ABSTRACT
Molasses and alcohol waste has a huge number of emissions every year, containing a high concentration of organic pollutants. It is one of the most severe light industrial wastes resulting in water pollution. Molasses and alcohol wastewater is featured by the following characteristics: First of all, it consists of organic waste, which requires a Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) of 8-15 × 104 mg/L. In addition, the wastewater contains inorganic acids and organic acids with the pH values 3.5 to 4.5; therefore, if direct wastewater irrigation is made to land without treating it effectively, it shall not only burn the crops but also cause heavy soil compaction. Furthermore, with a high of chrominance and melanoidins, the wastewater is very difficult to remove by physical or biological methods; most importantly, the wastewater consists of a large amount of organics, proteins, vitamins, N, P, and K, which will cause heavy eutrophication and pollution of drinking water sources, leading to potential human health hazards if it is discharged directly into rivers.
