reduced environmental impacts by 25–60% compared to baseline biomass reuse, albeit with a 5–15% increase in power demand and a substantial shift of crop residues away from soil incorporation. Beyond the French context, findings show that optimal valorization strategies are more sensitive to the scope and performance of valorization technologies than to background scenario variations. By highlighting the enabling conditions under which specific pathways contribute to optimal solutions, the proposed approach offers actionable insights for process ecodesign and bioeconomy policy modeling.