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The Waste Management Laboratory (WML)
of the Department of Environment, University of the Aegean,
has many years of experience in research concerning the
management of Olive Processing Waste on Lesvos Island and on
other islands of the North Aegean Region. Recently, an
extensive and thorough literature review has been published on
this issue by members of WML (M. Niaounakis and C.P.
Halvadakis, “Olive Processing Waste Management: Literature
Review and Patent Survey”,
Elsevier Publishers, 2006, ISBN-10: 0-08-04485-8). Many
interesting conclusions have resulted from this extensive work
of the WML, as far as methods for treatment of this kind of
waste are concerned as well as strategies for their
management. In the case of generated wastewater (being the
major waste from olive mills), the major conclusion is, that
the use of great quantities of water in the majority of Olive
Mills, that utilize a three phase decanter for the extraction
of olive oil, leads to the production of large volumes of this
wastewater. Olive mill wastewater consists mainly of water and
only a small percentage of olive fruit processing remains. The
supply and installation of mechanical equipment in the Olive
Processing Section (OPS) of WML gives an opportunity for the
promotion of research in a new approach for the management of
Olive Mill Wastewater, taking into consideration the way
wastes are being produced in the majority of the Olive Mills
in Greece.
The OPS was
funded through the program
“2006 – Year of Olive and Olive Oil” which was financed by the
Ministries of Economics, Foreign Affairs, Development, Rural
Development and Food, Culture and Tourism.
This approach adopts a modification of the technology in olive
oil production, which combines the reduction in resource use
(water and energy) together with the reduction of wastewater
production and utilising every component of the olive fruit
(oil, pit, flesh and juice). The approach is also based on the
research viewpoint that all components of the olive fruit – if
they are separated – can be
utilised.
In this way, all of the olive fruit components’ can have
increased added value (oil for food, pit for seed-oil
production or fuel, flesh for animal food and “pâté” and juice
as polyphenols raw material in food, medicine, cosmetics and
detergents industry, etc)
With the equipment that the WML has and the establishment of
the OPS,
it is possible to study four (4) different olive oil
production lines and their by-products. These production lines
are described below:
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Olive oil production by Compact 80 Press System
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Olive oil production by
De-pitting machine and Compact 80 Press system
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Olive oil production by
2-phase centrifugation
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Olive oil production by
De-pitting machine and 2-phase centrifugation
For the operation of the above mentioned olive oil production
lines the OPS has acquired the equipment described below.
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EQUIPMENT OF OPS
The Olive Processing Section has the mechanical equipment for
the operation of four (4) different olive oil production
lines. The mechanical equipment utilized can be divided in two
categories, namely main equipment and supporting equipment. The
main equipment consists of the following machines:
Ø
Compact 80 Press System
Ø
OlioMio Mini (2 – phase centrifugation system)
Ø
De – pitting machine
The supporting equipment consists of the following:
Ø
Washing machine
Ø
Leaf Remover
Ø
Elevator
Ø
Platform scale
Ø
Industrial Dish washer
Main Equipment
Compact 80 Press System
The Compact 80 Press System, model “Oliomatic”, has a
processing capacity of 80 kg olive fruit / hr. It consists of
a centrifugal breaker with hammers, a hydraulic press and 100
stainless steel discs. It also has an oil separator with 2
tanks for the gravitational separation of olive oil from
juice.
Press.jpg
OlioMio Mini (2-phase centrifugation system)
OlioMio Mini 30 TF was chosen as the 2-phase centrifugation
system for use in the OPS. OlioMio Mini is a monoblock machine
for the extraction of extra virgin olive oil. Its operation is
based in 2 – phase centrifugation and it can function in
continual cycles, without the use of hot water. It is suitable
for small scale olive oil producers or biofarmers. The
produced olive oil by OlioMio has room temperature and during
the extraction has no contact with the air, which means that
it has low values in acidity. The 2 – phase centrifugation
technology is widely used in Spain, but its by – products have
not been thoroughly studied.
OlioMio Mini
De – pitting Machine
The De – pitting machine was purchased from the Enorossi
company of Italy and has a processing capacity of 200 kg of
olive fruits / hr. The machine can be used in line with the
Compact 80 Press System and the OlioMio Mini, as well.
De-Pitting Machine
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Supporting Equipment
In any of the four production lines of the OPS, the supporting
equipment is important for the desirable result. For this
reason, a washing machine, a leaf remover and an elevator were
also purchased.
The system washing machine – leaf remover exists in all the
types of Olive Mills. Through that system the olive fruit gets
cleaned from substances, such as dirt. The leaf remover
removes the leaves and the small olive branches from the
production line. Leaves are removed because they give a bitter
taste and a green color to the olive oil, due to the
chlorophyll that they contain.
Leaf Remover
The elevator was purchased due to the height that all the
machines of the main equipment (press system, centrifugation
system, de-pitting machine) have, when the olive fruit
forwarded to each one of them.
Elevator
One other important issue for the OPS is the quantity of olive
fruit that is being processed for the olive oil production.
For this reason, a platform scale with a capacity of 150 kg
was purchased.
In order to have a complete view of the other parameters that
are involved in the production of olive oil, like water and
energy consumption, water flow and energy consumption
loggers have been also installed in OPS. Supporting equipment
also includes an industrial dish washer for cleaning the
stainless steel discs of the Compact 80 Press system.
The WML-OPS of the Department of Environment, University of
the Aegean, has the appropriate equipment to study four
different production lines for the extraction of olive oil and
their by-products. Furthermore, the results of experimentation
will be used for the study of implementing these production
lines to real scale Olive Mills. Till now, the WML-OPS has the
basic equipment for the extraction of olive oil from olive
fruit. Our aim is the completion of this equipment with the
purchase of laboratory devices for the analysis of qualitative
characteristics of the olive oil, the pit and the wastewater
of each production line. The utilisation of OPS equipment for
educational activities for both undergraduate and graduate
students of the Department of Environment (through laboratory
exercises, undergraduate and postgraduate theses) and
interested parties of the local community (such as small scale
olive fruit producers) will demonstrate the feasibility of
using small scale technology with minimal waste generation and
use of all olive processing by-products. The research in the
Olive Processing Section of WML will contribute to the
development of knowledge concerning the production, from
wastes, of raw materials for industry and the evaluation of
equipment and production lines.
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