Project Coordinator: Pr. Hassan El Bari / Pr. Toufik BOUSHAKI
Project Hosting Institution: Institute of Combustion, Aerothermics, Reactivity and Environment (ICARE), Orléans, France
Project Overview:
This project is a collaborative effort between the Institute of Combustion, Aerothermics, Reactivity and Environment (ICARE) in Orléans, France, and Ibn Tofail University in Kenitra, Morocco.
Partners:
. ICARE: Institute of Combustion, Aerothermics, Reactivity and Environment, Orléans, France
. Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco
Project Objectives:
The scientific objectives of the VLORMAC project are as follows:
- To develop renewable energies by utilizing biomass and waste, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions;
- To decrease waste volume and reduce the pollutant load of digested waste;
- To deepen understanding of gasification and methanization systems to improve the management of bioprocesses;
- To characterize olive residues in terms of their thermo-physical properties;
- To compare energy recovery processes—gasification, methanization, and direct combustion—both energetically and economically, to select the most appropriate process;
- To characterize the combustion of the obtained products in terms of heat quantity and pollutant emissions based on the composition of the produced gases.
Human Resources:
- SETIME Laboratory, Renewable Energies and Materials Team, Faculty of Sciences, Kenitra, Morocco: Professors, PhDs, Doctoral Candidates, and Students.
- ICARE Laboratory, CB2 team – Biomass Combustion and Biofuels
Material Resources:
- CSTR digesters
- Scientific laboratory equipment
- Gasifier, biomass boiler, measurement and analysis equipment
Outlook and Future Perspectives:
The project aims to treat olive oil waste in an integrated way by combining the biochemical recovery of margines by methanization (liquid fraction) and the thermochemical conversion of the resulting digestate and olive groats (solid fraction) by combustion and gasification. This approach respects the objectives of the circular economy, as it results in zero waste. We propose to study the possibilities of valorizing agricultural and agri-food residues, and in particular waste from olive oil production. The concept is to produce biogas and syngas from these wastes for use as biofuels in boilers, either on an industrial scale, or on the scale of small groups of dwellings (hamlets). The aim of the VALORMAC project is to determine the optimum conditions for using these residues to produce biofuels and burning them in specific boilers, in order to verify burner performance.