Browsing by Author "San Martin Ruiz, Macarena"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6

Open Access
Composting and methane emissions of coffee by-products
(2021) San Martin Ruiz, Macarena; Reiser, Martin; Kranert, Martin
In the last 20 years, the demand for coffee production has increased detrimentally, heightening the need for production, which is currently driving the increase in land cultivation for coffee. However, this increase in production ultimately leads to the amplification of waste produced. This study aims to develop an experimental methodology for sustainable coffee by-products (Pulp (CP)) in Costa Rica for nutrient-rich compost. The performance of the experiments is to explore and optimize composting processes following its key parameters. This will allow quantifying the emissions rate to obtain an emission factor for CP during the open composting process and optimizing the conditions to minimize CH4 emissions using P and green waste (GW) materials. Five CP and GW mixtures were analyzed for the composting process for ten weeks, acting P as primary input material as a by-product. Quantification of the methane emissions was performed in two areas: composting area and open field deposition. Peak temperatures of compost appeared at twenty-five days for control and five days for GW added treatments. CP emission factors provide a similar result with the standard values recommended by the literature, accomplishing the emission reductions. Thus, this study designed and validated a sustainable protocol for transforming coffee by-products into compost.
Open Access
Enhanced composting as a way to a climate-friendly management of coffee by-products
(2020) San Martin Ruiz, Macarena; Reiser, Martin; Kranert, Martin
This study investigated the performance of aerobic windrow systems by using coffee by-products and green waste to reduce gaseous emissions. Thereafter, a comparison with the current treatment and gaseous emissions at a Coffee Mill in Costa Rica was made. Two different studies where performed in Germany (pile I and II) and one study in a Coffee Mill in Costa Rica (pile III). Temperature, water content, and pH were the key parameters controlled over 35 days in all the systems. Moreover, CH4 emission rates were quantified by a FTIR and by a portable gas detector device where the emissions reached values 100 times higher when coffee by-products as a unique material for the composting process was used. Results show that highest emission rates during the composting process for pile I was 0.007 g(m2)-1 h-1, for pile II 0.006 g(m2)-1 h-1, and for pile III 3.1 g(m2)-1 h-1. It was found that CH4 emissions could be avoided if the mixture and the formation of the windrow piles were performed following the key parameter for composting, and the usage of additional material is used. With this, the reduction of CH4 emissions at the Mill in Costa Rica could be achieved in the future.
Open Access
Integrated best available wastewater management in the textile industry
(Essen : Vulkan-Verlag GmbH, 2018) Krist, Helmut; Schäfer, Thomas; Schönberger, Harald; Hussain Inayath, Sajid; Govindarajan, Babu; Kandhaswamy, Ramesh; Maruthamuthu, Nagarajan; Baumann, Charel; Shahzad, Hafiz Muhammad Aamir; Minke, Ralf; Chamoun, Chawk; Kurschat, Reinhold; Kuch, Bertram; Azizi, Neda; San Martin Ruiz, Macarena; Schönberger, Harald
Apart from cotton cultivation and the production of dyestuffs and optical brighteners, textile finishing is one of the environmental hotspots. The dominating emission mass stream from textile finishing is wastewater as practically all inorganic and most of the organic (more than 90 %) chemical compounds are discharged with wastewater. Emissions to air, although not negligible, and with solid wastes are of significant lower relevance. In addition, in many parts of the globe, water availability and water scarcity respectively are of increasing concern triggering the need to avoid, reduce or recycle textile wastewater.
