A focus on the transformation processes for the valorization of glycerol derived from the production cycle of biofuels

Glycerol is a valuable by-product in the biodiesel industries. However, the increase in biodiesel production resulted in an excess production of glycerol, with a limited market compared to its availability. Precisely because glycerol became a waste to be disposed of, the costs of biodiesel production have reduced. From an environmental point of view, identifying reactions that can con-vert glycerol into new products that can be reused in different applications has become a real neces-sity. According to the unique structural characteristics of glycerol, transformation processes can lead to different chemical functionalities through redox reactions, dehydration, esterification, and ether-ification, with the formation of products that can be applied both at the finest chemical level and to bulk chemistry.