Search arXiv⌕ Search
Home/Archive/arXiv

arXiv · 2511.14607

A System Dynamics Approach to Evaluating Sludge Management Strategies in Vinasse Treatment: Cost-Benefit Analysis and Scenario Assessment

Agustin Olivares·Paul Leger·Rodrigo Poblete
View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

In the Chilean local alcohol industry (pisco indus- try), for one liter of alcohol produced 10-15 liters of vinasse as the main wastewater of the process. To comply with industrial waste regulations, vinasse must be stored, which enables evaporation, leaving behind a residual sludge. However, treating vinasse remains an environmental and industrial challenge, having a high nutrient concentration and acidity that can degrade soil quality and harm surrounding vegetation. While previous studies have modeled sludge generation and transport in urban water systems, research on industrial wastewater, such as the alcohol industry, remains limited, affecting the search for opportunities to improve the treatment process.. This paper proposes a System Dynamics Model (SDM) to assess the costs associated with three management strategies: natural drying of vinasse, relocation to an alternative site, and implementation of a coagulation- flocculation treatment to accelerate sludge production. This paper makes two contributions. First, we describe a pioneer SDM applicable to sludge management, which includes variables such as sludge transport, coagulant quantity, and ambient temperature to make hypothetical scenarios that affect the treatment processes of vinasse. Second, we present the expected results of the associated costs of the scenarios proposed in the model, helping decision-makers to manage vinasse. The model is calibrated with historical data provided by a company in the North of Chile, helping to improve the decision-making for vinasse treatment.

Explore related subjects

math.NAcs.NAstat.OT

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Agustin Olivares, Paul Leger, Rodrigo Poblete. 2025-11-18. A System Dynamics Approach to Evaluating Sludge Management Strategies in Vinasse Treatment: Cost-Benefit Analysis and Scenario Assessment. https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.14607

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

Fully spectral scheme for the linear BGK equation on the whole space

In this article, we design a fully spectral method in both space and velocity for a linear inhomogeneous kinetic equation with mass, momentum and energy conservation. We focus on the linear BGK equation with a confinement potential $Φ$, even if the method could be applied to different collision operators. It is based upon the projection on Hermite polynomials in velocity and orthonormal polynomials with respect to the weight $e^{-$Φ$}$ in space. The potential $Φ$ is assumed to be a polynomial. It is, to the author's knowledge, the first scheme which preserves hypocoercive behavior in addition to the conservation laws. These different properties are illustrated numerically on both quadratic and double well potential.

math.NA↗
arXiv2026

Inverse inequalities for kernel-based approximation on bounded domains and Riemannian manifolds

This paper establishes inverse inequalities for kernel-based approximation spaces defined on bounded Lipschitz domains in $\mathbb{R}^d$ and compact Riemannian manifolds. While inverse inequalities are well-studied for polynomial spaces, their extension to kernel-based trial spaces poses significant challenges. For bounded Lipschitz domains, we extend prior Bernstein inequalities, which only apply to a limited range of Sobolev orders, to the full range of lower and upper orders, and derive Nikolskii inequalities that bound $L_\infty$ norms by $L_2$ norms. For compact Riemannian manifolds, we focus on restricted kernels, which are defined as the restriction of positive definite kernels from the ambient Euclidean space to the manifold, and prove their counterparts.

math.NA↗
arXiv2026

Error Estimates for Hyperbolic Scaling Limits of Linear Kinetic Models on Networks

This paper studies linear discrete kinetic models on networks and their asymptotic behavior in the small Knudsen number limit. For coupling conditions at an n-edge junction under a symmetric formulation, we introduce a change of variables that reformulates the system into n independent initial-boundary value problems. The asymptotic expansions are then constructed and rigorously justified by deriving an error estimate based on the energy method.

math.NA↗