USE OF AGRICULTURAL WASTE FOR BIOENERGY

Resumo

Agricultural residues stand out as potential raw materials for the production of renewable fuels. Based on this scenario, in order to map the patents filed, related to the use of agricultural waste in substitution to fossil fuels, this work was carried out. From the technological prospecting of patent deposits at the bases of the National Institute of Industrial Property - INPI, Latin American Patent Bank - LATIPAT, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), European Patent Office (European Patent Office) -EPO) data were obtained. The search was carried out from the search for keywords in the field of application title or abstract (EPO and LATIPAT), Front Page (WIPO) and abstract (INPI). The documents found were computed individually, in relation to the deposit year, country of origin, depositor and International Patent Classification (CIP). In a preliminary search, 1,514 documents were found for the WIPO database, 1,176 filed with EPO, 20 patents with LATIPAT and 11 records at the INPI. After a second analysis, 24 patents were identified that met the search inclusion character, that is, innovations aimed at the use of agricultural waste in substitution for fossil fuel. China, with 11 registered patents, is the major driver of technological innovations involving the use of agricultural waste as bioenergy; followed by patents filed with the European Patent Office (3), Korea (2) and the United States (2).