DIGIWINE 2: Extraction of Biostimulants from Grapes

Objective: Reuse of Wine Production Waste

The DIGIWINE COMPOST 2 project, “Development of a digital twin of the industrialized composting process of winery waste to optimize production and control properties for use as raw material in the manufacture of organic fertilizers,” is a continuation of DIGIWINE aimed at producing biostimulants from grape pomace and stems (pruning residues, pomace, and lees). Due to the promising results obtained in Phase 1, this second phase has focused on optimizing the extraction process to maximize the antioxidant activity of the extracts. Additionally, white grape pomace has been introduced into the project.

This project has received public funding under the AEI 2023 AEI-010500-2023-189 call from the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Tourism, as part of the grants established to support innovative business groups to enhance the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises.

The total project budget is €139,992.00, with a granted subsidy of €110,331.00. The project duration is from May 2023 to April 2024.

The participating partners include the Aragon Agricultural Machinery Cluster (CAMPAG), SCSJB (San Juan Bautista Cooperative), the Catalonia Agricultural Machinery Cluster (FEMAC), DEFEDER, and ATRIA.

ATRIA’s role in the DIGIWINE 2 project has focused on conducting extraction trials for biostimulants, characterizing their antioxidant capacity, and optimizing the process for future industrialization.

Solution: Optimization of Biostimulant Compound Extraction

At ATRIA, we are optimizing the extraction of biostimulant compounds based on the results obtained in Phase One of the DIGIWINE project.

Initially, we conducted a literature review to improve the parameters obtained in Phase One of the project:

• pH
• Extraction temperature
• Extraction time
• Extracting solvent
• Sample/extracting solvent ratio
• Extraction method

After conducting this combined study, we established new parameters. Similar to Phase One of DIGIWINE, we characterized the concentration of polyphenols and antioxidant activity using the new parameters. We also performed a statistical study to understand the influence of the new parameters on total polyphenol concentrations and antioxidant activity.

In addition to extracting from black grape residues, we studied and analyzed the new residue of white grape pomace, which yielded positive results.

Thanks to this new phase, we were able to identify the best extraction parameters and compare various types of residues.