Final ReportSummary - VITISPEC (An affordable, easy to use tool for monitoring the wine production process, based on FTIR/ATR and an attached PAS gas cell)
VITISPEC was a 2-year applied research project, which commenced in September 2010 and finished in August 2012, and was funded under the 'Research for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)' programme of the European Commission (EC)'s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).
The project aimed to develop a tool for assisting winemakers in better understanding the wine fermentation process, a highly complex process, by providing them with real-time information on the status of multiple critical quality parameters during fermentation. The project outputs would represent a breakthrough in terms of improved understanding and ability to control the complex wine fermentation process. A successful VITISPEC tool for measuring a number of critical wine quality parameters during the fermentation process, involving no sampling and providing the results in real-time would offer significant strategic benefits to the SME within the consortium, once the results become available in the marketplace.
Project context and objectives:
The wine industry, which is made up of thousands of SMEs and family business, is an important contributor to the European Union (EU) economy, providing countless jobs in vine cultivation and harvesting, wine production, bottling and distribution. However, the sector faces severe problems. Consumption is down, and exports from the New World are making huge inroads into the market. Over the last decade, imports have grown by 10 % per annum, while exports are only increasing slowly.
The modern wine industry needs tools for process control and quality assessment in order to better manage the fermentation process, which is critical in determining the ultimate quality of wine. During fermentation, it is important to measure both substrate and product concentrations (alcohol, sugars, acids, etc.). However, analysis of these compounds by traditional means requires sample preparation, and in some cases several purification steps, proving time consuming, laborious and prone to human error, while offering no real-time data.
To this end, VITISPEC project aimed to develop an affordable, reliable online tool for the rapid monitoring of wine fermentation. Various inspection techniques (e.g. FTIR, ATR, PAS) were researched to determine their potential for predicting critical wine fermentation parameters. Chemometric models were developed to predict wine fermentation parameters based on FTIR/ATR spectral data. A VITISPEC prototype for measuring specific fermentation parameters was designed, developed and successfully tested in a Spanish wine making facility. As opposed to existing reference analytical methods, VITISPEC requires no sample preparation and provided the results in real-time.
The results of this project add real value to EU wine producers by proving that FTIR/ATR technology can be used to monitor certain parameters of wine fermentation. The results strengthen Europe's position as a leading wine producing region of the world and safeguarding the growth of many rural economies across EU-27.
Project results:
The first phase of the project focused on defining the technological needs and aspirations of end users, as well as the expectations of the SMEs within the consortium, and both the industry and research partners worked closely together to define the industrial specifications. The most important parameters to monitor and control during the wine fermentation process were defined and reference analytical methods specified for each of them.
Following the definition of system specification, laboratory research conducted in work package (WP)2 and WP3 evaluated the performance of the proposed FTIR/ATR technology for the measurement of different parameters in grapes, must and wine.
A feasibility study was performed at laboratory scale with several experimental set-ups, including a laboratory VITISPEC unit and commercially available systems whose use is widespread in the wine industry (e.g. Bruker Alpha, FOSS Winescan, FOSS Oenoscan). Spectral measurements were carried out on purposely-prepared model compound solutions, as well as on fermentation samples collected over the 2010 and 2011 harvest in Spain, France and Germany.
Scientific based calibration (SBC) theory was identified as potential chemometric tool to predict the concentrations of analytes of interest based on the FTIR/ATR spectra measured, and adapted to the needs of VITISPEC. Model compound solutions (in water, must and wine base) were used as training set for the calibration, whereas fermentation sample of the years 2010 and 2011 were used as test sets.
It was concluded that using the FTIR and 10-bounce ATR technique was suited to be used for the VITISPEC prototype, since the calibration performance was equivalent to other commercial instruments). The ethanol, fructose, glucose and glycerol concentration during the fermentation process could be predicted with adequate accuracy using SBC, whereas the prediction of acids concentration during fermentation was not precise.
