Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
New 'OPEC' offers sustainable smell of sweet success
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-06/acs-no061312.php[font face=Serif]Public release date: 18-Jun-2012
Contact: Joan Coyle
J_coyle@acs.org
202-872-6229
American Chemical Society
[font size=5]New 'OPEC' offers sustainable smell of sweet success[/font]
[font size=3]WASHINGTON, June 18, 2012 — The least appealing part of the world's most popular citrus fruits could soon be more alluring to cosmetic and drug manufacturers and, perhaps, eventually help heat our homes and fuel our cars.
In research described today at the 16th annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference, scientists from the United Kingdom said they have developed a sustainable way to extract and find uses for virtually every bit of the 15.6 million tons of orange and other citrus peel discarded worldwide every year. These uses could include biosolvents, fragrances and water purification. The project, dubbed the Orange Peel Exploitation Company (OPEC), is a partnership between researchers from the University of York, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and the University of Cordoba, Spain. The research team hopes to have a prototype biorefinery up and running soon.
…
Brazil and the United States produce about 38 percent of the world's oranges, Clark said. After juicing, peel represents about 50 percent of the orange's mass, which until now has been usually discarded, either by burning, which creates greenhouse gases, or by dumping in landfills, where oils from the rotting peels can leach into the soil and harm plant life. In some cases, the largest juicing plants dry and detoxify orange peel so it can be used in livestock feed. Manufacturers also extract pectin, an ingredient used in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, from the peels. But these processes are time-consuming and costly and often require the use of acids and additional mechanical means.
Instead, Clark, Lucie Pfaltzgraff and colleagues said they have developed a green, one-step process that efficiently and simultaneously extracts compounds used in a variety of industries. The orange peels are exposed to high-intensity microwaves at low temperatures that transform many components of the orange peel into liquid that can be later collected and from which useful products are obtained. What remains is cellulose, which can be used as a food additive or a thickening agent or be converted into a solid biofuel.
…[/font][/font]
Contact: Joan Coyle
J_coyle@acs.org
202-872-6229
American Chemical Society
[font size=5]New 'OPEC' offers sustainable smell of sweet success[/font]
[font size=3]WASHINGTON, June 18, 2012 — The least appealing part of the world's most popular citrus fruits could soon be more alluring to cosmetic and drug manufacturers and, perhaps, eventually help heat our homes and fuel our cars.
In research described today at the 16th annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference, scientists from the United Kingdom said they have developed a sustainable way to extract and find uses for virtually every bit of the 15.6 million tons of orange and other citrus peel discarded worldwide every year. These uses could include biosolvents, fragrances and water purification. The project, dubbed the Orange Peel Exploitation Company (OPEC), is a partnership between researchers from the University of York, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, and the University of Cordoba, Spain. The research team hopes to have a prototype biorefinery up and running soon.
…
Brazil and the United States produce about 38 percent of the world's oranges, Clark said. After juicing, peel represents about 50 percent of the orange's mass, which until now has been usually discarded, either by burning, which creates greenhouse gases, or by dumping in landfills, where oils from the rotting peels can leach into the soil and harm plant life. In some cases, the largest juicing plants dry and detoxify orange peel so it can be used in livestock feed. Manufacturers also extract pectin, an ingredient used in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, from the peels. But these processes are time-consuming and costly and often require the use of acids and additional mechanical means.
Instead, Clark, Lucie Pfaltzgraff and colleagues said they have developed a green, one-step process that efficiently and simultaneously extracts compounds used in a variety of industries. The orange peels are exposed to high-intensity microwaves at low temperatures that transform many components of the orange peel into liquid that can be later collected and from which useful products are obtained. What remains is cellulose, which can be used as a food additive or a thickening agent or be converted into a solid biofuel.
…[/font][/font]
3 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
