{"id":2969,"date":"2020-08-06T07:38:36","date_gmt":"2020-08-06T07:38:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/?p=2969"},"modified":"2020-08-06T07:41:09","modified_gmt":"2020-08-06T07:41:09","slug":"will-israeli-watermelons-become-renewable-fuel-in-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/en\/health-nutrition\/will-israeli-watermelons-become-renewable-fuel-in-the-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Israeli watermelons become renewable fuel in the future?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Watermelons: The renewable fuel of the future?\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/PG4AqsMzl9Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Hot Israeli summer days are the perfect time to snack on a deliciously fresh slice of sweet and chilled watermelon. The Malali watermelon is less known for its tasty pulp, but rather it&#8217;s crunchy seeds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately,\nthe melon seeds are the only part of the watermelon that is being used. The\nrest of the fruit is thrown into the field where it goes to waste.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, a new Israeli study has found that the fruit residue can be used to produce ethanol, an alternative biological fuel for vehicles, which is also the main ingredient in alcohol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Kefar_malal_history_-_malali_watermelon_efi_elian.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2978\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Kefar_malal_history_-_malali_watermelon_efi_elian.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Kefar_malal_history_-_malali_watermelon_efi_elian-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/Kefar_malal_history_-_malali_watermelon_efi_elian-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><figcaption><em>The Malali watermelon is named after the village of Kfar Malal in central Israel, where the variety was first cultivated. Photo by Efi Elian\/Wikimedia Commons<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>A\ndifferent kind of melon<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Malali\nwatermelon is named after the village of Kfar Malal in central Israel, where\nthe variety was first cultivated. Research suggests that the Malali variety is\na cross between the local <a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/278077174_Origin_and_history_of_old_cucurbit_cultivars_in_Israel_and_the_sources_of_several_internationally_important_market_types\">Mahasni and the Chilean Black<\/a>. Today the Malali grows in Israel\non a total area of 40,000 dunams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Contrary to\nother Israeli varieties, which contain few to no seeds, the Malali watermelon is\nriddled with them. The local watermelon plants provide the nut industry with\n2,800 tons of seeds a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At some\npoint in the growth of the watermelons, the farmers stop watering them for\nabout two weeks, which induces stress on the fruits. This stress encourages the\nmelons to take care of the &#8220;next generation&#8221; by accelerating the\nripening process of the seeds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When the\nseeds are ripe, a combined harvester separates the seeds from the fruit and\ncollects them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the pulp and the peel, which together make up 97 percent of the watermelon\u2019s weight, are not collected but discarded in the field. &#8220;The wastage here is clear and glaring,&#8221; says Associate Professor Yoram Gerchman of the Department of Biology and Environment at the University of Haifa and the Oranim Academic College, who oversaw the research conducted by one of his students in his laboratory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48392424232_8ea738f0fd_o-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2970\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48392424232_8ea738f0fd_o-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48392424232_8ea738f0fd_o-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48392424232_8ea738f0fd_o-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48392424232_8ea738f0fd_o-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48392424232_8ea738f0fd_o-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>Contrary to other Israeli varieties, which contain few to no seeds, the Malali watermelon is riddled with them. Marco Verch on Flickr<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>200 tons\nof carbon dioxide<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This waste\nalso has environmental consequences. The pulp accounts for 59 percent of the\nMalali watermelon weight, but it is not sold as food because the Malali variety\nis not famous for its taste. Therefore, every year, about 56,000 tons of\nwatermelon pulp is wasted in the fields, 5,600 tons of which are sugars. When\nvarious bacteria and fungi in the soil begin to feed on the sugars, they\nrelease greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide), which contribute to the\ngreenhouse gas effect and thereby to the climate crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The researchers estimate each year a total of 8,200 tons of carbon dioxide are emitted into the atmosphere on account of watermelon waste. Additional carbon dioxide is released during the watermelon production process due to the use of agricultural tools, fertilizer, and water \u2013 all for a product, of which 97 percent is wasted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48769735478_c759f7e658_o-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2974\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48769735478_c759f7e658_o-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48769735478_c759f7e658_o-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48769735478_c759f7e658_o-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48769735478_c759f7e658_o-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/48769735478_c759f7e658_o-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>Every year, about 56,000 tons of watermelon pulp is wasted in the fields. Photo by Ivan Radic on Flickr<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Turn the\nsugar into fuel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the new\nstudy, which was conducted at Gerchman&#8217;s laboratory as part of a bachelor&#8217;s\nproject in biology by his student Maya Maliniak, the researchers examined the\npossibility of producing ethanol from watermelon pulp. There are now\nethanol-fueled engines, but even a regular gasoline engine can run on gasoline\ncontaining up to 10 percent ethanol. One of the benefits of using bio-ethanol,\nand biofuels in general, is reducing fossil fuel dependence: coal, oil, and\nnatural gas, whose reserves are depleted without the ability to regenerate and\nwhose use generates substantial greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the\nuse of ethanol also has disadvantages, the most prominent of which is that for\nits production, agricultural lands are used for industrial crops or non-food\ncrops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In various\ncountries, grains and other edible plants (mainly corn and sugar cane) are\nexplicitly grown for ethanol production, a phenomenon that exacerbates global\nfood shortages and raises food prices. In the small nation of Israel, where it\nis still necessary to import most of the grain seeds that are consumed, there\nis currently no ethanol industry. Using watermelon waste, however, will allow\nethanol production without wasting agricultural land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When a\nwatermelon is not watered, it loses its liquids, but not its sugar content.