There is no better way to increase the wealth of individuals, communities, and nations than by turning waste into valuable products.
That's what this article is about.
How can you actually transform what is rejected into what you really need?
That is the whole point of circular economy, or more precisely, the valorization of waste.
Can we extract value from agricultural waste?
I mean real value, not just value.
So what kind of high-value products can you create?
Let's explore this space.
1.Cellulose
All plants contain cellulose.
That is why it is the most abundant natural polymer on earth.
But before we discuss its extraction, what are its uses?
Packaging comes to mind.
The material is as strong as a nail, making it ideal for packaging materials such as paper bags.
What is better than plastic as a packaging material? biodegradable.
Moreover, it is also an excellent water treatment membrane.
So how is cellulose made from piles of agricultural waste?
First of all, some wastes give higher yields than others, but all this can be evaluated by experiment.
Also note that these processes are essentially a type of small-scale manufacturing and require chemical inputs.
First, the waste must be cut into small pieces and washed.
Next, pretreatment with strong alkali helps break down the hard substances of plants, lignin and hemicellulose.
After this step, the material can be bleached and converted into nanocellulose by adding strong acids to the mixture.
2. Silica
Silica occurs naturally in the form of beach sand or construction sand.
But since sand extraction is frowned upon, what if we made our own silica from one of the most abundant agricultural wastes? rice husk.
But before we get into more detail, what are the uses for silica?
Fertilizers, moisture absorbers, water purifiers, insulation materials, etc.
So how do you make it from the shell?
After the shells are cleaned, they are treated with a hot alkaline solution to dissolve the silica.
Since we are interested in the liquid, we filter out the reacted rice husks.
Add acid to the liquid part (containing dissolved silicate) to convert it to solid silica.
Finally, the silica is cleaned, neutralized, and used for your chosen application.
PS Silica can also be converted to silicon, which can be used for energy applications in solar panels and perhaps batteries.
But this requires highly specialized furnaces that can heat even in the absence of oxygen.
Although a subject of research, silica from rice husk can also be converted into the form of pozzolanic cement.
3. Sugar
“What about sugar?” you ask…
oh yeah.
Think of fruit waste like mango, pineapple, and banana peels.
They contain significant levels of sugar, which could be extracted and reused in foods, beverages, and supplements.
One of the recommended methods to extract these sugars is using water.
The waste is heated in a water bath to extract as much sugar as possible.
The reason for that is mango, banana Pineapple waste contains simple sugars and does not require further conversion.
The extracted sugar can be recrystallized (by lowering the temperature) before use.
4.Biochar
biochar Basically, it is charcoal made from resources other than wood.
What is it used for?
Now, biochar is an excellent soil amendment used in agriculture.
It is also an excellent water purifier material and energy source.
So which wastes are useful for biochar production?
Basically, any dry agricultural waste will do.
For best production, top-lit updraft (TLUD) stoves are convenient, while waste materials such as rice husks can potentially be converted into biochar in the field.
Producing biochar is not complicated at all.
However, please do so away from residential areas as smoke may be produced.
Basically, production is done in the same way that charcoal is made, by burning biomass (agricultural waste) under low oxygen conditions.
Several studies point to biochar as a useful material for the production of future batteries.
5. Particleboard and cookware
Small sized waste materials such as rice husks can be glued together using adhesives such as starch. particle board.
Or crush the rice husks, plates, spoons, lunch box etc.
In fact, this is a business model that many startups have explored and found success with.
Rice husk is suitable for these uses because it takes time to decompose and because it comes from a natural resource.
6. Bioethanol
This renewable energy is attracting more and more attention day by day.
And we cannot talk about renewable energy without talking about bioethanol.
what? bioethanol?
Naturally derived ethanol.
Sugarcane and pineapple waste are unlikely to disappoint in this regard.
With the rise of sugarcane juice parlors, there is an opportunity to smile for those who want to recover waste and build a value chain from it.
how?
First, the sugarcane waste is washed and pretreated with alkali to break down the hard parts into cellulose.
The second and third steps require some financial commitment.
In the second step, an enzyme called cellulase is introduced into the mixture to accelerate the breakdown of cellulose into glucose.
Commercial enzymes are available commercially.
Finally, glucose and other monosaccharides are converted into bioethanol using the action of commercially available yeast (called Hamira in Swahili).
Bioethanol is collected by distillation.
Although the process appears simple, commercialization has been hampered by low yields.
Therefore, repeated extraction attempts are required to obtain good yields.
7. Antioxidants and essential oils
This may seem difficult, but it really isn't.
Imagine the skin of a pineapple fruit.
It naturally contains active substances that are known to fight disease and improve an individual's overall health.
This eliminates a lot of fruit and vegetable waste.
One good way to extract such substances is to use heat.
However, some of these useful agents may be extracted in the following format: necessary oil.
Essential oils are natural oils found in the waste products of some fruits, such as orange and lime peels.
It helps fight diseases, improve taste, and improve the aroma of lotions, etc.
8. Compost
We all want quality food.
However, quality food is not cheap as it requires several inputs such as quality seeds, water, fertilizer, and compost.
compost Not an option in the agricultural world…
It is necessary for farming in a sustainable manner.
It is obtained from food waste or livestock manure that has been deliberately aged by the action of water and air, producing a deep brown substance that improves not only the nutrients but also the microbial status of the soil.
Compost is a valuable product because it can be used to grow crops where soil is not present.
In other words, it helps protect the soil and increase its fertility at the same time.
9. Biodiesel
biodiesel It is different from bioethanol.
Bioethanol is produced.
However, biodiesel is only extracted from oil-rich seeds such as castor oil, jatropha, and croton.
Additionally, food crops such as sunflowers can still help produce food crops, although they may compete with food demand.
Therefore, it is better to use non-edible seeds or waste products such as avocado seeds (which may contain considerable fat) to extract biodiesel.
Biodiesel is a useful additive to diesel in vehicles and industry.
10. Profitable insects
Agricultural waste doesn't have to rot or attract flies, rodents, or disease.
It could be converted into useful proteins and vitamins using natural engineers – insect.
Black soldier fly larvae are known to enjoy rotten garbage, such as those found in kitchen trash cans.
And as they do this, these larvae get fatter in the process.
It stores large amounts of protein, carbohydrates, and fats that help the chicken grow.
Once mature, these larvae are harvested, dried and used to make chicken feed.
The same goes for crickets. Crickets are beneficial insects that convert waste into protein and nutrients that chickens can feed.
However, crickets can also be a delicacy for people and are gaining attention as a powerful alternative to other protein sources in the diet.
11. Algae
What do you do with leftover fertilizer on your farm?
Well, it can also be applied to the soil to grow crops, but is that all?
If you have the space, you can build a pond and use fertilizer as a nutrient source to grow and harvest algae called Azolla. feed the chickens.
The conclusion is
This is not the only value chain that can be extracted from agricultural waste.
There are many others.
But considering these things, we might think of making money from agricultural products.
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