Sustainable materials and energy from pine needle waste - a review

The accumulation of pine needle waste on the floor of a large pine forest is a severe problem. Dry pine needle waste acts as a fuel for forest fires which release harmful compounds into the atmosphere. The particulate matter in the smoke, released during forest fires, adversely affects human health. The top layer of fertile ground is harmed by unburned bioresidue. Moreover, pine needles provide the ground for pests' growth, creating a threat to nearby vegetation and structures. Managing pine needle waste through conversion into sustainable materials and energy will help reduce environmental pollution and health risks. The biosorbents from pine needle waste can be used to remove heavy metals and dyes from wastewater. The remote forest areas may be supplied with electricity obtained through the gasification of pine needles. The extracts from pine needles offer a variety of benefits such as anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antimicrobial. Currently, laws and subsidies promote the use of forest biomass to create biofuels. The present paper reviews the literature, provides the status and prospects, and analyses the literature data on the synthesis of bio briquettes, using the analysis of variance tool of Microsoft Excel^®.