Date Seeds ( Phoenix dactylifera L. ) Valorization for Boilers in the Mediterranean Climate

Carmen de la Cruz-Lovera, Francisco Manzano-Agugliaro, Esther Salmerón-Manzano, José-Luis de la Cruz-Fernández and Alberto-Jesus Perea-Moreno
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Carmen de la Cruz-Lovera: Departamento de Física Aplicada, Universidad de Córdoba, ceiA3, Campus de Rabanales, 14071 Córdoba, Spain
Francisco Manzano-Agugliaro: Department of Engineering, ceiA3, University of Almeria, 04120 Almeria, Spain
Esther Salmerón-Manzano: Faculty of Law, Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR), Av. de la Paz, 137, 26006 Logroño, Spain
José-Luis de la Cruz-Fernández: Departamento de Física Aplicada, Universidad de Córdoba, ceiA3, Campus de Rabanales, 14071 Córdoba, Spain
Alberto-Jesus Perea-Moreno: Departamento de Física Aplicada, Universidad de Córdoba, ceiA3, Campus de Rabanales, 14071 Córdoba, Spain

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 3, 1-14

Abstract: : Energy saving is a global priority, as it is helping both energy and environmental sustainability by reducing CO 2 emissions. The search for new energy solutions is therefore necessary. In the Mediterranean climate, resources are generally scarce, and all energy sources need to be explored, including biomass from agricultural or industrial waste. There is a clear upward trend in date worldwide production, having doubled its world production in the last 10 years, and this trend is particularly relevant for Mediterranean climate countries, especially in North Africa and nearby countries. This study analyzes the properties associated with the date seed ( Phoenix dactylifera L.) to evaluate its suitability and viability as a new biofuel. Specifically, the viability of replacing the existing gas boiler in a university building in the south of Spain with a system of biomass boilers using this biomass was analyzed as a case study. The results reveal that this biomass has HHV values very similar to those of other biomass sources, 19.121 MJ/kg. With the replacement of the gas boiler by a biomass that uses the date seed, a reduction of 95 tons of CO 2 per year is obtained and an economic saving of more than 66% is achieved. In short, this work opens new perspectives for the use of this biomass of date seed in boilers and it is an efficient solution for large public buildings such as the buildings of Mediterranean climate universities.

Keywords: date seed; sustainability; biomass boiler; renewable energy; CO 2 reduction; energy efficiency (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:3:p:711-:d:201802

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