Assessment of the Use of Common Juniper (<i>Juniperus communis</i> L.) Foliage following the Cascade Principle
Irene Mediavilla,
Raquel Bados,
Lillian Barros,
Virginie Xavier,
Tiane C. Finimundy,
Tania C. S. P. Pires,
Sandrina A. Heleno,
Ricardo C. Calhelha,
Joana S. Amaral,
Andrea Maria Rizzo,
David Casini,
Giacomo Lombardi,
David Chiaramonti,
Miguel Cámara,
Ana Suárez,
Tomás Ardid,
Luis Saúl Esteban
Affiliations
Irene Mediavilla
Centre for the Development of Renewable Energies—Centre for Energy, Environmental and Technological Research, CEDER-CIEMAT, Autovía de Navarra A-15, Salida 56, 42290 Lubia, Spain
Raquel Bados
Centre for the Development of Renewable Energies—Centre for Energy, Environmental and Technological Research, CEDER-CIEMAT, Autovía de Navarra A-15, Salida 56, 42290 Lubia, Spain
Lillian Barros
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Virginie Xavier
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Tiane C. Finimundy
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Tania C. S. P. Pires
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Sandrina A. Heleno
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Ricardo C. Calhelha
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Joana S. Amaral
Centro de Investigação de Montanha (CIMO), Instituto Politécnico de Bragança, Campus de Santa Apolónia, 5300-253 Bragança, Portugal
Andrea Maria Rizzo
Renewable Energy Consortium for Research and Demonstration, RE-CORD, Viale J. F. Kennedy, 182, 50038 Scarperia e San Piero, Italy
David Casini
Renewable Energy Consortium for Research and Demonstration, RE-CORD, Viale J. F. Kennedy, 182, 50038 Scarperia e San Piero, Italy
Giacomo Lombardi
Renewable Energy Consortium for Research and Demonstration, RE-CORD, Viale J. F. Kennedy, 182, 50038 Scarperia e San Piero, Italy
David Chiaramonti
Renewable Energy Consortium for Research and Demonstration, RE-CORD, Viale J. F. Kennedy, 182, 50038 Scarperia e San Piero, Italy
Miguel Cámara
TOLSA, Calle Núñez de Balboa, 51, 28001 Madrid, Spain
Ana Suárez
TOLSA, Calle Núñez de Balboa, 51, 28001 Madrid, Spain
Tomás Ardid
TOLSA, Calle Núñez de Balboa, 51, 28001 Madrid, Spain
Luis Saúl Esteban
Centre for the Development of Renewable Energies—Centre for Energy, Environmental and Technological Research, CEDER-CIEMAT, Autovía de Navarra A-15, Salida 56, 42290 Lubia, Spain
Juniperus communis L. is a species commonly grown in regions of the Northern Hemisphere, and is a good candidate to be cultivated in marginal lands. Plants coming from a pruning performed in a natural population located in Spain were used to assess the yield and quality of different products obtained following the cascade principle. A total of 1050 kg of foliage biomass were crushed, steam-distilled, and separated into fractions to produce biochar and absorbents for the pet industry using pilot plants. The obtained products were analysed. The essential oil, with a yield of 0.45% dry basis and a qualitative chemical composition similar to that described for the berries in international standards or monographs, showed antioxidant activity with promising CAA results (inhibition of 89% of the cell’s oxidation). However, regarding antibacterial and antifungal activities, it only inhibited the growth of microorganisms at the maximum concentration tested, 2.5%. Concerning the hydrolate, it did not show bioactivity. Regarding the biochar, whose yield was 28.79% dry basis, interesting results were obtained for its characterisation as a possible soil improver for agronomic purposes (PFC 3(A)). Finally, promising results were obtained regarding the use of common juniper as absorbent, taking into account the physical characterisation and odour control capacity.