During the third phase, the laboratory VITISPEC setup was scaled up to build a pre-competitive prototype that could monitor the wine fermentation process in a way that could be easily integrated in modern wine facilities. As such, the prototype was designed in modular fashion, consisting of a measuring unit (i.e. FTIR/ATR spectrometer and sampling module), a PC and user interface unit (to control the operation of the hardware and calculate fermentation parameters based on spectral data) and a unit for handling the liquids, such as cleaning solutions and the waste generated.
The prototype was demonstrated internally to the consortium members at different stages of development. The validation of the prototype for monitoring wine fermentations took place at the facilities of the project's industrial partner VEGUER in Spain during 2012 harvest. VITISPEC provided values for the fermentation parameters based on the spectral fingerprints and the SBC algorithms. By comparing the parameters predicted by VITISPEC and the results of the reference analytical methods, it was concluded that VITISPEC was able to accurately predict ethanol and fermentable sugars, whereas further research would be needed to achieve satisfactory predictions of glycerol and acids.
Given that this project delivered a pre-competitive prototype system, post project development work would be needed to industrialise the precompetitive output to a commercial system that is market exploitable. The consortium is confident that there is potential for developing an affordable instrument for quantifying ethanol and sugars in beverages.
Potential impact:
The VITISPEC project has delivered to precompetitive prototype scale an affordable FTIR-ATR tool for monitoring significant parameters (e.g. alcohol, sugars) along the wine production process and mainly focused in the fermentation stage. A major feature of the system is that no sample filtration is required. Further development and industrialisation work is required in order to arrive at a fully commercial system, with a particular recommendation being the combination of the SBC method with partial least squares (PLS) predictive methods for monitoring compounds that are not reliably detectable with the SBC method in order to be able to deliver an affordable multiparametric system, which would offer a cheap system in the marketplace compared to current commercially available systems. Moreover, the potential for system to be used in the monitoring of the fermenting of beer, distilled beverages, brandies, sweet liquors, and juices is high, enhances the exploitation possibilities of the VITISPEC project results.
There are numerous socio-economic impacts that will be derived from the results of this VITISPEC research project. Central to the expected socio-economic impact, is the boosting of the competitiveness of companies operating along the wine chain- from farm to glass- by improving the availability and quality of European wine. There are an estimated 750 000 small wine producers within the EU. The EU is the world leader in wine production, with almost half of the world's total vine-growing area and 60 % of production wine volume. If we consider the entire wine value chain (including viticulture research, wine supply chain and logistics, wine wholesale and retail outlets, as well as the impact of the wine industry for tourism) then the impacts for the European economy, growth and jobs are accentuated.
In addition to raising competitiveness along the wine chain, significant socio-economic benefits will be derived for the European consumers as a result of better quality wines, with the need for less SO2. This heightened quality and safety, if well communicated to consumers will increase consumer confidence and demand for European wine, which will translate into a competitive advantage for European wineries, leading to increased productivity and growth. Furthermore, by virtue of their technological features, the VITISPEC systems could improve working conditions by moving away from time consuming and chemical-based sampling techniques.
A key importance was given to the management of the intellectual properties and in agreement of the dissemination of non-confidential information throughout the project. The project developed know-how that will be exploitable by the SMEs. A preliminary business plan, as well as a post project development word, has been laid out. The synergistic role of the partners covering the whole supply and value chain has been discussed.
The VITISPEC project has been actively disseminated by all partners throughout the project, through a variety of channels and to the defined target audiences. Post-project, VITISPEC will continue to be disseminated, especially as a means for facilitating project-project exploitation of the results.
The impacts of the dissemination activities carried out during the project have been measured in order to gauge their effectiveness. Below are the quantitative and qualitative indicators that were considered and the outcome at the end of the project:
Number of industry visitors at trade shows and exhibitions: < 300
Number of articles published: 10 in food-specialised magazines, 16 in the VITISPEC website, 12 in partners' websites
Number of posters and oral presentations in conferences: 4
Number of consultations from research community: 5
Number of face to face meetings: > 20
Number of policy makers reached: > 3
Number of press releases and articles published in the press: 5 news articles
Number of TV and radio interviews: 1 posted on YouTube.
