The Organizing Committee of the ISDRS 2018 Conference
Abstract
A sustainable system is characterized, inter alia, by a much reduced use of inputs and by the reuse and recycling of material
outputs (waste is considered a resource and resources have to be maximised within the system). Hence, a circular economy
model that moves towards the closing loop also suggests a drastic reduction or elimination of waste and dissipative loss. The present paper focuses on an useful concept of waste and by-products within the agro industrial system, based on the
perspective of circular economy.
This approach can be achieved through efficient small and industrial scale bioenergy plants, biorefineries and
environmentally friendly processes for the production of biomolecules to be employed as active principles in many sectors.
In particular, the case study of this paper concerns the exploitation of an olive-oil by-product (wet-pomace) as a new source
of energy and polyphenol compounds on an industrial scale.
The paper aims to design a technical and economic model of a platform which produces bioactive compounds from the Olea
by products, in particular from wet pomace, an olive-oil mill waste, which usually represent a disposal problem. By the
application of the MFA methodology (Material Flow Analysis) to the production process, the authors provide a case study
about the implementation of this kind of multifunctional platform in a region in southern Italy, where the cultivation of Olea
europaea L. and the production of virgin olive oil are widespread. The regional level has been chosen, because the local
approach allows for avoiding and/or reducing the economic and environmental cost of the waste transport.
The recovery of chemicals and the production of energy should be a continuous process of interaction between high
technology and environmental and economic sustainability, making this kind of platform highly innovative and consistent
with the principles of the circular economy, as well as with the development of a new business. The results have highlighted
that this platform can produce up to 6000 kg of enriched polyphenol fractions, generating an approximate income of over
155,000 Euros; moreover, each residue of the process (water, olive stones, destoned pulp) comes into a new use in the same
and/or external processes according to the circular economy. The conclusion underlines the main positive features of this
sustainable model, in particular the eco-innovation of the process and the economic and environmental advantages consisting
in reducing waste, water and energy consumption