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Extracting chitosan from shrimp shells: economically feasible, but (not yet) sustainable
Over the past three years, Wageningen University & Research has conducted research into the possibilities of extracting chitosan from shrimp shells. Chitosan has the potential to be used in all kinds of useful applications. Moreover, it is abundantly present in shrimp shells. However, at the moment, the shells are not yet used optimally or are processed into fishmeal, a low-value application. A shame, because this chitosan can serve well as a basis for, for example, cosmetics or soil improver. In the Chitinnovation project, WUR and partners investigated how chitosan can be efficiently extracted from the shell, and how it can be used sustainably and cost-effectively.
Shrimp as a supplier of sustainable raw material
The researchers seem to have found that sustainable source in shrimp. Van den Broek: “In the Netherlands, we have a lot of shrimp shells available thanks to the mechanical peeling of shrimp for consumption. With the shells of those shrimp, peelers could potentially gain an extra revenue stream. That is why we looked at the entire value chain: can we efficiently remove the chitosan from the shells and can we find suitable sales markets?”
Economically feasible isolation
These question can partially be answered by ‘yes’. Van den Broek: “We have found a way to isolate the chitosan in an economically feasible way, so that is a nice finding. However, we still have to use a lot of chemicals in the process, reducing sustainability.” Also, although it has been demonstrated that the Crangon crangon shrimp (common shrimp) can deliver a high-quality chitosan, there is no specific application yet. “So we cannot start producing immediately in the entire chain,” says Van den Broek.
The future of chitosan
Nevertheless, the researcher sees potential for the future. “At this moment, it all depends on the scale and the quantity. If we can work together with a party that needs a lot of chitosan, we can certainly do further research into more sustainable methods of insulation. So we are also open to that.”