Number of hits on the project website: 713 hits from 1 June 2011 to 31 August 2012. 981 hits from 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2012.
Following on social media networks: > 100
Project website:
http://www.vitispec.eu(opens in new window)
For further information please contact:
Dr Edurne Gaston
Innovació i Recerca Industrial i Sostenible
Avda Carl Friedrich Gauss
08860 Castelldefels
Barcelona
Spain
The VITISPEC logo, factsheet and brochure can be downloaded from the project website. On-line training material can also be consulted on the site.
The project aimed to develop a tool for assisting winemakers in better understanding the wine fermentation process, a highly complex process, by providing them with real-time information on the status of multiple critical quality parameters during fermentation. The project outputs would represent a breakthrough in terms of improved understanding and ability to control the complex wine fermentation process. A successful VITISPEC tool for measuring a number of critical wine quality parameters during the fermentation process, involving no sampling and providing the results in real-time would offer significant strategic benefits to the SME within the consortium, once the results become available in the marketplace.
Project context and objectives:
The wine industry, which is made up of thousands of SMEs and family business, is an important contributor to the European Union (EU) economy, providing countless jobs in vine cultivation and harvesting, wine production, bottling and distribution. However, the sector faces severe problems. Consumption is down, and exports from the New World are making huge inroads into the market. Over the last decade, imports have grown by 10 % per annum, while exports are only increasing slowly.
The modern wine industry needs tools for process control and quality assessment in order to better manage the fermentation process, which is critical in determining the ultimate quality of wine. During fermentation, it is important to measure both substrate and product concentrations (alcohol, sugars, acids, etc.). However, analysis of these compounds by traditional means requires sample preparation, and in some cases several purification steps, proving time consuming, laborious and prone to human error, while offering no real-time data.
To this end, VITISPEC project aimed to develop an affordable, reliable online tool for the rapid monitoring of wine fermentation. Various inspection techniques (e.g. FTIR, ATR, PAS) were researched to determine their potential for predicting critical wine fermentation parameters. Chemometric models were developed to predict wine fermentation parameters based on FTIR/ATR spectral data. A VITISPEC prototype for measuring specific fermentation parameters was designed, developed and successfully tested in a Spanish wine making facility. As opposed to existing reference analytical methods, VITISPEC requires no sample preparation and provided the results in real-time.
The results of this project add real value to EU wine producers by proving that FTIR/ATR technology can be used to monitor certain parameters of wine fermentation. The results strengthen Europe's position as a leading wine producing region of the world and safeguarding the growth of many rural economies across EU-27.
Project results:
The first phase of the project focused on defining the technological needs and aspirations of end users, as well as the expectations of the SMEs within the consortium, and both the industry and research partners worked closely together to define the industrial specifications. The most important parameters to monitor and control during the wine fermentation process were defined and reference analytical methods specified for each of them.
Following the definition of system specification, laboratory research conducted in work package (WP)2 and WP3 evaluated the performance of the proposed FTIR/ATR technology for the measurement of different parameters in grapes, must and wine.
A feasibility study was performed at laboratory scale with several experimental set-ups, including a laboratory VITISPEC unit and commercially available systems whose use is widespread in the wine industry (e.g. Bruker Alpha, FOSS Winescan, FOSS Oenoscan). Spectral measurements were carried out on purposely-prepared model compound solutions, as well as on fermentation samples collected over the 2010 and 2011 harvest in Spain, France and Germany.
Scientific based calibration (SBC) theory was identified as potential chemometric tool to predict the concentrations of analytes of interest based on the FTIR/ATR spectra measured, and adapted to the needs of VITISPEC. Model compound solutions (in water, must and wine base) were used as training set for the calibration, whereas fermentation sample of the years 2010 and 2011 were used as test sets.
