Water use optimization in batch process industries. Part 1: design of the water network

In the food industry water is mainly used for cleaning, disinfecting, cooling and heating. All these different tasks produce wastewaters that differ not only in quantity but also in quality. Water pinch analysis offers an efficient alternative to determine minimum water requirement (MWR) and minimum effluent treatment (MET). In this paper, this method and mix integer linear programming (MILP), are used to synthesize the water network for batch processes. A study has been made in a winery in San Juan, Argentina. This industry is the most important of the region and has historically been a handicraft activity and little engineering has been applied. The results prove that water savings of 30%, approximately, can be achieved.