Pilot plant system for biodiesel and pellet production from cardoon: technical and economic feasibility

Toscano, V.; Sollima, L.; Genovese, Claudia; Melilli, M.G.; Raccuia, S.A.

doi:10.17660/actahortic.2016.1147.60

Cited by 20 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…The environmental sustainability of the Cardoon is plenty reported in the current literature [33], considering its ability to grow in dry lands of Mediterranean lands and its potential application in green chemistry. Regarding the content of oil in the seeds, it was depicted to be close to soybean and a sunflower [32,34,35]. As matter of fact, Turco et al reported the epoxidation of cardoon seed oil, obtaining a product with quality properties similar to those of soybean.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Poly (Lactic Acid)/Thermoplastic Starch Films: Effect of Cardoon Seed Epoxidized Oil on Their Chemicophysical, Mechanical, and Barrier Properties

et al. 2019

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In this work, biodegradable films based on poly (lactic acid) (PLA) and corn thermoplastic starch (TPS), additivated with epoxidized cardoon oil plasticizer (ECO) at 3% by weight with respect to PLA mass fraction, were prepared by melt extrusion process and compression molding. The effect of ECO on structural, thermal, mechanical, barrier, and spectral optical properties of the films was investigated. Spectroscopic analysis evidenced the development of physical interaction between oil and polymers, mainly PLA. In addition, no oil migration occurrence was detected after six months of film preparation, as evidenced by oil mass evaluation by precipitation as well as by 1H-NMR methods, thus highlighting the good inclusion of oil inside the polymeric network. The plasticizing action of the oil induced a lean improvement of the interfacial adhesion between hydrophobic PLA and hydrophilic TPS, particularly accentuated in PLA80_ECO composition, as evidenced by morphological analysis of blend fracture surfaces. TGA data underlined that, differently from TPS-based films, PLA-based systems followed one degradative thermal profile suggesting a slight compatibilization effect of epoxidized oil in these films. The shifting of Tg values, by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis, indicated a weak miscibility at molecular level. Generally, in the investigated blends, the phase separation between PLA and TPS polymers was responsible for the mechanical properties failing; in particular, the tensile strength evidenced a negative deviation from the rule of mixtures, particularly marked in TPS-based blends, where no physical entanglements occurred between the polymers since their immiscibility even in presence of ECO. The epoxidized oil strongly improved the barrier properties (water vapor permeability (WVP) and oxygen permeability (O2P)) of all the films, likely developing a physical barrier to water and oxygen diffusion and solubilization. With respect to neat PLA, PL80 and PL80_ECO films evidenced the improvement of surface wettability, due to the presence of polar groups both in TPS (hydroxyl residues) and in epoxidized oil (oxirane rings). Finally, following to the conditioning in climatic chamber at T = 25 °C and RH = 50%, PLA80 film became opaque due to TPS water absorption, causing a light transmittance decreasing, as evidenced by spectral optical analysis.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Poly (Lactic Acid)/Thermoplastic Starch Films: Effect of Cardoon Seed Epoxidized Oil on Their Chemicophysical, Mechanical, and Barrier Properties

et al. 2019

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“…Cardoon (C. cardunculus L.) is a perennial species of the Asteraceae family with annual growth cycle. The plant is well adapted to Mediterranean climates characterized by hot and dry summers (Raccuia and Melilli, 2007;Toscano et al, 2016). It comprises three taxa, C. cardunculus L. subsp.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In fact, from this plant, it is possible to realize an innovative range of bioproducts (bioplastics, biolubricants, home and personal care items, food fragrances, plant protection additives, etc. ), with a positive impact on the environment and farmers' income (Toscano et al, 2016). Moreover, the cardoon biomass, which contains cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, can be used to produce energy (Raccuia and Melilli, 2007;Ierna et al, 2012;Ciancolini et al, 2013;Toscano et al, 2016;Ottaiano et al, 2017;Gominho et al, 2018;Petropoulos et al, 2019;Turco et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cynara cardunculus L. as a Multipurpose Crop for Plant Secondary Metabolites Production in Marginal Stressed Lands

