Investigating the Effect of an Antifouling Surface Modification on the Environmental Impact of a Pasteurization Process: An LCA Study

Abstract

As concerns grow about the sustainability of current food production patterns, it is important to assess their environmental impact, to identify the hotspots, and to propose curative solutions in order to progress toward more durable and ecofriendly production processes. Dairy products are a significant part of the human diet, but their production is responsible for substantial emission of pollutants such as greenhouse gases and fine particles. Following a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach, this study aims at assessing the environmental impact of a dairy pasteurization process and at studying the impact of a fouling-mitigating surface modification on the global environmental footprint of the process. The results obtained show that the frequent cleaning-in-place (CIP) procedures, which are required to remove dairy fouling layers, are the hotspot in the pasteurization process, mostly through high wastewater production. Moreover, it is shown that the use of a fouling-mitigating surface modification, an antifouling amphiphilic silicone coating, reduces the environmental impact of the pasteurization process by more than 70%.