Development of an Orange Peel-Based Biorefinery
The specific topic involves the development of a citrus peel-based biorefinery for the production of succinic acid, d-limonene, pectin and biogas. Distillation is initially employed for d-limonene extraction, followed by acid hydrolysis and precipitation for pectin isolation, while enzyme hydrolysis of the cellulosic content is conducted to form a sugar rich media employed in succinic acid fermentations. The remaining organic content is fed into an anaerobic digester to produce biogas, targeting a zero-waste process. A preliminary study has been conducted using orange peel waste to demonstrate the capacity of different lignocellulose pretreatment methods for application in the biorefinery and we are currently optimizing the fermentative production of succinic acid from the hydrolyzed feedstock.