Proposal of a New Green Process for Waste Valorization and Cascade Utilization of Essential Oil Plants

Christoph Jensch and Jochen Strube
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Christoph Jensch: Institute for Separation and Process Technology, Clausthal University of Technology, Leibnizstr. 15, 38678 Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany
Jochen Strube: Institute for Separation and Process Technology, Clausthal University of Technology, Leibnizstr. 15, 38678 Clausthal-Zellerfeld, Germany

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 6, 1-10

Abstract: In this study, different unit operations for distillation, extraction, capturing and separation of essential oil components from essential oil plants are evaluated, on the example of limonene and carvone from caraway fruits. Hydrodistillation is the standard process for obtaining essential oils and leaves the distillation water (hydrolate) after phase separation of the essential oil and the distilled plant material (pomace) as waste streams. In this study, a process for the valorization of these waste streams, using different techniques, such as traps and pressurized hot water extraction, is developed, reaching high yields, with a plus of 35%, compared to established methods, and reducing the overall global warming potential of the whole process, as well as reducing the cost of goods by around 30%.

Keywords: hydrodistillation; pressurized hot water extraction (PHWE); bioeconomy; waste valorization; green extraction; solid-liquid extraction; trap technology; cascade utilization; global warming potential (GWP); cost of goods (COGs) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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