Treatment of Sugarcane Vinasse Using Heterogeneous Photocatalysis with Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles

Jacqueline Roberta Tamashiro, Iara Souza Lima, Fábio Friol Guedes de Paiva, Lucas Henrique Pereira Silva, Daniela Vanessa Moris de Oliveira, Oswaldo Baffa and Angela Kinoshita ()
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Jacqueline Roberta Tamashiro: Pró-Rectory of Research and Graduate Studies, Graduate Program in Environment and Regional Development, University of Western São Paulo—Unoeste, Raposo Tavares km 572, Presidente Prudente 19067-175, Brazil
Iara Souza Lima: Physics Department, Universidade de São Paulo—FFCLRP-USP, Ribeirão Preto 13900-000, Brazil
Fábio Friol Guedes de Paiva: Pró-Rectory of Research and Graduate Studies, Graduate Program in Environment and Regional Development, University of Western São Paulo—Unoeste, Raposo Tavares km 572, Presidente Prudente 19067-175, Brazil
Lucas Henrique Pereira Silva: Pró-Rectory of Research and Graduate Studies, Graduate Program in Environment and Regional Development, University of Western São Paulo—Unoeste, Raposo Tavares km 572, Presidente Prudente 19067-175, Brazil
Daniela Vanessa Moris de Oliveira: Pró-Rectory of Research and Graduate Studies, Graduate Program in Environment and Regional Development, University of Western São Paulo—Unoeste, Raposo Tavares km 572, Presidente Prudente 19067-175, Brazil
Oswaldo Baffa: Physics Department, Universidade de São Paulo—FFCLRP-USP, Ribeirão Preto 13900-000, Brazil
Angela Kinoshita: Pró-Rectory of Research and Graduate Studies, Graduate Program in Environment and Regional Development, University of Western São Paulo—Unoeste, Raposo Tavares km 572, Presidente Prudente 19067-175, Brazil

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 23, 1-15

Abstract: Vinasse is the main by-product of the ethanol industry; for each liter of ethanol, 13 to 18 L of vinasse is generated. Vinasse is composed of 93% water and 7% organic and inorganic solids and has an acidic pH and a high concentration of macro- and micronutrients used by plants, which is the reason for its widespread application in soil fertigation. However, over time, excessive direct discharge of vinasse into the soil causes damage, such as salinization and groundwater contamination. In this study, we used heterogeneous photocatalysis with zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) to reduce chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and as an antimicrobial treatment. ZnO-NPs were synthesized by the precipitation of zinc sulfate heptahydrate and sodium hydroxide, resulting in nanoparticles with a size of 21.6 ± 0.3 nm and an energy bandgap of 2.6 eV. Microscopic examinations revealed that Saccharomyces cerevisiae microorganisms are present in vinasse and that the minimum inhibitory concentration for the ZnO-NPs is 1.56 g/L. Photocatalysis with 40 mg/L of ZnO-NPs for 4 h of exposure to sunlight resulted in COD and BOD reduction efficacies of 17.1% and 71.7%, respectively. This study demonstrates the viability of using ZnO-NPs in vinasse treatment, contributing to sustainable applications and reducing the environmental impacts of fertigation.

Keywords: advanced oxidation process; vinasse management; ZnO; ZnO-NPs; effluent quality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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