Reusing Olive Pomace Waste for Energy-Saving Applications in Construction: Development of a Panel Prototype

It is known that the existing building stock is highly energy inefficient globally. In Europe only it is estimated that about 75% of the buildings do not meet the minimum energy performance requirements. The other advanced countries present the same situation, while the developing ones, or even those of the Third World, are in a state of remarkable backwardness. That is associated to a robust global unsustainability for the construction sector. However, Nearly Zero-Emission Building (NZEB) or Zero-Emission Building (ZEB) appear to be a viable solution to achieve an effective energy improvement in construction along with becoming off-grid and carbon neutral. Furthermore, the recent directives on energy efficiency, in accordance with the European Green Deal and the 2030 Agenda, placed the energy implementation at the centre of the interventions, either on new or existing buildings. That, downstream, can also contribute to improve the environmental quality globally. In line with these themes, this paper will discuss the development of a prototype of a bio-waste-based panel for energy application in construction by reusing wastes from the olive industry, in accordance with the circular economy and industrial symbiosis approaches. The olive production process and the associated wastes consistent with possible applications in construction will be analysed. The panel will be manufactured by reusing olive pomace waste that will be analysed and implemented to evaluate the material performance mainly intended for energy applications. Also, a panel prototype will be tested in a scale demonstrator to evaluate the effectiveness of the designed intervention. That ecological and sustainable approach shows the potential to reduce the buildings environmental impact, directly influencing the entire life cycle. Furthermore, wastes reuse, following the Minimum Environmental Criteria (MEC) directive, can contribute to promote sustainability in construction, proposing valid alternatives to landfill and guaranteeing financial benefits to the involved industries.