Abstract
The sustainable utilization of different food waste and other products is one of the challenges of the European Green Course. Buckwheat has major potential as a food ingredient; however, processing buckwheat into food products generates a large amount of solid waste that needs to be sustainably disposed of. The by-products that come from the processing of the buckwheat contain high contents of carbon and hydrogen and can be used as raw materials for the production of granular biofuels. This work proposes and explores the potential of a different route of buckwheat husk ash utilization. Chemical analysis of the buckwheat husk ash (BHA) and uncleaned buckwheat husks (UBH) showed significant amounts of primary and secondary nutrients (0.28 ± 0.06%–5.84 ± 0.43% P2O5; 4.56 ± 0.46%–38.63 ± 1.82% K2O; 0.09 ± 0.01%–12.18 ± 0.38% CaO and 0.47 ± 0.08%–3.56 ± 0.18% MgO) as well as micronutrients (Zn, Mn, Cu, and Fe) and carbon (29.53 ± 0.50%–54.35 ± 0.58% C). It has been determined that granular biofertilizers can be produced by using drum granulators from the mixture of raw materials in an 80–20% BHA, 20–80% UBH, and 10% polyvinyl acetate (PVA) solution. However, when more than 20% of the UBH is present in the raw material mixture, the humidity of granules is high (more than 6%), and bulk density is low (less than 450 kg/m3). The pH values of 10% solution of the produced granules range from 12.0 to 9.7; thus, the fertilizers can act as a liming agent, which can be recommended for acid soils. This suggests a potential for a cradle-to-cradle type of regenerative engineering process design, where the end product of buckwheat processing—buckwheat husk ash and untreated buckwheat husks—can be returned back to the soil to replenish the nutrients, resulting in an overall sustainable process.
Highlights
Accepted: 26 January 2022Buckwheat has major potential as a food ingredient since it contains proteins of high nutritional value, dietary fiber, starch, rutin, D-chiro-inositol, vitamins, and minerals [1,2].The consumption of buckwheat protein has been shown to lower plasma cholesterol [3].While currently underutilized due to its lower yields compared to wheat and other cereals, it has recently sparked a new interest due to the possibility of using it to recover the marginal areas [4]
The results indicate nificant concentrations of hydrochloric acid-soluble secondary macronutrients, including that buckwheat husk ash (BHA)
Based on the results of the chemical and instrumental analysis, it can be stated that both wastes from the production of the buckwheat groats can be used for the production of environmentally friendly bulk fertilizers
Summary
Accepted: 26 January 2022Buckwheat has major potential as a food ingredient since it contains proteins of high nutritional value, dietary fiber, starch, rutin, D-chiro-inositol, vitamins, and minerals [1,2].The consumption of buckwheat protein has been shown to lower plasma cholesterol [3].While currently underutilized due to its lower yields compared to wheat and other cereals, it has recently sparked a new interest due to the possibility of using it to recover the marginal areas [4]. Buckwheat has major potential as a food ingredient since it contains proteins of high nutritional value, dietary fiber, starch, rutin, D-chiro-inositol, vitamins, and minerals [1,2]. The consumption of buckwheat protein has been shown to lower plasma cholesterol [3]. While currently underutilized due to its lower yields compared to wheat and other cereals, it has recently sparked a new interest due to the possibility of using it to recover the marginal areas [4]. Buckwheat can be planted in various soil types, including infertile and poorly tilled areas [5]. It can help to manage nutrient balance by acting as a phosphorus scavenger due to its high capability of absorbing soil phosphorus [4].
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