André Elia Neto

Environmental and Water Resources Consultant

Management of Water Resources in the Sugarcane Agro-

Industry in Brazil

Workshop on “Examples of Positive Bioenergy and Water Relationships”

Royal Swedish Academy of Agriculture and Science (KSLA)

Stockholm, 25-26 August 2015

UNICA – The Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association is the largest association

of producers of sugar and bioethanol in Brazil.

It was created in 1997 with the merger of several industry organizations.

With more than 120 members, it represents more than 50% of the ethanol and

60% of the sugar produced in Brazil.

It is also responsible for around 70% of bioelectricity from sugarcane, marketed

in the country

ABOUT UNICA

Number of mills 4011

Sugarcane growers 70,000

Sugarcane area 9.5 million ha (in 2014)

Sugarcane Processed 650 million tons (2014/2015)6

Electricity to power grid 20.8 TWh (in 2014)

Direct employments 1.2 million²

Sector Revenue US$ 28.15 billion3

Foreign Revenue (Exports): US$ 16 billion (2011/12)

% Energy matrix 15.7% (2nd source, > hydro)

CO2 reductions emission > 600 million tons (since 1975)

Elaboration: UNICA. Note ¹ Data from Oct / 2012; ² Data from 2010. RAIS; 3Neves, Trombin and Consoli. The sugar-energy map of Brazil, 2010. In: Ethanol

and Bioletricity. 4 Source: LMC (Fourth Quarter 2012). 5 Source: UNICADATA safra 2013/14 . (6) CONAB

2nd ETHANOL PRODUCER IN THE WORLD4

Ethanol production = 25.6 million m3/year(5)

22% of world production

36% of world exports

1st SUGAR PRODUCER IN THE WORLD4

Sugar production = 37.7 million t/year(5)

22% of world production

45% of world exports

BRAZILIAN SUGARCANE SECTOR

4.6

0.5%

Million Hectares

LAND USE IN BRAZIL

Source: ICONE, IBGE (PAM 2010 and Censo Agropecuário), MMA, INPE (TerraClass), Agricultural Land Use and

Expansion Model Brazil Ag-LUE-BR (Gerd Sparovek, ESALQ/USP). Compiled by: UNICA and Cosan. Note: ILs =

Indigenous Lands. Other Native Vegetation include Legal Reserves (RLs)

Total Area Native Vegetation Land in Current

Use Other Uses

851 554 258 38

100% 65% 30% 5%

Pastures Crop Land

Sugarcane

9.5

1%

60

7%

198

23% Sugarcane

FOR ETHANOL

204

24%

Conservation

Units and ILs

135

16%

Permanent

Protected Areas

215

25%

Other Native

Vegetation

2.9 3.8

9.5 14.4

21

Others crops (million hectares)

Update in 2012. Percentages refer to the Brazilian territory.

Source: NIPE-Unicamp, IBGE e CTC

Ethanol-Sugar Mills Location in Brazil

In Brazil there are two sugarcane areas:

• in the North-Northeast at about 12% of

the production area of sugarcane (a

part with irrigation)

• and the Center-South with the

remaining 88% (essentially rainfed

production)

In the Center-South, the harvest takes place

from April to December

The North-Northeast harvest begins in

September, ending the following year in March.

Area and Productivity

stable area

increse area

drought

Use and reuse water and wastewater in the

sugarcane industry

It is difficult to dissociate the production of bioethanol and sugar in

Brazil, most of sugarcane mills produce both products.

The average use of water in industry, with a production mix of 50% of

sugarcane for sugar and 50% for ethanol production, results in about 22

m3 / t of processed cane (as we can see in the following table)

Process water

Sector Finality Specific Use

Average Use

[m3/t cane] [%]

Feeding, preparation and extraction (grinding and difusion)

Sugar cane washing 2.200 m3/t cane total 2.200 9.9

Imbibition 0.250 m3/ t cane total 0.250 1.1

Bearing cooling 0.035 m3/ t cane total 0.035 0.2

Cooling oil 0.130 m3/ t cane total 0.130 0.6

Subtotal 2.615 11.8

Juice

treatment

Cooling at sulphiting (*1)

0.100 m3/t cane sugar 0.050 0.2

Preparation of lime mixture 0.030 m3/t cane total 0.030 0.1

Preparation of polymer (*1)

0.015 m3/t cane sugar 0.008 0.0

Heating juice for sugar (*1)

160 kg steam/t cane sugar 0.080 0.4

for ethanol (*2) e (*4)

