Search Results (6)

Sustainable development requires implementation of eco-friendly practices and a circular approach in both agricultural and industrial systems. This study evaluated winery flotation wastewater (WFW) as a cultivation substrate for Bacillus sp. 10/R isolated from grapevine rhizosphere for sustainable biostimulant production. The bacterial isolate was characterized by 16S rRNA sequencing and biochemical tests, showing the highest similarity with Bacillus mojavensis and Bacillus halotolerans. Plant growth-promoting traits were assessed via assays for hydrolytic enzymes, ACC (1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate) deaminase, and IAA (indole acetic acid) production, as well as for phosphate solubilization. The isolate was cultivated in WFW, including monitoring of biomass growth, enzymatic activity, and substrate composition changes. The resulting cultivation broths based on WFW (WFW-CB) and nutrient broth (NB-CB) were tested as barley seed treatment at five dosages, using sterile media and water as controls. The results have displayed strong pectinase (EAI–enzyme activity index 2.79) and cellulase activity (2.33), moderate xylanase (1.75) and ACC deaminase activity (growth zone 54.67 ± 0.58 mm), and moderate IAA production (9.66 µg/mL). Biomass content has increased by two log units within 48 h (up to 9.06 log CFU/mL), with stable pectinase activity (~2.2 U/mL). Germination assays revealed that 10% WFW-CB and 50% WFW enhanced germination indices and biomass, whereas undiluted WFW and WFW-CB inhibited germination. These results indicate that WFW is a suitable substrate for Bacillus sp. 10/R cultivation, linking industrial wastewater valorization with plant biostimulant production in a circular economy framework. Full article

This study investigates the efficiency of electrocoagulation–flotation (EC) as a pre-treatment method for industrial wastewater with a high chemical oxygen demand (COD), high levels of suspended solids (TSS), and different colors. Real wastewater from a brewery, dairy, winery, and marine oil processing industry was treated using aluminum electrodes under various current densities. Laboratory-scale experiments demonstrated significant COD, TSS, and color removal, with marine oils and dairy wastewater showing the highest COD removal efficiencies (up to 88.6%), while for all the examined wastewater samples, the TSSs removal exceeded 95%. The results confirm EC’s effectiveness and adaptability across diverse wastewater types, supporting its potential as a sustainable, low-cost alternative as a industrial wastewater pre-treatment process. Full article

The agricultural sector is one that requires and consumes enormous amounts of fresh water globally. Commercial wine production in particular uses large volumes of fresh water and, through various processes, generates significant quantities of wastewater. The wastewater produced by wineries typically exhibits elevated levels of chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), an acidic pH, and varying salinity and nutrient contents. The overall characteristics of winery wastewater indicate that it is a potential environmental hazard if not processed and disposed of appropriately. Due to significant variations in wastewater contaminant levels among wineries, the implementation of a universally applicable, environmentally friendly, and sustainable waste management system seems practically unattainable. This study investigated the design, fabrication, and modification of a shear enhanced flotation separation (SEFS) pilot plant to be used as a primary treatment stage during winery wastewater processing. This technology combines the synergistic advantages of hydrodynamic shear, coagulation, flocculation, and dissolved air flotation. To date, there have been only limited publications on the feasibility and application of hydrodynamic shear and its potential to assist with coagulation/flocculation and flotation efficiencies specifically for winery wastewater treatment. The results obtained indicate that the SEFS pilot plant may well be able to process winery wastewater to a quality level where reuse of the water for irrigation of crops may be considered. Full article

The process of wine making is well known to produce large amounts of wastewater with highly variable characteristics. The disposal of untreated winery wastewater is strictly prohibited since it adversely affects the recipient environment. Due to the variability in characteristics of winery wastewater, developing a treatment system which can handle high organic and inorganic loads, especially during the vintage season, is a complex challenge. This study investigated the theory, methodology and implementation of a wastewater treatment technology called shear enhanced flotation separation (SEFS) as a potential primary treatment stage towards the treatment of winery wastewater. Winery effluent was subjected to a coagulation process in a high shear environment, with and without the introduction of air, followed by flocculation. Upon successful optimization of operating parameters, a polymeric-based coagulant AB121 and polyelectrolyte flocculant AB796 yielded the highest reduction in turbidity (95%) with typical values of 630 NTU for the raw wastewater and 25 NTU for the SEFS-treated effluent. A substantial reduction in total suspended solids (97%) was achieved with average raw winery wastewater values of 2275 mg/L compared to the 50 mg/L obtained for the SEFS-treated effluent. Furthermore, a notable reduction (54%) in COD (from 11,250 mg/L to 5220 mg/L) using SEFS technology was achieved. Full article

The downstream processing of efficient biomass-based microbial biopesticides is heavily reliant on obtaining the largest concentration of viable cells in the most cost-effective manner. The goal of this research was to assess the ability of chitosan flocculation to recover bacterial Bacillus sp. BioSol021 biomass from the broth after biological treatment of wastewaters from the dairy and wine industries. Second-order factorial design models were used to estimate the effect of chitosan concentration and mixing speed on flocculation efficiency, settling velocity, and antimicrobial activity against Aspergillus flavus, i.e., inhibition zone diameter. Response surface methodology was followed by multi-objective optimization by applying the desirability function (DF) and genetic algorithm (GA). The optimum values for flocculation efficiency, settling velocity, and inhibition zone diameter for cheese whey effluent were 88%, 0.10 mm/s, and 51.00 mm, respectively. In the case of winery flotation effluent, the optimum values were flocculation efficiency 95% and settling velocity 0.05 mm/s, while the inhibition zone diameter was 48.00 mm. These results indicate that utilizing chitosan as a flocculation agent not only fits the criteria for effective downstream processing, but also has a synergistic effect on Bacillus sp. antibacterial activity. Full article

Food industry effluents represent one of the major concerns when it comes to environmental impact; hence, their valorization through different chemical and biological routes has been suggested as a possible solution. The vast amount of organic and inorganic nutrients present in food industry effluents makes them suitable substrates for microbial growth. This study suggests two valorization routes for whey as dairy industry effluent and flotation wastewater from the wine industry through microbial conversion to biocontrol agents as value-added products. Cultivations of the biocontrol strain Bacillus sp. BioSol021 were performed in a 16 L bioreactor to monitor the bioprocess course and investigate bioprocess kinetics in terms of microbial growth, sugar substrate consumption and surfactin synthesis, as an antimicrobial lipopeptide. The produced biocontrol agents showed high levels of biocontrol activity against mycotoxigenic strains of Aspergillus flavus, followed by a significant reduction of sugar load of the investigated effluents by the producing microorganisms. With proven high potential of whey and winery flotation wastewater to be used as substrates for microbial growth, this study provides grounds for further optimization of the suggested valorization routes, mostly in terms of bioprocess conditions to achieve maximal techno-economical feasibility, energy saving and maximal reduction of effluents’ organic and inorganic burden. Full article