Hybrid renewable energy systems with waste-to-renewable integration: current status and future perspectives

Energy plays a central role in achieving sustainable development, necessitating the adoption of clean and renewable sources that reduce environmental and societal impacts. In this context, waste-to-renewable approaches have attracted growing interest due to their potential to enhance energy efficiency while addressing waste management challenges. This review explores the integration of waste-to-renewable pathways within hybrid renewable energy systems, with a particular focus on solar energy conversion and storage technologies. Key conversion routes, including thermochemical processes, solar thermal systems, gasification, pyrolysis, and advanced energy storage techniques, are critically examined. Special emphasis is placed on environmental considerations, particularly emission control and sustainability concerns associated with waste utilization. By synthesizing recent advances and existing research, this review highlights the opportunities, limitations, and technical challenges of coupling waste-to-renewable strategies with solar-driven hybrid systems. The synthesis of the reviewed literature indicates that integrating waste-to-renewable pathways with solar-driven hybrid systems offers significant potential for enhancing energy efficiency, improving waste management, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Nevertheless, challenges related to feedstock variability, system integration, energy storage, and economic feasibility remain key barriers to large-scale deployment.