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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Sweet Sorghum Irrigated with Treated Domestic Wastewater in the Brazilian Semi-Arid: Agronomic Performance and High-Gravity Bioethanol Production

by
Leandro Candido Gordin
1,
Amanda Alves da Silva dos Santos
2,
Joyce Gueiros Wanderley Siqueira
2,
Ariédenes Bandeira Rodrigues
3,
Alex Luís Bernardo da Silva
3,
Rafael Barros de Souza
4,
Ênio Farias de França e Silva
1,
Emmanuel Damilano Dutra
2 and
Jorge Luiz Silveira Sonego
3,*
1
Department of Agricultural Engineering, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco, Recife 52171-900, PE, Brazil
2
Laboratory of Bioenergy and Environment, Department of Nuclear Energy, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife 50740-545, PE, Brazil
3
Graduate Program in Biotechnology, Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, PE, Brazil
4
Institute of Biological Sciences, University of Pernambuco, , Recife 50100-130, PE, Brazil
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
AgriEngineering 2026, 8(7), 272; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering8070272
Submission received: 24 March 2026 / Revised: 27 June 2026 / Accepted: 30 June 2026 / Published: 4 July 2026
(This article belongs to the Section Sustainable Bioresource and Bioprocess Engineering)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Sweet sorghum is a promising crop for bioethanol production in semi-arid regions, due to its tolerance to drought and salinity, where conventional energy crops face limitations. This study aimed to evaluate the agronomic performance of sweet sorghum irrigated with treated domestic wastewater (TDW) and its application as a substrate for bioethanol production under high-gravity (HG) and very-high-gravity (VHG) fermentation conditions. Field experiments were conducted in the Brazilian semi-arid using a 5 × 5 full factorial design consisting of five irrigation depths (40–160% crop evapotranspiration, ETc) combined with five potassium fertilization doses (0–80 kg·ha−1), totaling 25 treatments. Agronomic performance, biomass production, and total reducing sugar accumulation were evaluated in both plant cane and ratoon crops. Sweet sorghum juice was subsequently combined with sugarcane molasses and fermented using Saccharomyces cerevisiae in batch and fed-batch processes. Irrigation with TDW associated with moderate potassium fertilization enhanced plant development, biomass yield, and sugar accumulation, particularly at irrigation depths between 100% and 130% of ETc, reaching up to 1908 kg·ha−1 of TRS. Bioethanol production achieved fermentation efficiencies of 91.83% and 84.80% and productivities of 4.63 and 4.21 g·L−1·h−1 under HG and VHG conditions, respectively. These findings indicate that sweet sorghum irrigated with TDW is a promising feedstock for bioethanol production under high-gravity fermentation conditions while supporting the use of alternative water resources in semi-arid environments.
Keywords: sweet sorghum; drought resistant crops; microirrigation; VHG; drylands; TDW sweet sorghum; drought resistant crops; microirrigation; VHG; drylands; TDW

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Gordin, L.C.; dos Santos, A.A.d.S.; Siqueira, J.G.W.; Rodrigues, A.B.; da Silva, A.L.B.; de Souza, R.B.; de França e Silva, Ê.F.; Dutra, E.D.; Sonego, J.L.S. Sweet Sorghum Irrigated with Treated Domestic Wastewater in the Brazilian Semi-Arid: Agronomic Performance and High-Gravity Bioethanol Production. AgriEngineering 2026, 8, 272. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering8070272

AMA Style

Gordin LC, dos Santos AAdS, Siqueira JGW, Rodrigues AB, da Silva ALB, de Souza RB, de França e Silva ÊF, Dutra ED, Sonego JLS. Sweet Sorghum Irrigated with Treated Domestic Wastewater in the Brazilian Semi-Arid: Agronomic Performance and High-Gravity Bioethanol Production. AgriEngineering. 2026; 8(7):272. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering8070272

Chicago/Turabian Style

Gordin, Leandro Candido, Amanda Alves da Silva dos Santos, Joyce Gueiros Wanderley Siqueira, Ariédenes Bandeira Rodrigues, Alex Luís Bernardo da Silva, Rafael Barros de Souza, Ênio Farias de França e Silva, Emmanuel Damilano Dutra, and Jorge Luiz Silveira Sonego. 2026. "Sweet Sorghum Irrigated with Treated Domestic Wastewater in the Brazilian Semi-Arid: Agronomic Performance and High-Gravity Bioethanol Production" AgriEngineering 8, no. 7: 272. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering8070272

APA Style

Gordin, L. C., dos Santos, A. A. d. S., Siqueira, J. G. W., Rodrigues, A. B., da Silva, A. L. B., de Souza, R. B., de França e Silva, Ê. F., Dutra, E. D., & Sonego, J. L. S. (2026). Sweet Sorghum Irrigated with Treated Domestic Wastewater in the Brazilian Semi-Arid: Agronomic Performance and High-Gravity Bioethanol Production. AgriEngineering, 8(7), 272. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering8070272

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