Put the fried oil in the engine. But not only that, even animal fats and waste. The idea, which is already a reality, is to transform raw materials and waste of biological origin into high quality biofuels. The processing takes place in the Eni bio-refinery in Venice, the world's first example of bio-conversion of a refinery, through Ecofining technology, developed in the San Donato Milanese laboratories in collaboration with Honeywell-Uop. Thanks to this innovative process, Eni produces the Green Diesel which is added to diesel fuel to create Eni Diesel +, a biofuel with a 15% renewable component, a share that already exceeds the European target of 10% by 2020. Not only that. Eni Diesel + significantly reduces polluting emissions: up to 40% unburnt hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide; up to 20% the particulate at the exit of the engine. Moreover, thanks to a more sustainable production cycle, it contributes to reduce CO2 emissions by an average of 5%. (Video)
Nowadays, certified palm oil is used in the Venice Biorefinery, but Ecofining technology can transform the oil obtained from microalgae into Green Diesel, in the Gela test phase, animal fats and waste. And also, as mentioned, the exhausted vegetable oils, that is the fried oil residual of the professional activities. With the signing of a protocol between the National Consortium for the collection and treatment of spent oils and Eni, the Conoe invites all regenerating companies to supply Eni with the exhausted oil collected to introduce it into the plants of the Venice bio-refinery. Looking ahead, with the entry into operation of the Gela bio-refinery in 2018, Eni's capacity to process vegetable oils will be around one million tons per year, thus guaranteeing the purchase of waste oils produced and available on the national market, about 65 thousand tons in 2016. It has been calculated that this will entail a potential saving of 3.130 kg of CO2 equivalent per ton of biodiesel produced and consumed as fuel, while the water saved will be 1.9 cubic meters per tonne of biodiesel produced with exhausted oils.
