LORVER

Innovates on processes such as soil construction, to restore the fertility of degraded soils by recreating the structure of a functional soil in different soil horizons from industrial by-products, the pyrolysis of biomass of a variable nature that may contain traces of pollutants, and the extraction process for metals accumulated by plants.

Four plant species are studied:

– poplar for its potential to produce biomass for energy purposes,

– hemp and nettle for their potential to produce vegetable fibres for industrial use,

– Noccaea caerulescens for its ability to hyperaccumulate metals.

Four ways of using plant biomass are developed in LORVER:

– Production of renewable energy by pyrolysis,

– Production of coal (biochar) for multiple environmental applications from the pyrolysis process,

– Development of fibre products and materials,

– Extraction of elements of economic interest.

The LORVER project proposes research anchored in a logic of sustainable development on a regional scale:

– Soil reconstruction and improvement of soil fertility,

– Production of biomass on sites where food-oriented agriculture is excluded for energy recovery on the one hand, and fibre material recovery on the other,

– Study of the possibilities of extracting cadmium and zinc by phytoextraction of a hyperaccumulative plant.

The LORVER project has set up test plots to restore wasteland. These plots, after 20 years of observation, will provide precise knowledge of the effect of biochar on the various soil components and on vegetation growth. The results have been presented on various media such as youtube, the press and scientific publications. There is a strong interest from the localities for this project and its objectives. In addition, the project has enabled the development of a fibre using new processes to develop a new local and energy-efficient economy.