Morocco Develops Clean Fuel from Olive Oil Waste, Boosting Renewable Energy Goals

Clean fuel produced from olive oil extraction residues. According to the Institute for Research on Solar Energy and New Energies (IRESEN), which is funding the project called BIOF2S, this is an exploit achieved by a multidisciplinary team of Moroccan researchers, reports Sputnik. This project is dedicated to the production of a solid biofuel from biomass, in particular olive pomace, which is a by-product of oil extraction and is composed of skins, pulp residues and fragments of pits.

A new "process called Solar Hydrothermal Carbonization (CHTC), the advantage of which is to work in a wet environment" allows the project team to transform the pomace into solid fuel. Similarly, the CHTC treatment allows researchers to obtain a solid carbonaceous residue that can be used to produce heat. Rich in carbon, this solid fuel, which is considered a promising energy source, would help reduce dependence on fossil fuels in industrial processes, according to national and international experts on clean energy who were given a presentation of the BIOF2S project during a meeting held on October 20 in Rabat.

The Institute specifies that "this R&D project was successfully carried out by three national partners, namely the National School of Arts and Crafts (ENSAM) of Rabat, the Green Energy Park (GEP) research platform of Benguérir and the company Benbel based in Meknes".