50 kg steam/t cane ethanol 0.025 0.1

Filter imbibition 0.030 m3/ t cane total 0.030 0.1

Filter condensers 0.300 a 0,350 m3/t cane total 0.350 1.6

Subtotal 0.573 2.6

Sugar mills (*1)

Steam for evaporation 0.414 t/t cane sugar 0.207 0.9

Condensers/multijets evaporation

4 a 5 m3/t cane sugar 2.250 10.2

Steam for cooking 0.170 t/t cane sugar 0.085 0.4

Condensers/multijets cookers 8 a 15 m3/t cane sugar 5.750 26.0

Molasses dilution 0.050 m3/t cane sugar 0.030 0.1

Delay cooking 0.020 m3/t cane sugar 0.010 0.0

Sugar washing (1/3 water e 2/3 steam)

0.030 m3/t cane sugar 0.015 0.1

Retainer of powdered sugar 0.040 m3/t cane sugar 0.020 0.1

Subtotal 8.367 37.8

Fermentation (*2)

preparation of the fermentation mixture

0 a 10 m3/m

3 ethanol residual 0.100 0.5

Juice cooling 30 m3/m

3 ethanol 1.250 5.6

Treatment of yeast 0.010 m3/m

3 ethanol 0.001 0.0

Washing gases CO2 fermentation

1.5 a 3.6 m3/m

3 ethanol 0.015 0.1

Fermentation cooling 60 a 80 m3/m

3 ethanol 3.000 13.6

Subtotal 4.366 19.7

Table – Averages rates of water uses in the sugar and ethanol mills in Brazil

Souce: ELIA NETO et al., 2009 – Manual de Conservação e reuso de Água na Agroindústria Sucroenergética . UNICA, FIESP, CTC e ANA

Process water

Ethanol distillation

(*2)

Heating (steam) 3.5 a 5 kg/m3 ethanol 0.360 1.6

Cooling condensers 80 a 120 m3/m

3 ethanol 3.500 15.8

Subtotal 3.860 17.4

Power

generation

Steam production 400 a 600 kg/t cane total 0.500 2.3

Desuperheating steam 0.030 l/kg steam 0.015 0.1

Whashing gas from the chimney of the boiler.

2.0 m3/t steam 1.000 4.5

Clean ashtrays boiler 0500 m3/t steam 0.250 1.1

Cooling oil and air from the turbo

15 l/kW 0.500 2.3

Water towers of condensation (*3)

38 m

3/t steam 6.0

(*3) 27.1

Subtotal 2.265 10.2

Others Cleaning floors and equipment 0.050 m3/t cane total 0.050 0.2

Use drinking 70 l/ employee days 0.030 0.1

Subtotal 0.080 0.4

Total 22.126 100

Note (* 1) items that do not participate in the process of ethanol; (* 2) those who did not participate in the process of sugar; (* 3) those who participate only in the case of production of surplus energy is not computed in the sums; (* 4) recovering the heat of the hot juice for ethanol

Souce: ELIA NETO et al., 2009 – Manual de Conservação e reuso de Água na Agroindústria Sucroenergética . UNICA, FIESP, CTC e ANA

Process water - Distribution

Average Distribution of Water Uses in Sugar

Ethanol Sugarcane Industry

Gas scrubber

5%

Other

14%

Fermentation

cooling

19%

Sugar

concentratio

n

26%

Juice

evaporation

10%

Washing

sugarcane

10%

Ethanol

condeser

cooling

16%

Source: ELIA NETO , A. Gestão dos Recursos Hídricos na Agroindústria Canavieira . UNICA, 2014

• The two major uses are for cooling

water, with:

36% for sugar factory and

35% for ethanol production.

• There are still:

10% for sugarcane washing and

5% for cleaning emission from

boilers.

• These are the 4 points where it can

act more readily to obtain results with

reduced water intake, with the circuit

closing, in a program of “Management

of Water Resources in the Sugarcane

Agro-Industry”

Curva de Tendência da Taxa de Captação de Água na

Indústria Canavieira

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

20

22

19 70 19 8 0 19 9 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 10 2 0 2 0

Taxa

de

Cap

taçã

o [m

3/t.c

ana]

DECREASE WATER CATCHMENT

Source: adapted from ELIA NETO, A. et al., 2009 – Manual de Conservação e reuso de Água na Agroindústria Sucroenergética . UNICA, FIESP, CTC e ANA

• The water catchment, was 15 to 20 m3 per ton of cane about 4 decades ago.

• It has been minimized with the closing of the water systems to reuse.

