Argan oil is a major agricultural product with several cosmetic and medicinal applications. The process of extracting oil from the fruit produces waste, such as the shells, that have the potential to produce additional streams of revenue for the industry. Our project focused on identifying and exploring creative ways to repurpose argan fruit waste into commercial products to eventually be sold by a local community in Ketura, Israel that is just beginning to develop this resource. We designed and conducted exploratory experiments with different agricultural waste products from the argan oil pressing process. The outcomes of our preliminary experimentation indicate that pellets made from the shells for fuel, pet bedding, and cosmetic exfoliants warrant further research and development.

• This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

Creator

• Mina, Anastasia
• Espeland, Ashley
• Ducharme, Cooper

Subject

• Sustainability
• Industry
• Innovation
• Community
• Environment

Publisher

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Identifier

• 48331
• E-project-022822-052017

Keyword

• Sustainability
• Reuse
• Israel
• Waste
• Argan
• Ketura

Advisor

• Tuler, Seth
• Bar-On, Isa

Year

• 2022

Center

• Israel Project Center (Eilat) - IQP

Sponsor

• Nadav Solowey

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• 9 - Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
• 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
• 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production

Date created

• 2022-02-28

Resource type

• Interactive Qualifying Project

Rights statement

• In Copyright