The environmental impacts of moving to different traction power sources have not been well studied in either developing countries or modern agriculture. This study assesses the environmental impact ...of the transition from animal to tractor power and vice versa. Three different scenarios are analyzed: a developing country context where draught animal power (DAP) is actually in use; a similar context where DAP is replaced by mechanical traction; and a developed country scenario where mechanical traction is replaced by DAP. The impact assessment focuses on global warming (GW) and primary energy consumption (PEC). The DAP system refers to an Indonesian case study where Peranakan Ongole cattle are used for work, together with the production of milk and meat, and fed with two forage-supplying alternatives. The mechanical traction system considers the cases of a two-wheel tractor (2WT) and a rear-wheel-drive tractor (4WT). In the first scenario, assessing DAP impacts for plowing through process subdivision and indirect impacts allocation to co-products, DAP has a consistent advantage regarding energy consumption, while for CO₂eq emissions, performance is better only in the case of 2WT. In the second scenario, considering product equivalent systems, substituting DAP with tractor power and maintaining the same DAP livestock farming more than doubles the impact; only with the introduction of modern, specialized livestock farming is a reduction achieved. In the third scenario, replacing mechanical traction with DAP results in a greater than three-fold increase in impact for PEC and more than 17 times increase for GW. Further work on the influence of system definition and the socio-economic background would improve the estimates produced in this study.
The European Union Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC (RED) has adopted climate change assessment as one of the environmental criteria used to evaluate the level of sustainability by indicating ...the impact values for every phase of the biofuel chain. This paper shows the results of a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from cultivation of sunflower for biodiesel production in Tuscany, Italy. In the five case studies, the GHG emissions of sunflower cultivation exceed the default value (18 g CO2eq MJ−1) indicated by the RED. This is mainly due to diesel consumption and emissions from nitrogen fertilisers that are on average 180% and 255% higher than the reference values, respectively. GHG emissions allocation among sunflower biodiesel and co-products was made according to energy content principle. Only the biodiesel from sunflower cultivated in the two most efficient farms achieved a GHG saving with respect to conventional diesel (36%) that made it possible to fulfil the RED's requirements. From these results, it seems that the observance of such requirements on GHG emissions for sunflower biodiesel cultivation phase in Tuscany will not be easy to satisfy without a significant revision of local farm practices, aimed primarily at reducing the use of nitrogen fertilisers and diesel consumption. In fact, the GHG emissions reported in the RED for sunflower cultivation were calculated using excessively low farm inputs compared with the typical amounts for sunflower cultivation practices in Tuscany.
► GHG emissions from cultivation of sunflower for biodiesel are investigated. ► Two farms out of five achieve a GHG saving in line with Renewable Energy Directive. ► Emissions due to diesel and nitrogen fertiliser are much higher than reference values. ► Default cultivation performances appear to be hardly achievable. ► Assumption of default emission values may result misleading in many study cases.
A new espresso brewing method Masella, Piernicola; Guerrini, Lorenzo; Spinelli, Silvia ...
Journal of food engineering,
02/2015, Volume:
146
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
•A new espresso brewing method called Caffè Firenze has been developed.•The method uses a sealed chamber under pressure provided by air.•Caffè Firenze is visually recognizable by the high and ...persistent foam.•Caffè Firenze differs from traditional espresso in physicochemical parameters.
A new espresso brewing method has recently been developed. The main steps are: introduction and tamping of ground coffee in a sealed chamber, introduction of pressurized air into the chamber, the introduction of hot water and a pre-infusion phase. It is substantially different to the usual brewing method used in bars: the driving force for the flow is the pressure difference between the interior and the exterior of the chamber (rather than pressurized hot water provided by a motor-driven pump); the extraction process is partially static; the pressure is higher than the traditional method; and the temperature of the extraction chamber can be controlled (in addition to the water temperature control found in the traditional method). The method has been tested with three chamber temperatures and two pressures. At all settings, espressos produced using this method have particularly high and persistent foam. Furthermore, changes in pressure cause changes in some physical parameters and the amount of key odorants in the headspace above the coffee. A benchmark comparison with the capsule method gives differences in several aromatic compounds and in almost all the physical parameters. In conclusion, the beverage produced by the CF method is clearly recognizable by a thick and very persistent foam layer, while the method appears more flexible than the traditional one as the characteristics of the EC can be adjusted as a function of brewing conditions.
