Obtaining a new source of biofuel from olive mill wastewater using solar energy

Abstract

This work is aimed to evaluate the applicability of solid portion of olive mill wastewater (OMW) for its utility as a renewable biofuel. A solar still unit was used to separate the solid residual from the liquid part of OMW. Three triplicate samples of solid residue were collected and tested for their calorific value, proximate analysis, and elemental analysis. The average calorific values obtained based on oxygen bomb calorimeter were 24 ± 0.65 kJ/g which agreed well with that obtained from elemental analysis (23 ± 1.3 kJ/g). This value is higher than that of refuse-derived fuel and lower than that of oil or natural gas but close to that of coal. Results of proximate analysis indicate a high combustible portion (83%) of OMW-Biofuel. The total amount of energy that can be produced from OMW-Biofuel in Jordan, expressed in terms of oil equivalent, accounts for <1.0% of the total imported oil by Jordan in 2014 and, if utilized, would result in annual savings of about US$ 17 million. These results suggest that the OMW-Biofuel can be applicable as a potential fuel.

Keywords

Biofuel / Olive mill wastewater / Solar still / Calorific value / Treatment

References

[1] Abu-Qdais M, Abu Qdais H. Energy content of municipal solid waste in Jordan and its potential utilization. Energy Conserv Manag, 2000, 41: 983-991

[2] ASTM E1755–01 Standard test method for ash in biomass, 2007 West Conshohocken ASTM International

[3] ASTM E1756–08 Standard test method for determination of total solids in biomass, 2008 West Conshohocken ASTM International

[4] ASTM E711–87 Standard test method for gross calorific value of refuse-derived fuel by the bomb calorimeter, 2004 West Conshohocken ASTM International

[5] ASTM E872–82 Standard test method for volatile matter in the analysis of particulate wood fuels, 2013 West Conshohocken ASTM International

[6] Borja R, Martin A, Alonso V, Garcia I, Banks CJ. Influence of different aerobic pretreatments on the kinetics of anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater. Water Resour, 1995, 29: 489-495

[7] Caputo A, Scacchia F, Pelagagge P. Disposal of byproducts in olive oil industry: waste-to-energy solutions. Appl Therm Eng, 2003, 23: 97-214

[8] Channiwala SA, Parikh PP. A unified correlation for estimating HHV of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels. Fuel, 2001, 81: 1056-1057

[9] Chouchene A, Jeguirim M, Favre-Reguillon A, Trouvé G, Le Buzit G, Khiari B, Zagrouba F. Energetic valorisation of olive mill wastewater impregnated on low cost absorbent: sawdust versus olive solid waste. Energy, 2012, 39: 74-81

[10] D’Annibale A, Crestini C, Vinciguerra V, Giovannozzi SG. The biodegradation of recalcitrant effluents from an olive mill by a white-rot fungus. J Biotechnol, 1998, 61(3): 209-218

[11] Flouri F, Sotirchos D, Ioannidou S, Balis C. Decolourization of olive oil mill liquid wastes by chemical and biological means. Int Biodeterior Biodegrad, 1996, 38(3–4): 189-192

[12] Gharaibeh S, Rababah A, Nishino H. Low cost treatment and disposal of olive mill wastewater. Pollut Solut, 2008, 9: 4-6

[13] Ginkel SV, Oh SE, Logan BE. Biohydrogen production from food processing and domestic wastewaters. Int J Hydrogen Energy, 2005, 30: 1535-1542

[14] Harker JH, Backhurst JR. Fuel and energy (Energy science and engineering), 1981 London Academic Press

[15] International Olive Oil Council (2005) Retrieved from the internet on April 2015 at: http://www.internationaloliveoil.org/economics3.asp

[16] Intini F, Kühtz S, Rospi G. Energy recovery of the solid waste of the olive oil industries—LCA analysis and carbon footprint assessment. J Sustain Energy Environ, 2011, 2: 157-166

[17] Kavvadias V, Doulaa MK, Komnitsas K, Liakopoulou N. Disposal of olive oil mill wastes in evaporation ponds: effects on soil properties. J Hazard Mater, 2010, 182: 144-155

[18] Mili S (2004) Prospects for olive oil marketing in non-traditional markets. In: Proceedings of the AIEA2 international conference of sustainable development and globalisation of agri-food markets, 23–24, Que´bec, Canada

[19] Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (2013) Annual report. Amman, Jordan. Retrieved from the internet on April 2015 at http://www.memr.gov.jo/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=B495BBqcNs4%3D&tabid=111

[20] Miranda T, Esteban A, Rojas S, Montero I, Ruiz A. Combustion analysis of different olive residues. Int J Mol Sci, 2008, 9: 512-525

[21] Morvay Z, Gvozdenac D. Applied industrial energy and environmental management, 2008 Hoboken Wiley

[22] Potoglou D, Kouzeli KA, Haralambopoulos D. Solar distillation of olive mill wastewater. Renew Energy, 2004, 29: 569-579

[23] Saadi I, Laor Y, Raviv M, Medina S. Land spreading of olive mill wastewater: effects on soil microbial activity and potential phytotoxicity. Chemosphere, 2007, 66: 75-83

[24] Scioli C, Vollaro L. The use of Yarrowia lipolytica to reduce pollution in olive mill wastewaters. Water Resour, 1997, 3: 2520-2524

[25] Shadabi S, Ghiasvand AR, Hashemi P. Selective separation of essential phenolic compounds from olive oil mill wastewater using a bulk liquid membrane. Chem Pap, 2013, 67: 730-736

[26] Shin HS, Youn JH, Kim SH. Hydrogen production from food waste in anaerobic mesophilic and thermophilic acidogenesis. Int J Hydrogen Energy, 2004, 29: 1355-1363

[27] Shukla PR. Energy for sustainable development: a social engineering perspective. Soc Eng, 1997, 6: 1-21

[28] Singer JG. Combustion: fossil power systems, 1981 Windsor Combustion Engineering Inc

[29] Tawarah KM. Thermochemical assessment of solid and liquid fuels used for domestic space heating in Jordan. Green Sustain Chem, 2014, 4: 202-219

[30] Tchobanoglous G, Theisen H, Vigil S. Integrated solid waste management: engineering principles and management issues, 1993 New York McGraw-Hill

[31] Tomati U (2001) An European regulation about olive mill waste industry. In: Proceedings of 11th international symposium on environmental pollution and its impact in the Mediterranean region, Cyprus, C5, p 184, 6–10 Oct

[32] Traore AS. Biogas production from Calotropis procera: a latex plant fund in West Africa. Bioresour Technol, 1992, 41: 105-109

[33] Ubay G, Ozturk I. Anaerobic treatment of olive mill effluents. Water Sci Technol, 1997, 36: 287-294

[34] Vitolo S, Petarca L, Bresci B. Treatment of olive oil industry wastes. Bioresour Technol, 1999, 67: 29-37

[35] World Nuclear Association (2010) Heat values of various fuels. Retrieved from the internet on March 2015 at http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Facts-and-Figures/Heat-values-of-various-fuels/

Funding

Scientific Research Support Fund, Jordan (WE/1/07/2013)