5 Ways Ozone Can Help Breweries Conserve Water Use & Reduce Costs
The brewery industry in North America is a growing business sector. Large scale breweries are thriving while an increasing number of craft brewers are entering the marketplace.
However, breweries of all sizes are facing some common challenges related to the water that’s used to produce their products.
All brewers understand that potential water shortages pose a threat to their business. It takes a lot of water to make beer – in some cases as much as four barrels of water for one barrel of beer. And, this does not include the water used to grow the hops and grains prior to production. As a result, brewers are actively seeking ways to conserve water and use it more efficiently at every stage of production.
They are also investigating more environmentally friendly and cost-efficient ways to treat both incoming water and wastewater. Traditional treatment of incoming water using reverse osmosis wastes up to 50% of the source water used during the treatment process. Typical cleaning methods at breweries involve rinses that use chemicals and hot water. Chemicals are expensive, persistent, and pose a threat to the environment, while the use of hot water increases energy consumption and operational costs.
Meanwhile, municipalities, and increasingly their constituents, are well aware that the industry uses large amounts of water during production which can place an additional burden on local treatment plants.
With these issues in mind, brewers are actively engaging in their communities as stewards of the environment. Many are finding ways to reduce their water consumption and improve the quality of their waste water. In addition, they are investigating how to reduce the use of chemicals during the various cleaning and cooling processes. Some are investing in green infrastructure, such as installing green roofs, rainwater cisterns and underground stormwater storage facilities.
With water at the very core of their success, breweries of all sizes need more environmentally friendly, cost-effective methods to treat water that is used in the production of beer. Ozone is the ideal solution to address these needs. Here are five reasons why:
Ozone is a Superior Chemical-Free Disinfectant for Incoming Water
Incoming water treatment can be an important step for assured quality, especially for well or surface water sources.
Ozone is a chemical-free disinfectant that works on demand to disinfect, improve quality and treat water without using salt or chemicals. When dissolved in water, it literally splits organism cells instantly, resulting in an immediate kill of virtually all bacteria, virus and cysts. It is recognized as the fastest and strongest method of disinfection in both the U.S. and Canada – faster and more powerful than Peroxyacetic acid (PAA), chlorine or UV.
From wells, surface water or municipal water, ozone will effectively remove chlorine, metals and even many contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), such as pharmaceuticals, microplastics, and petrochemicals.
Importantly, ozone removes colour, taste and smell from the water, that is critical for brewing recipes and the reason why ozone is the standard in bottled water treatment. It has no impact on pH levels in the water and, unlike chlorine, has no residual as it breaks down to oxygen before use.
Ozone is an Effective and Environmentally Friendly Treatment for Wastewater
Ozone is an environmentally friendly disinfectant that produces better quality wastewater than other disinfection methods. After treatment, ozone simply breaks down to oxygen, improving the quality of the effluent – and reducing the load on local municipal wastewater treatment plants. This wastewater can even be re-used for not-potable purposes, thereby conserving water.
By contrast, chemicals typically persist after use and end up as by-products in water ways. These chemicals also reduce the oxygen level of water. For this reason, many environmental groups and concerned taxpayers are actively protesting the use of chlorine in their municipal water treatment facilities in order to protect the aquatic life in their communities.
Reverse Osmosis (R.O.) systems, that are often used in small craft breweries, require a large volume of water. For every unit of R.O. treated water, approximately 2 units of water are used throughout the brewing process and that water used goes directly down the drain.
Ozone can also be used as a supplement to existing UV wastewater treatment systems to enhance their performance. Given that UV requires transparent water to operate properly, ozone is often added as a pre-treatment to effectively clean the water, making the UV system more effective and offering additional disinfection measures. Ozone pre-treatment has the added benefit of treating contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) which UV does not do effectively.
Ozone is an Effective Sanitation Treatment Solution – Saving Time, Water and Energy Costs
Approved by Health Canada and the U.S. Food and Drug Association, aqueous ozone can be used for multiple cleaning purposes in breweries. It is commonly used for surfaces (equipment, walls, floors, tables) as well as kegs, bottles, fermentation tanks and other equipment.
Following industry standard practices, ozone is applied as a final rinse sanitation to treat bacteria, viruses, yeast, fungi and more.
Unlike other sanitation methods that require a hot water chemical rinse followed by a final cold water rinse, the ozone method simply requires a single cold water rinse, saving brewers time, water and energy costs. In addition, ozone offers an ideal re-use option for final rinse in a closed loop, further lessening the amount of water used and wasted. Ozone CIP (Clean In Place) also reduces contaminants in the run-off water, helping to keep drain lines clear and improve wastewater quality.
Ozone has Lower Operational Costs = Quick Return on Investment (ROI)
Ozone treatment is lower cost than traditional water treatments with chlorine and reverse osmosis.
The average operational cost of an Aclarus ozone system is only about 5 cents per 1000L (1m3) of treated water.
Ozone is more cost-efficient for a number of reasons:
It is produced on site, thereby eliminating the need to purchase, transport, store and handle dangerous and toxic chlorine gas;
Operator maintenance is minimal, which provides significant cost savings;
There is no need to use hot water, which saves on energy costs;
The ozone sanitation process uses less water, which conserves water and reduces costs;
Breweries can reduce or eliminate regulatory overage fees.
Ozone’s Small Footprint Allows for Easy Retrofit within Existing Infrastructure
Ozone systems are modular, easy to install, and require minimal space. They can often be retrofitted within the existing infrastructure – an important consideration when ozone is used to enhance other sanitation treatments, such as UV.
Ozone technology is the fastest growing water disinfection solution globally. Breweries of all sizes can benefit greatly from ozone’s water conservation and cost saving solutions.