AGRO-INDUSTRIAL BIOWASTE VALORIZATION TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY

MAZZA, GERMÁN; RODRIGUEZ, ROSA; FERNANDEZ, ANABEL; ZALAZAR-GARCIA, DANIELA; MUT, ISIDE; TORRES-SCIANCALEPORE, RODRIGO; FABANI, MARÍA PAULA

Advances in Engineering Research

Nova Science Publishers, Inc.

Año: 2023;

The biorefinery concept, comparable to a petrochemical refinery, is fast gaining attention. The application of this concept involves different studies and the development of industry standards. Moreover, the use of agro-industrial wastes for the production of value-added products and energy vectors has a significant prospective to revolutionize the industry. Consequently, in this chapter, different alternatives were proposed to transform green apple pomace (AP) from a cider industry, grape marc (GM), and stalk (GS) from a winery, quince (QW) from the jam industry, and pumpkin seeds (PS). To reach the premise of “zero waste”, an eco-friendly process of polyphenol extraction and subsequently pyro-gasification was proposed for the AP, GM, and GS. For the QW, a first pectin extraction step followed by pyro-gasification of solid waste was proposed. Finally, the PS was used to produce salad snacks.This work offers three methods to reach a high valorization of different agro-industrial wastes, promoting the development of sustainable processes. These strategies could have a positive economic and environmental impact, reaching a cleaner production in line with the concept of a circular economy.