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Process scale-up, economic, environmental assessment of vibratory nanofiltration of coffee extracts for soluble coffee production process intensification

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Abstract

This study investigated the viability of a vibratory nanofiltration system as a low-energy alternative to evaporation in concentrating coffee extracts before final dehydration. Film model correlations for permeate fluxes and characteristics (turbidity, conductivity, and chemical oxygen demand) were determined from vibratory nanofiltration experiments on different coffee extract concentrations at 50 °C and 400 psi. Vibratory amplitude of 2.54 cm at 54.7 Hz frequency enhanced permeate fluxes by up to 3 times that of crossflow filtration by reducing the gel layer concentration on the membrane surface. Experimental results were used to propose a scaled-up vibratory nanofiltration operation recovering 378,500 L/day of reusable water from concentrating coffee extracts up to 35% wt/wt. The design flux exponentially decreased with increasing feed coffee extract concentrations requiring larger systems with majority of the operating cost associated with membrane replacement. The energy usage and cost of the vibratory nanofiltration system were substantially lower than those of evaporation in terms of steam consumption. However, the low design flux limited the proposed membrane system to feed concentrations less than 3% wt/wt but may be improved using optimization studies. Economic assessment for this feed concentration corresponded to a 7-module i84 VSEP filtration system with a capital cost of $2,100,000 with estimated annual savings of $481,900/year and corresponding payback period of 10 years. Lastly, the proposed alternative opens opportunities in the intensification of soluble coffee production in terms of energy efficiency, water recovery, and wastewater reduction that overall reduce the environmental emissions of the process by approximately 40%.

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Data availability

The data for the study are available through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency—Region 2, New York, NY.

Abbreviations

BOD:

Biological oxygen demand

CF:

Crossflow

COD:

Chemical oxygen demand

IRR:

Internal rate of return

LCE:

Life cycle emission

LCI:

Life cycle inventory

MACRS:

Modified accelerated cost recovery system

MF:

Microfiltration

N:

Number of VSEP modules

NF:

Nanofiltration

NPV:

Net present value

OSF:

Overall system factor

RO:

Reverse osmosis

ROI:

Return on investment

TSS:

Total suspended solids

UF:

Ultrafiltration

VSEP:

Vibration shear-enhanced process

A :

Membrane area per module (m2/module)

B :

Solute mass transfer coefficient (L/m2 day)

C o :

Feed coffee extract concentration (% wt/wt)

C b :

Bulk coffee extract concentration (g/L)

C g :

Gel layer concentration (g/L)

d :

Vibrational displacement (cm)

Ei :

Annualized process energy flow (kJ/year)

f :

Vibrational frequency (1/s)

J p :

Steady-state permeate flux (L/m2 h)

J :

Design flux (L/m2 h)

J s :

Solute flux (g/m2 h)

K :

Solvent mass transfer coefficient (L/m2 h)

P :

Operating pressure (MPa)

Q r :

Recirculation flow rate (L/min)

R :

Water recovery (%)

Ri:

Annualized recovery flows (kJ/year and kg/year)

Rej:

Rejection efficiency (%)

T :

Operating temperature (°C)

W i :

Annualized process mass flow (kg/year)

γ max :

Maximum membrane surface shear rate (s−1)

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the Pollution Prevention Grant Program (NP-96271316-2). The authors also acknowledge the assistance of Rowan University Engineering Clinic students: Steven Husar, Carly Jankowski, Adam Niznik, Sommer Vandergrift, Jacqueline Shaeffer, and Matthew Razze; and the faculty and staff of Department of Chemical Enigneering at Rowan University: Dr. Mariano J. Savelski, Robert McClernan, and Kimberly Johnston. The authors appreciate the support of Jim Barden, Fredéric Bodo, Erica Grun, John Morton, Mike Moscatiello, Iain Reed, and Eugene Williford of Nestlé USA, and Landon Graham of New Logic Research, Inc.

Funding

This study was funded through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the Pollution Prevention Grant Program (NP-96271316-2).

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  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Henry M. Rowan College of Engineering, Rowan University, Glassboro, NJ, 08028, USA

    Michael Vincent O. Laurio & C. Stewart Slater

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  1. Michael Vincent O. Laurio
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C. Stewart Slater conceived and designed the experiments; Michael Vincent Laurio performed the experiments and the analysis of the results; Michael Vincent Laurio wrote the paper with the guidance of C. Stewart Slater.

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Correspondence to C. Stewart Slater.

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Laurio, M.V.O., Slater, C.S. Process scale-up, economic, environmental assessment of vibratory nanofiltration of coffee extracts for soluble coffee production process intensification. Clean Techn Environ Policy 22, 1891–1908 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-020-01931-x

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