Energy crops, and in particular oil crops, could be an important occasion for developing new non food production rows for a new multi-functional agriculture in Italy. In this view, the use of local ...biomass is a fundamental starting point for the development of a virtuous energy chain that should pursue not only agricultural profitability, but also chain sustainability and that is less dependent on the global market, characterized by instability in terms of biomass availability and price. From this perspective, particular attention must be paid to crop choice on the basis of its rusticity and of its adaptability to local growing conditions and to low input cropping systems. In this context, alike woody and herbaceous biomasses, oil crops such as sunflower and rapeseed should be able to support local agricultural bioenergy chain in Italy. In addition, in a local bioenergy chain, the role of the farmers should not be limited just to grain production; but also grain processing should be performed at farm or consortium level in oilseed extraction plants well proportioned to the cropped surface. In this way, by means of a simple power generator, farmer could thus produce its own thermal and electric energy from the oil, maximizing his profit. This objective could also be achieved through the exploitation of the total biomass, including crop residues and defatted seed meals, that may be considered as fundamental additional economic and/or environmental benefits of the chain. This paper reports some results of three-years on-farm experiments on oil crop chain carried out in the framework of "Bioenergie" project, that was focused to enhance farmers awareness of these criteria and to the feasibility at open field scale of low-input cultivation of rapeseed, sunflower and Brassica carinata in seven Italian regions. In several on-farm experiences, these crops produced more than 800 kg ha-1 of oil with good energy properties. Defatted seed meals could be interesting as organic fertilizers and, in the case of B. carinata, as a biofumigant amendment that could offer a total or partial alternative to some chemicals in agriculture. Furthermore, biomass soil incorporation could contribute to C sequestration, catching CO2 from atmosphere and sinking a part in soil as stable humus. Finally, four different open field experiences carried out again in the second year of the project, have been analysed in order to evaluate their energy and greenhouse gasses balance after cultivation phase.
Virgin olive oil vertical centrifugation under inert gas (IVC) was compared with conventional vertical centrifugation in contact with air (CVC). IVC gives a strong reduction of the oil oxygenation in ...terms of reduced dissolved oxygen concentration and oxidative indexes (peroxide values and K232). Minor compounds (chlorophyll and total phenols) and volatile compounds were not affected by the treatment.
Practical applications: A technical implementation of inertized vertical separators appears a practicable solution to preserve virgin olive oil quality traits. This can be easily implemented both by the mill owner with homemade adjustment of the existing machines and by plant industrial manufacturers.
Comparison between olive oil from conventional vertical centrifugation (CVC) and inertized vertical centrifugation (IVC).
The qualitative effects of vertical centrifugation (VC), i.e., the last step of the extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) extraction process, were investigated on an industrial scale by sampling EVOOs before ...and after VC. Several parameters were determined to evaluate EVOO quality. Vertical centrifugation results in a marked loss of volatile aromatic compounds, whereas only a slightly variation was recorded in the hydrophilic phenols concentration.
Malaxation of Olive Paste Under Sealed Conditions Masella, Piernicola; Parenti, Alessandro; Spugnoli, Paolo ...
Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society,
June 2011, Volume:
88, Issue:
6
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Virgin olive oils from pilot-scale malaxation under hermetically sealed conditions were compared with olive oils from industrial conventional open-to-air malaxation (control). Under sealed ...conditions, large CO₂ emissions coupled with O₂ depletion occur. Oil samples produced under sealed conditions were less oxidized and contained greater concentrations of antioxidant compounds (especially secoiridoids phenols) than the control. These results were attributed to the reduced O₂ concentration in the hermetically sealed pilot-scale malaxer. The amounts and types of volatile compounds present in the oil were only slightly affected by the treatment.
The stripping treatment of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) by nitrogen gas to remove dissolved oxygen (DO) was tested immediately after the oil production. Dissolved oxygen was measured before and ...after stripping, as well as one week later along with chemical analyses with the aim to assess the effects of the stripping treatment on EVOO quality. Stripping gave a great reduction of DO, of ca 50%. Both stripped (SO) and non‐stripped (non‐SO) oil samples showed a fast DO consumption up to zero in seven days. At this time, the non‐SO samples showed significant higher peroxide value probably as a consequence of the initial higher DO concentration that gives a greater formation of free radicals. A slightly lower concentration of total phenols was recorded for SO samples. A slight but significant decrease was recorded for only (E)‐hex‐2‐enal concentration within the volatile compounds.
PDF
