Protocol to select efficient microorganisms to treat coffee wastewater.

The coffee processing wastewater (CPWW) requires treatment before being disposed of in the environment or reused due to its high organic and inorganic composition and a low pH. The indigenous microbiota from CPWW is highly diverse and could be selected as inoculums in treatment waste plants. Considering the physico-chemical characteristics of wastewater coffee, we elaborate on steps to select the microbial consortium that showed positive impact via decreasing the pollutant parameters of this effluent. The effectiveness was confirmed using wastewater from different origins with different chemical characteristics. A bacterial consortium composed by Serratia marcescens CCMA 1010 and CCMA 1012, Corynebacterium flavescens CCMA 1006, and Acetobacter indonesiensis CCMA 1002 was selected as the inoculums-based phenotypic assays. The mixed inoculum showed a highly active population (11.18 log CFU mL-1), promoting an 85% decrease in biochemical oxygen demand and a 60% decrease in chemical oxygen demand. There was also an 80% reduction in phosphorus and nitrogen. The final pH changed from 6.0 to 7.5. Additionally, the eco-toxicity using Daphnia similis was reduced by more than 59%. The microbial inoculum was efficient in the biological treatment in CPWWs, demonstrating the efficiency and robustness of the selected strains, independent of the physico-chemical characteristics of wastewater.

Fermentation process for production of apple-based kefir vinegar: microbiological, chemical and sensory analysis.

The aim of this study was to develop a kefir apple-based vinegar and evaluate this fermentation process using new methodology with Biospeckle Laser. Brazilian kefir grains were inoculated in apple must for vinegar production. In this study, the microbial community present in kefir, and correspondent vinegar, was investigated using Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization - Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) technique. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lactobacillus paracasei, Lactobacillus plantarum, Acetobacter pasteurianus and Acetobacter syzygii were the microbial species identified. S. cerevisiae, L. plantarum, A. pasteurianus and A. syzygii were found in smaller quantities at the beginning of the alcoholic fermentation, but were found throughout the alcoholic and acetic fermentation. Kefir grains were able to utilize apple must as substrate to produce ethanol, and acetic acid. Acetate, volatile alcohols and aldehydes in the vinegar-based kefir were also produced. The yield of acetic acid in the kefir vinegars was ∼79%. The acetic acid concentration was ∼41gL-1, reaching the required standard for the Brazilian legislation accepts it as vinegar (4.0% acetic acid). Kefir vinegar showed good acceptance in the sensory analysis. The technology proposed here is novel by the application of immobilized-cell biomass (kefir grains) providing a mixed inocula and eliminating the use of centrifuge at the end of the fermentative process. This step will save energy demand and investment. This is the first study to produce apple vinegar using kefir grains.