\nTherefore, the sugar percentage in ripe Malali watermelons is high, up to 18\npercent, compared to only 10 percent in the edible varieties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition\nto ethanol, the researchers also examined the possibility of using watermelon\nwaste to produce lycopene: a dietary supplement sold in health food stores as\nan antioxidant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Lycopene, which is present in large quantities in watermelon and what gives it its red color, is usually produced from tomatoes grown specifically for this purpose. &#8220;Watermelons have a large amount of lycopene that is simply thrown into the field,&#8221; says Gerchman. According to him, the profit from the utilization of lycopene in watermelons can help farmers. &#8220;Farmers do not earn much from watermelon seeds, and agriculture is generally a very unprofitable field. The farmers would welcome any additional amount.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/mche-lee-cw9RLnvQ8pM-unsplash-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2982\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/mche-lee-cw9RLnvQ8pM-unsplash-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/mche-lee-cw9RLnvQ8pM-unsplash-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/mche-lee-cw9RLnvQ8pM-unsplash-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/mche-lee-cw9RLnvQ8pM-unsplash-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/mche-lee-cw9RLnvQ8pM-unsplash-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>The new study examined the possibility of producing ethanol from watermelon pulp. Photo by MChe Lee on Unsplash<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>&#8220;The\neasiest waste I\u2019ve ever worked with&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the new\nstudy, the researchers collected several dozens of watermelons during the\nharvest period in the Jezreel Valley area and fermented the watermelon juice\ninto ethanol. &#8220;It turns out that watermelons are fermenting very\nwell,&#8221; says Gerchman, who has researched ethanol production from various\nmaterials, such as pruning waste, olive waste, and paper waste. &#8220;This is\nthe easiest waste I have ever worked with.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In\naddition, the researchers found that each watermelon can produce eight capsules\nof lycopene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gerchman\nand his team are currently working on raising funding that will allow them to\nadvance to the next stage of the research. This next stage will include larger\nquantities of watermelons and will be carried out outside the laboratory\nconditions &#8211; in the agricultural field, using tools used by watermelon farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gerchman\nhopes that in the future, the production of ethanol from watermelon waste will\nbecome a reality that will be implemented in the fields.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s\nnot complicated to develop a combine harvester that would transfer the\nwatermelon juice to the tanker instead of throwing it in the field,&#8221; Gerchman\nsays.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The tanker would transport the juice to a container near the settlement where it is fermented to ethanol. Afterward, another tanker would take the ethanol to gas stations or chemical companies. My vision is that this will happen in any settlement that has watermelon fields,&#8221; he adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"738\" src=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/14978433015_46a5684905_o-1024x738.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2986\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/14978433015_46a5684905_o-1024x738.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/14978433015_46a5684905_o-300x216.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/14978433015_46a5684905_o-768x554.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/14978433015_46a5684905_o-1536x1108.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/14978433015_46a5684905_o-2048x1477.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption><em>&#8220;It&#8217;s not complicated to develop a combine harvester that would transfer the watermelon juice to a tanker instead of throwing it in the field.&#8221;  Photo by David Wright on Flickr<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>First\nstep towards ethanol production in Israel<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It should\nbe noted that since the watermelon industry in Israel is rather small, the\ntotal amount of ethanol that can be produced with this method is according to\nthe researchers only 2,900 tons per year (for comparison, the amount of\ngasoline used in Israel each year is 3.2 million tons).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Beyond\nthat, the growth is seasonal, so the waste is only available at certain times\nof the year. However, according to Gerchman, extracting ethanol from the\nwatermelons is still worthwhile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;When\nit comes to setting up an ethanol plant in a place like Israel, which has no\nhistory of ethanol production whatsoever, you have to start somewhere,&#8221; he\nsays. According to Gerchman, the proposals for ethanol production in Israel\nfocus on raw materials such as pruning waste, which are available in large\nquantities throughout the year. However, unlike watermelons, the production of\nethanol from other materials requires complex early treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although the researchers did not perform a comprehensive economic analysis to test the profitability of ethanol production from watermelons, in Gerchman&#8217;s opinion, it would still be economically viable. &#8220;In today\u2019s ethanol industry, most of the cost lies in the raw material, which in this case is free,&#8221; he concludes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>This ZAVIT article was also published in&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ynetnews.com\/environment\/article\/ry624mvgD\">Ynetnews<\/a>&nbsp;on 07\/25\/2020.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hot Israeli summer days are the perfect time to snack on a deliciously fresh slice of sweet and chilled watermelon. &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":2990,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15,11,10,9],"tags":[],"acf":[],"post-meta-fields":{"_edit_lock":["1596699669:11"],"_thumbnail_id":["2990"],"_oembed_6504d0a27c5140cd6c47b57dfadbbbd8":["<iframe title=\"Watermelons: The renewable fuel of the future?\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/PG4AqsMzl9Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>"],"_oembed_time_6504d0a27c5140cd6c47b57dfadbbbd8":["1596699516"],"_edit_last":["11"],"subtitle":["The Malali watermelon is known for its large crunchy seeds, a popular snack among Israelis. However, 97 percent of the fruit is discarded in the field as waste. A new Israeli study shows that this waste could be used to produce renewable fuel"],"_subtitle":["field_59d3d36ea7fe1"],"_wpml_media_duplicate":["1"],"_wpml_media_featured":["1"]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2969"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2969"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2969\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3000,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2969\/revisions\/3000"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.zavit.org.il\/intl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}