Smallops is a company dedicated to the valorization of olive oil waste to produce zero-valent iron nanoparticles encapsulated in carbon and biogas (green energy). Just over a year ago, the three founding partners, María Jara, Rubén Escudero, and Iñigo Monreal, established ourselves in Badajoz, Extremadura, to develop the technology and test the technical and economic viability of the processes. After a year of hard work and multiple tests, we can confirm that, thanks to our technology, we provide a viable and cost-effective solution for the management of waste from olive oil production.
We have developed a solution through which we apply a new treatment to olive oil waste that allows the production of biogas exclusively from these substrates. It is worth noting that, in the same way our technology allows us to generate biogas, it also allows us to produce our iron nanoparticles, called OPS, which are encapsulated in carbon. These nanoparticles have various potential environmental applications, including improving biogas production by applying them directly to a biological reactor, as well as water treatment, eliminating various pesticides, heavy metals, and other priority and emerging pollutants.
Over the past few months, Smallops has conducted various trials that allow us to confirm that the technology is suitable for application in real-world settings. First, after several months of testing in collaboration with external technology centers, we have successfully produced biogas with approximately 60% methane from olive oil production waste using a low-cost technology and without observing any inhibitions. These results have led us to attract interest from several companies in implementing our technology and producing biogas and biomethane using our method.
