Blue is the new green: Valorization of crustacean waste

Every year, large amounts of marine biomass waste are generated around the globe. In the case of crustaceans, an opportunity is loss to convert these chemically rich streams into important and industrially relevant materials (e.g., chitin, chitosan, calcium carbonate, proteins, and other nitrogen-containing compounds) as these residues are often landfilled or directly discarded in the environment. Current processes to produce chemicals from marine biomass rely on wasteful, chemically- and energy-intensive methods that can harm human health and the environment and produce materials with limited applicability to downstream applications. Herein, an overview of the current status of marine biomass valorization is presented, as well as a comparison between traditional and more sustainable methods for the extraction of chemicals from waste crustacean shells. The pathways for the synthesis of nanomaterials from marine biomass is also highlighted, alongside with the synergic correlation between a ‘greener’ strategy for the implementation of a marine biorefinery and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.