Characterization and Sustainable Valorization of Brewers’ Spent Grain for Metal Ion and Organic Substance Removal

Tomasz Kalak ()
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Tomasz Kalak: Department of Industrial Products and Packaging Quality, Institute of Quality Science, Poznań University of Economics and Business, Niepodległości 10, 61-875 Poznań, Poland

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 20, 1-38

Abstract: Brewers’ spent grain (BSG) is the dominant solid side stream from wort separation, generating about 20 kg wet BSG per 100 L of beer and contributing hundreds of millions of tons annually worldwide, and thus a strategic feedstock for circular solutions in the brewing sector. This study situates BSG within that sustainability context and assesses its performance for removing metal ions and organic contaminants. A critical literature review with selected techniques (SEM, NIR/MIR, TGA) has been combined. SEM reveals a rough, fibrous–lamellar microtexture with high pore density, large pore-area fractions, submicron median equivalent diameters, and elevated edge density, consistent with accessible surface and mass-transfer pathways. Compiled adsorption evidence shows that raw and engineered BSG effectively capture diverse cations, including Cu(II), Cr(III/VI), Pb(II), Mn(II), U(VI) and selected rare-earth elements (REEs), demonstrable reusability, and fixed-bed breakthrough on the order of tens to hundreds of hours. Preservation options (drying, cooling/freezing, thermal inactivation, oxygen control) that enable safe storage and logistics for deployment have also been outlined. Overall, BSG emerges as a reliable, scalable biosorbent, with SEM-derived descriptors providing practical tools for performance prediction, while spectroscopic and thermal methods support material monitoring and process integration within a brewery’s circular economy.

Keywords: brewers’ spent grain (BSG); metal ion and organic substance adsorption; SEM analysis; microstructure–performance correlation; BSG-derived activated carbon; biochar; BSG preservation and storage; sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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