• On average, the catchment water for industry, is about 2 m3 / ton of cane (data from

2005)

• The self-imposed target is 1 m3 per ton of cane

Environmental Protocol, 2014

Goal of sector

Management of Water

Resources in the Sugarcane

Agro-Industry

Trend curve of the water catchment rate in the sugar cane industry.

Wa

ter

ca

tch

me

nt

rate

(m

3/t

).

Average catchment

Average Distribution of Water Uses in Sugar

Ethanol Sugarcane Industry

Gas scrubber

5%

Other

14%

Fermentation

cooling

19%

Sugar

concentratio

n

26%

Juice

evaporation

10%

Washing

sugarcane

10%

Ethanol

condeser

cooling

16%

Management of Water Resources in the Sugarcane Agro-Industry

Strategy: minimum water catchment and zero discharge reduction of use, and

practice of water reuse

closed circuit

Effluent sent to the sugarcane fields

Goals for water management

Catchment (m3/t.cane) 1.0

Consumption (m3/t.cane) 1.0

Wastewater to river (m3/t.cane) zero Average use= 22 m3/t.cane (in mill)

There are mills that water catchment smaller

than the goal (with 0.7 m3 / t cane and even

less)

Reuse Efficiency 95%,

relative to the goals

13

WATER BALANCE

Souce: Elia Neto, A. et all “Manual da Conservação e Reúso de Água na Agroindústria Sucroenergética, 2009. Versão revisada

Catchment:

Average = 2 m3/t.cane

Goal = 1 m3/t.cane

Cane’s water:

Average = 0.7

m3/t.cane

Wastewater

Average = 0 - 1.8 m3/t.cane

Goal = 0 m3/t.cane

Agronomic’s Reuse

Average = 0 - 1.8 m3/t.cane

Goal = 1.8 m3/t.cane

Losses: Average = 0.9 m3/t.cane

Goal = 0.9 m3/t.cane

Use and reuse

22 m3/t.cane

Reuse Index:

91% (goal 95%)

23 L/L

12 L/L

16 L/kg

8 L/kg

~18 L/kWh

Global average water balance in the sugarcane mills with the mix of production from 50%

sugar and 50% ethanol.

tower of cooling water

cooling spray pond water

The Good Industry Practices

15

decanter of sugarcane washing water dry cleaning sugarcane

cleaning of the boiler gases decanter of efluent

The Good Industry Practices

(*) Source: Rosenfeld, U. Irrigação e Fertirrigação nas Sub Regiões de SP e GO. Palestra; Simpósio de Tecnologia de

Produção de Cana-de-Açúcar, GAPE/FEALQ, Piracicaba, 04/07/2003

“Rescue” irrigation (*):

To plant sugarcane: 80-120 mm

To ratoon cane: 40-60 mm

Irrigation with effluents

Productivity average gains (*):

Sugarcane plant 12 to 20%

Ratoon cane 6 to 12%

Reuse: reduces the need for new sources of water for irrigation.

Main drivers for implementing the practice

The greatest motivation for the practice is to make available water for the other sectors,

especially during the dry season.

For example in the São Paulo’ state (the countrys’ largest sugarcane producer):

urban 40%

rural and other 32%

industry 28%

Licensed water catchment distribuition in São Paulo' state

(source: PERH-2012-21015)

Total demand = 304,5 only in the

harvest period

FINAL REMARKS

Main challenges: the cost

• The self-imposed goals of the sector are voluntary, since there is

no restriction on the use of water when used correctly.

• These goals have become standards of some certifications (such

as Bonsucro and Green Ethanol in Sao Paulo).

• The level of investment required is about 2 million dollars per

plant, with treatment and complete closure of the water systems.

• In order to achieve the lowest levels of 0.5 cubic meter per ton

the water inside the sugarcane, should be reused.

• In order to do this, the technological level required is much larger

and more expensive (investment of at least 20 million dollars per

plant)

FINAL REMARKS

Advantage : Non irrigation

• The cane planting in Brazil is essentially rainfed as opposed to

several countries,

• This is another great benefit of sustainability in the production of

sugarcane.

• Normally ferti-irrigation and rescue irrigation occur with effluent

reaching up to 1/3 of the sugar cane area with very low water layer

(60 to 120 millimeters).

• In the Northeast there is a bigger use of water resources for

irrigation due to water deficit, using supplemental irrigation (200

to 400 millimeters per year), even then only in a part of the

plantation,

• Intended mainly to productivity similar to Central-South region of

90 tons per hectare, much higher than the average in the region, in

which rainfed production is below 50 tons per hectare.

thanks

(tack)

www.unica.com.br

andre.elia@unica.com.br