Valorization of products from grounded-coffee beans

Area of Science:

• Food Science and Technology
• Environmental Science and Engineering
• Sustainable Materials

Background:

• Ground coffee beans are a significant waste stream from the food and beverage industry.
• Traditional cold brew coffee extraction is time-consuming (24 hours).
• Disposal of spent coffee grounds poses environmental challenges, including water pollution and ecosystem disruption.

Purpose of the Study:

• To optimize the cold brew coffee extraction process for efficiency and quality.
• To develop a sustainable downstream product from waste spent coffee grounds.
• To assess the efficacy of spent coffee grounds in firelighter applications.

Main Methods:

• Investigated cold brew extraction parameters: temperature (15-20°C) and coffee-to-water ratio.
• Reduced extraction time from 24 hours to 2-4 hours.
• Developed and tested firelighters using spent ground coffee beans.

Main Results:

• Optimized cold brew extraction achieved desirable coffee aroma in 2-4 hours at 15-20°C.
• Spent coffee ground firelighters demonstrated effective ignition and longer burning times.
• Firelighters emitted a pleasant coffee aroma during combustion.

Conclusions:

• Cold brew coffee can be efficiently extracted in significantly less time.
• Spent coffee grounds offer a viable, eco-friendly material for firelighter production.
• This valorisation strategy reduces waste and creates a functional, aromatic product.