Open Access
Methane, nitrous oxide, and ammonia emissions on dairy farms in Spain with or without bio-activator treatment
(2022) San Martin Ruiz, Macarena; González Puelles, Jesús Eugenio; Herra Bogantes, Juan; Rivera-Méndez, William; Reiser, Martin; Kranert, Martin
Intensive livestock farming substantially impacts the environment, especially farm and slurry management. Slurries are significant sources of greenhouse gases and ammonia. The present study was conducted in an intensive livestock production system in Galicia, Spain. The measurements were taken at six different farms in that region along with one control using common management practices in Galicia without the addition of a bio-activator. This study aimed to quantify GHGs and NH3 fluxes and their reductions during slurry treatment using a dynamic chamber through FTIR analysis and to examine the potential of usage of bio-activators for slurry management. In addition, gas concentrations were measured at the barns and compared with their slurry management and architectural volume to obtain influences on their management and the architectural volume of the barns. Additionally, the effects of using a bio-activator in the barns inside the facility areas were addressed. Moreover, qPCR analysis was conducted to understand the correlations between syncoms and methanogen populations when a bio-activator is added to the slurry with at least a 30% reduction in methanogenic populations. The outcomes suggest encouraging results for GHG reductions in the livestock sector, giving farmers future options for climate change mitigation among their standard practices.
Open Access
Nitrous oxide emission fluxes in coffee plantations during fertilization : a case study in Costa Rica
(2021) San Martin Ruiz, Macarena; Reiser, Martin; Kranert, Martin
The main source of N2O emissions is agriculture, and coffee monocultures have become an important part of these emissions. The demand for coffee has increased in the last five decades. Thus, its production in agricultural fields and the excess of fertilizers have increased. This study quantified N2O emissions from different dose applications and types of nitrogen fertilizer in a region of major coffee production in Costa Rica. A specific methodology to measure N2O fluxes from coffee plants was developed using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Measurements were performed in a botanical garden in Germany and plots in Costa Rica, analyzing the behavior of a fertilizer in two varieties of coffee (Catuai and Geisha), and in a field experiment, testing two types of fertilizers (chemical (F1) and physical mixture (F2)) and compost (SA). As a result, the additions of synthetic fertilizer increased the N2O fluxes. F2 showed higher emissions than F1 by up to 90% in the field experiment, and an increase in general emissions occurred after a rain event in the coffee plantation. The weak levels of N2O emissions were caused by a rainfall deficit, maintaining low water content in the soil. Robust research is suggested for the inventories.
Open Access
Recycling of coffee by-products by composting in context of climate-relevant emissions and products
(Stuttgart : FEI e.V. Eigenverlag, 2023) San Martin Ruiz, Macarena; Kranert, Martin (Prof. Dr.-Ing.)
Coffee has become one of the most popular beverages and provides a livelihood for millions of people around the world. Coffee is one of Costa Rica's most important and emblematic exports (about one and a half million bags per year) and is closely linked to the country's national identity. However, climate change poses a challenge to the livelihoods of Costa Rican coffee farmers and the long-term viability of the crop. Thus, the environmental impact of coffee production must also be reduced and made more sustainable. Therefore, it is necessary to treat the residues from coffee production as climate-neutral and resource-saving as possible in the sense of a circular economy. This is of particular importance, not least because the consumption of coffee has increased worldwide. Agriculture and waste management are disconnected from each other worldwide. This leads to permanent nutrient depletion of soils and high greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions due to insufficient or excessive use of fertilizers. Coffee by-products, especially coffee pulp, are usually considered waste on coffee plantations and are mostly discarded or disposed of in rivers. In some cases, composting of residues also takes place, which usually results in high emissions due to improper rotting processes. In the context of global warming, inadequate composting and mineral fertilization contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. Composting emits greenhouse gases such as methane from the decomposition of organic material and carbon dioxide from fossil fuels from the equipment required to turn and process the waste. Fertilization of coffee plants, on the other hand, emits greenhouse gases such as nitrous oxide from the soil, especially when nitrogen fertilizers are used. This leads to serious consequences for the climate and the environment. The purpose of the present thesis was to investigate which methane emissions occur with the current treatment method of the residues and how an optimized composting process can significantly reduce these emissions and at the same time produce an organic fertilizer. In addition, nitrous oxide emissions from the use of composts compared to mineral fertilizers on coffee plantations should be investigated. This should contribute to making coffee production more sustainable.