Program Book - Master Brewers Association of the Americas

P-123
Environmentally friendly CIP methods and chemistries
CHAD THOMPSON (1)
(1) Ecolab, Inc. St. Paul, MN
A summary of research conducted by Ecolab Inc.’s Global CIP
Technology Group focused on development of more sustainable
cleaning methods involving reduced dependence on strong caustic
compositions. Laboratory results and field case studies will be
reviewed that demonstrate improved cleaning of hard to remove
brewhouse and fermentation vessel soils using novel chemistry
and methods that reduce alkali, acid, and phosphate wastewater
discharge to the environment.
Chad Thompson has over 15 years of packaging engineering
experience and in 2007 joined the Brewery group in the Food
& Beverage division of Ecolab, Inc. as their lead scientist. His
responsibilities include the development and commercialization of
new cleaning, sanitizing, and lubrication products for the brewery
industry. He has been brewing for 10 years and has been with
Ecolab for 4 years. During his time at Ecolab, Inc. he has contributed
to numerous business segments within the corporation. Chad is
a contributing member of the MBAA. He received a degree from
Michigan State University in packaging engineering and has been
granted three patents for his work.
P-124
Water/wastewater sustainability techniques for breweries
JEFFREY VANVOORHIS (1)
(1) Symbiont Science, Engineering and Construction
The brewing process requires a significant quantity of high quality
water and consumes substantial levels of energy. Water is becoming
an increasingly scarce resource than an assumed widely available
ingredient. Energy costs continue to escalate in all geographic areas.
These factors can dramatically impact a brewery’s operations and
overall profitability. Implementing water conservation and reuse
techniques can lead breweries to higher levels of sustainability and
benefit operations and profitability. Water is the largest ingredient
required in brewing. The quality of the water can impact the brewing
process and the overall quality (taste, color, smell) of the product.
The specific water quality parameters are determined individually
by each brewery. Reduced water quality has forced additional water
treatment steps and increased water costs. Breweries can make a
significant impact on local regions by conserving water use. The first
step in water conservation is to determine water usage throughout
the entire brewery. Specific locations and metering methods will
be outlined. General water use unit factors will also be presented.
The brewing process generates several unique high strength wastes
as by-products. Many of these waste streams can have beneficial
reuse applications. Spent grains and spent yeast have nutritional
value as feed supplements and can be integrated into composting
operations. The process wastewater generated by breweries typically
has a high concentration of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) from
the carbohydrates and protein used in brewing. Brewery wastewater
typically has an elevated temperature. The combination of soluble
BOD and warm temperature make brewery wastewater an ideal
substrate for anaerobic treatment. The anaerobic treatment of
wastewater biologically transforms soluble BOD into an alternative
fuel source known as biogas. Methane rich biogas has many
potential applications such as supplementing natural gas to boilers
and dryers. Biogas can also be used to produce electricity and heat
in internal combustion engines, microturbines, fuel cells, and
stirling engines. Biogas can even be used in cooling applications
with absorption chillers. Examples of biogas utilization installations
in breweries will be presented. Disposal of wastewater even at
pretreated qualities can be difficult. Many municipal sewer and
treatment systems have hydraulic or organic loading bottlenecks.
Several food and beverage plants have been forced into additional
treatment of process wastewater for reuse within their facilities.
The use of multistage membrane treatment can result in nearly pure
water quality that is often more pure than domestic or well sources.
The reuse of water in breweries would significantly reduce water
demand and disposal needs. Examples of water reuse projects will be
presented.
Jeffrey C. VanVoorhis is an environmental engineer with Symbiont
Science, Engineering, and Construction. Jeff specializes in managing
water and wastewater treatment projects for the food and beverage
industries. Jeff is a member of MBAA District Milwaukee. Jeff has
over 13 years of engineering experience and has worked on many
phases of beverage industry projects, including treatability studies/
testing, waste minimization audits, engineering design and project
permitting, and construction-related services. Jeff is a Wisconsin
native who earned a B.S. degree in civil engineering from Purdue
University and a MBA from Marquette University.
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