Project seeks to fully reduce waste from the wine industry

The project was awarded an internal fund for innovation projects for academics from the Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción (UCSC).

Jean Pierre Molina Medina, Journalist.- One of the main problems that society faces is the negative impact that exists on the environment, a product of various industries. This is why generating recycling, reuse and waste reduction strategies became a priority for experts.

The academic from the UCSC Faculty of Sciences and PhD in Inorganic and Bio-Inorganic Chemistry, Daniela Morales, directs a project that seeks to reduce waste from the wine industry by 100% in the Ñuble region, specifically, in the Valley of the Itata. There, there are more than 4,000 hectares of vine plantations, which could take advantage of the residual biomass as raw material to obtain antioxidants and stove pellet production.

“This project idea was born about 3 years ago, thanks to Ciencia 2030. I worked there with my colleague Elizabeth González and we talked about the valorization of the sarmiento that is very unused. Then we participated in a course of about 8 months, which was looking for Applied Science projects that could apply for internal or external funds. And the internal innovation competition for the INES-68 project appeared, which was aimed only at groups of academics”.

The vine shoot is the name given to the adult branch of the vine where the leaves and bunches of grapes sprout. During the wine production process, the leaves fall and the branches are pruned to maintain optimal product quality, which generates approximately 112,000 tons of waste nationwide in a year.

A small part of this waste becomes compost, but given its qualities, most of it is used as fuel and burned, releasing large amounts of greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. In addition, this process is often not regulated or authorized and can even lead to a fire.

“We wanted to partner with municipalities in the Itata Valley that work with vintners to gain access to biomass, in addition to that way we can encourage farmers to participate in this circular economy, since they can diversify their business and generate income in another way while helping the environment,” said Dr. Morales.

In this context, the project seeks to carry out a valorization of the biomass in 2 stages. The extraction of molecules of interest (in charge of Dr. Daniela Morales and Msc. Elizabeth González) and then the production of stove pellets (in charge of Dr. Laura Azocar and Dr. Fabiola Valdevenito).

One of the molecules of interest are the antioxidants that are used for some pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and even some beverages.

Dr. Morales pointed out that the idea of ​​generating pellets with biomass from the wine industry is at the forefront. In countries like Spain, a similar study was carried out that determined the efficiency of the pellet produced in this way, so Chile could also position itself as another of the pioneers in diversifying the raw material to manufacture it.

“The pellet is a clean heating. In a smaller biomass but with a calorific value much greater than a log, so wherever you look it contributes to the circular economy, waste recovery and clean energy ”, he commented.

In addition, the academic indicated that in the Ñuble region there is no pellet factory. Therefore, the project could motivate some industry to settle in the place, generate jobs and take advantage of these resources, without implying long-distance transportation that contributes to the carbon footprint of the process.

With this, the project is expected to conclude in October of this year, and will allow obtaining results to apply for other larger funds, motivating other municipalities throughout Chile to replicate this model, taking full advantage of the industry’s resources viticulture and reduce the carbon footprint.