In this sector the Institute has been mainly involved with non-food plants. For fiber plants, the strategic process is represented by maceration.
Today
the maceration
technique
must be up-dated
and, therefore
it is necessary
to experiment:
- different
industrial
maceration
methods;
- the processes
which precede,
accompany
and follow
maceration:
the treatment
with water,
the addition
of micro-organisms,
the consumption
of water,
steam and
chemical products,
the washing,
bleaching,
drying and
finishing
techniques
for the macerated
product.
As
regards oils,
more than
20% of this
production
is destined
for non-food
use and an
increase is
envisaged
in the next
few years
in the non-food
share. The
oil-chemical
and lubricants
industry is
interested
in replacing
mineral oils
with vegetables
oils as these
are renewable
and biodegradable.
The oils with
a high erucic
acid content
are more suitable
for industrial
use and have
great economic
and technological
potential.
Brassicacee
are the only
family which
can produce
oil with a
high erucic
acid content.
Amongst these,
crambe is
particularly
interesting
for its agronomic
and, above
all, for its
technological
features.
The high erucic
acid content
gives crambe
oil special
viscosity
properties
and a smoke
point hard
to find in
other vegetable
oils. The
research in
this sector
concern the
production
and characterisation
of crambe
oil and the
improvement
in the quality
of the protein
flours extracted.