Water to wine in wineries in Portugal Douro Region: Comparative study between wineries with different sizes.

Wine production, one of the oldest industries in the world is an industry for which water use in winery operations is often disregarded of best practice, with many managers unconscious how water is used within their operations. Given the economic and cultural significance attributed to wine production in Portugal and in the world, it is crucial that research be undertaken to understand how water is used in wine industry in order to increase the efficient use of this vital resource. The study aimed to measure, evaluate and discuss the water consumption in three wineries with different production volumes. Results showed that there are clearly two distinct seasons in the consumption of water: a low season (from November to August, sensu lato), with reduced consumptions, and a high season, corresponding to the harvest/first racking period (September/October), a period in which water consumption is multiplied by a factor 2-3 in the smallest wineries, or by a factor 5 in the larger ones. Outside the harvest period, consumption shows a linear evolution in all wineries. During the harvest/first rackings season (September/October), consumption increases, showing an exponential evolution, with around 35 to 50% of annual water accumulated consumption (as shown in A and B wineries mainly). In fact, results show that the quantity of wine produced influences, above all, the specific consumption of water (l of water per l wine produced), benefiting large wineries due to the greater scale economy. The values founded for the specific consumption of water are still very high, and that lives a field for research to look for specific measures of efficiency in the use of water in this type of industry.

Impact of mesophilic co-composting conditions on the quality of substrates produced from winery waste activated sludge and grape stalks: Lab-scale and pilot-scale studies.

In this study, different amounts of a mixture of winery waste activated sludge and grape stalks were co-composted for 8 weeks, at lab-scale under different temperatures and aeration rates, and at pilot-scale. None of the experiments showed the occurrence of a thermophilic stage, even when the composting temperature was kept at 34 °C, which might suggest biological suppression by the acclimated mesophilic microorganisms ubiquitous to the winery waste activated sludge. The composted substrates were fully characterized by physicochemical analysis, plant growth tests and germination indexes using parsley (Petroselinum crispum) seedlings and seeds. Surprisingly, despite the higher volume reduction at lab-scale, it was the initial mixture and the mixture composted outdoors which presented the best horticultural qualities, with seedling survival rates of 88.9% and 87.0% and modified germination indexes of 54% and 161%, respectively. These findings shed some light on previous contradictory results and allow the development of new recycling strategies.

Integrated aerobic biological-chemical treatment of winery wastewater diluted with urban wastewater. LED-based photocatalysis in the presence of monoperoxysulfate.

The oxidation of Winery Wastewater (WW) by conventional aerobic biological treatment usually leads to inefficient results due to the presence of organic substances, which are recalcitrant or toxic in conventional procedures. This study explores the combination of biological and chemical processes in order to complete the oxidation of biodegradable and non-biodegradable compounds in two sequential steps. Thus, a biological oxidation of a diluted WW is carried out by using the activated sludge process. Activated sludge was gradually acclimated to the Diluted Winery Wastewater (DWW). Some aspects concerning the biological process were evaluated (kinetics of the oxidation and sedimentation of the sludge produced). The biological treatment of the DWW led to a 40-50% of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) removal in 8 h, being necessary the application of an additional process. Different chemical processes combining UVA-LEDs radiation, monoperoxysulfate (MPS) and photocatalysts were applied in order to complete the COD depletion and efficient removal of polyphenols content, poorly oxidized in the previous biological step. From the options tested, the combination of UVA, MPS and a novel LaCoO3-TiO2 composite, with double route of MPS decomposition through heterogeneous catalysis and photocatalysis, led to the best results (95% of polyphenol degradation, and additional 60% of COD removal). Initial MPS concentration and pH effect in this process were assessed.

Activated sludge systems removal efficiency of veterinary pharmaceuticals from slaughterhouse wastewater.

The knowledge on the efficiency of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) from animal food production industry for the removal of both hormones and antibiotics of veterinary application is still very limited. These compounds have already been reported in different environmental compartments at levels that could have potential impacts on the ecosystems. This work aimed to evaluate the role of activated sludge in the removal of commonly used veterinary drugs, enrofloxacin (ENR), tetracycline (TET), and ceftiofur, from wastewater during a conventional treatment process. For that, a series of laboratory-controlled experiments using activated sludge were carried out in batch reactors. Sludge reactors with 100 µg/L initial drug charge presented removal rates of 68 % for ENR and 77 % for TET from the aqueous phase. Results indicated that sorption to sludge and to the wastewater organic matter was responsible for a significant percentage of drugs removal. Nevertheless, these removal rates still result in considerable concentrations in the aqueous phase that will pass through the WWTP to the receiving environment. Measuring only the dissolved fraction of pharmaceuticals in the WWTP effluents may underestimate the loading and risks to the aquatic environment.

Treatment of concentrated fruit juice wastewater by the combination of biological and chemical processes.

Concentrated fruit juice industries use a wide volume of water for washing and fruit processing, generating a large volume of wastewater. This work studied the combination of an aerobic biological process with a chemical coagulation/flocculation step to treat a high concentrated fruit juice wastewater. This wastewater presents a good biodegradability (BOD(5)/COD = 0.66) allowing a chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal above 90% in most reactors. The best results in aerobic biological treatment were obtained in reactors initially loaded with 2 g VSS L(-1) of biomass concentration and 20 g COD L(-1) of organic matter concentration. Three different kinetic models were evaluated (Monod, Haldane and Contois). The Haldane-inhibition model was the one that best fitted the COD biodegradation. AQUASIM software allowed calculate the following kinetic constants ranges for aerobic biodegradation: K (s): 6-20 g COD L(-1); v (max): 2.0-5.1 g COD g(-1) VSS day(-1) and K (i) values: 0.10-0.50 g COD L(-1). These constants corresponds to maximum removal rates (v*) between 0.11 and 0.26 g COD g(-1) VSS day(-1) for substrate concentrations (S*) from 0.77 to 3.16 g COD L(-1). A tertiary coagulation/flocculation process improved the efficiency of the biological pre-treatment. Ferric chloride was selected as best compromise to treat this wastewater. Optimal conditions were 0.44 g L(-1) of coagulant at pH = 5.5, achieving 94.4% and 99.6% on turbidity and COD removal, respectively.

Winery wastewater treatment by a combined process: long term aerated storage and Fenton's reagent.

The degradation of the organic pollutants present in winery wastewater was carried out by the combination of two successive steps: an aerobic biological process followed by a chemical oxidation process using Fenton's reagent. The main goal of this study was to evaluate the temporal characteristics of solids and chemical oxygen demand (COD) present in winery wastewater in a long term aerated storage bioreactor. The performance of different air dosage daily supplied to the biologic reactor, in laboratory and pilot scale, were examined. The long term hydraulic retention time, 11 weeks, contributed remarkably to the reduction of COD (about 90%) and the combination with the Fenton's reagent led to a high overall COD reduction that reached 99.5% when the mass ratio (R = H(2)O(2)/COD) used was equal to 2.5, maintaining constant the molar ratio H(2)O(2)/Fe(2+)=15.