et al. 2020

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Cardoon (Cynara cardunculus L.) is a Mediterranean crop, member of the Asteraceae family, characterized by high production of biomass and secondary metabolites and by a good adaptation to climate change, usable in green chemistry, nutraceutical, and pharmaceutical sectors. Recent studies demonstrated the ability of cardoon to grow up in a stressful environment, which is associated with enhanced biosynthesis of biologically active compounds in these plants, and this effect is increased by abiotic stresses (salt, heat, pollution, and drought stress) that characterize many world marginal areas, affected by the climate changes. The plant response to these stresses consists in implementing different processes that modify some plant biological functions, such as alleviating both cellular hyperosmolarity and ion disequilibrium or synthesizing antioxidant molecules. The aim of this work was to investigate different cardoon response mechanisms to abiotic stresses and to evaluate their influence on the biologically active compounds biosynthesis. Following this purpose, we analyzed the ability of cardoon seeds to germinate under different salt stress conditions, and on the sprouts obtained, we measured the total phenol content and the antioxidant activity. Moreover, the growth of cardoon seedlings grown under heavy metals stress conditions was monitored, and the expression levels of heavy metal transport-associated genes were analyzed. The results showed the ability of cardoon plants to tolerate abiotic stress, thanks to different defense mechanisms and the possibility to obtain biomass with high content of biologically active molecules by exploiting the natural tolerance of this species for abiotic stresses. Moreover, we identified some important genes encoding for metal transportation that may be involved in arsenic and cadmium uptake and translocation in C. cardunculus. Then, this species can be considered as a promising crop for green chemistry and energy in marginal lands.

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“…The theoretical caloric value is from 16,500 to 17,028 kJ kg -1 of dry matter (Piscioneri et al, 2000;Encinar et al, 2002aEncinar et al, , 2000b. It can also be uses for paper pulp (Antunes et al, 2002;Gominho et al, 2001) or pellet for domestic heating (Gonzalez et al, 2004a;Toscano et al, 2016) or raw material for bioethanol production or co-digestion for methane production (Kalamaras et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Yields and quality of biomasses and grain in Cynara cardunculus L. grown in southern Italy, as affected by genotype and environmental conditions

et al. 2017

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Cardoon is a crop well adapted to Mediterranean climatic conditions that is able to grow also in marginal lands thus reducing competition for land with food crops. It is considered a key crop for bio-refinery since it allows producing different interesting molecules for industrial application. From stems it is possible to obtain large amounts of cellulose, grains are a good source of oil and proteins and roots can be a source of inulin. The aim of this research has been to evaluate the productive levels of different genotypes of cardoon in two different climatic conditions of Mediterranean cropland (a site in the Vesuvius plain and a site in the internal hilly cropland). In both the sites, during 3 years (from 2012-2013 to 2014-2015), three genotypes (Altilis, Gigante e Trinaseed) were cultivated with 2 planting densities (4 and 8 plants per m 2 ). A low input cropping system was adopted (no irrigation and 150 kg ha -1 of N supplied as ammonium nitrate). In flat site (NA-Ac.), lignocellulosic biomass yield was 19 t ha -1 d.m. and grain yield 2.7 t ha -1 on the average of the 3 years period. In the hilly site, biomass yield was similar (20 t ha -1 d.m.) while grain yield was higher (3.9 t ha -1 on the average) as compared to the flat site. As regards biomass composition, an increase of hemicellulose and a decrease of cellulose content were measured in the flat site, maybe as a response of plant to the higher drought stress.

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Pilot plant system for biodiesel and pellet production from cardoon: technical and economic feasibility

Cited by 20 publications

References 56 publications

Poly (Lactic Acid)/Thermoplastic Starch Films: Effect of Cardoon Seed Epoxidized Oil on Their Chemicophysical, Mechanical, and Barrier Properties

Poly (Lactic Acid)/Thermoplastic Starch Films: Effect of Cardoon Seed Epoxidized Oil on Their Chemicophysical, Mechanical, and Barrier Properties

Cynara cardunculus L. as a Multipurpose Crop for Plant Secondary Metabolites Production in Marginal Stressed Lands

Yields and quality of biomasses and grain in Cynara cardunculus L. grown in southern Italy, as affected by genotype and environmental conditions

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