Advanced Oil Crop Biorefineries

In Europe, the main oil-rich crops are sunflower, rapeseed and olive which are grown primarily for food. This book discusses how to convert this whole crop into energy (fuels, power and heat), food and bioproducts (chemicals and/or materials), whilst making optimal use of the by-products generated during farming/harvesting, primary processing (oil extraction and refining) and secondary processing (transesterification). The resulting processes are more economically competitive and the business margin for oil and biodiesel manufacturers is improved. Previously, oil crops have been the main point of focus but many of the technologies used are applicable to a wide variety of raw materials.