It was concluded that using the FTIR and 10-bounce ATR technique was suited to be used for the VITISPEC prototype, since the calibration performance was equivalent to other commercial instruments). The ethanol, fructose, glucose and glycerol concentration during the fermentation process could be predicted with adequate accuracy using SBC, whereas the prediction of acids concentration during fermentation was not precise.
During the third phase, the laboratory VITISPEC setup was scaled up to build a pre-competitive prototype that could monitor the wine fermentation process in a way that could be easily integrated in modern wine facilities. As such, the prototype was designed in modular fashion, consisting of a measuring unit (i.e. FTIR/ATR spectrometer and sampling module), a PC and user interface unit (to control the operation of the hardware and calculate fermentation parameters based on spectral data) and a unit for handling the liquids, such as cleaning solutions and the waste generated.
The prototype was demonstrated internally to the consortium members at different stages of development. The validation of the prototype for monitoring wine fermentations took place at the facilities of the project's industrial partner VEGUER in Spain during 2012 harvest. VITISPEC provided values for the fermentation parameters based on the spectral fingerprints and the SBC algorithms. By comparing the parameters predicted by VITISPEC and the results of the reference analytical methods, it was concluded that VITISPEC was able to accurately predict ethanol and fermentable sugars, whereas further research would be needed to achieve satisfactory predictions of glycerol and acids.
Given that this project delivered a pre-competitive prototype system, post project development work would be needed to industrialise the precompetitive output to a commercial system that is market exploitable. The consortium is confident that there is potential for developing an affordable instrument for quantifying ethanol and sugars in beverages.
Potential impact:
The VITISPEC project has delivered to precompetitive prototype scale an affordable FTIR-ATR tool for monitoring significant parameters (e.g. alcohol, sugars) along the wine production process and mainly focused in the fermentation stage. A major feature of the system is that no sample filtration is required. Further development and industrialisation work is required in order to arrive at a fully commercial system, with a particular recommendation being the combination of the SBC method with partial least squares (PLS) predictive methods for monitoring compounds that are not reliably detectable with the SBC method in order to be able to deliver an affordable multiparametric system, which would offer a cheap system in the marketplace compared to current commercially available systems. Moreover, the potential for system to be used in the monitoring of the fermenting of beer, distilled beverages, brandies, sweet liquors, and juices is high, enhances the exploitation possibilities of the VITISPEC project results.
There are numerous socio-economic impacts that will be derived from the results of this VITISPEC research project. Central to the expected socio-economic impact, is the boosting of the competitiveness of companies operating along the wine chain- from farm to glass- by improving the availability and quality of European wine. There are an estimated 750 000 small wine producers within the EU. The EU is the world leader in wine production, with almost half of the world's total vine-growing area and 60 % of production wine volume. If we consider the entire wine value chain (including viticulture research, wine supply chain and logistics, wine wholesale and retail outlets, as well as the impact of the wine industry for tourism) then the impacts for the European economy, growth and jobs are accentuated.
In addition to raising competitiveness along the wine chain, significant socio-economic benefits will be derived for the European consumers as a result of better quality wines, with the need for less SO2. This heightened quality and safety, if well communicated to consumers will increase consumer confidence and demand for European wine, which will translate into a competitive advantage for European wineries, leading to increased productivity and growth. Furthermore, by virtue of their technological features, the VITISPEC systems could improve working conditions by moving away from time consuming and chemical-based sampling techniques.
A key importance was given to the management of the intellectual properties and in agreement of the dissemination of non-confidential information throughout the project. The project developed know-how that will be exploitable by the SMEs. A preliminary business plan, as well as a post project development word, has been laid out. The synergistic role of the partners covering the whole supply and value chain has been discussed.
The VITISPEC project has been actively disseminated by all partners throughout the project, through a variety of channels and to the defined target audiences. Post-project, VITISPEC will continue to be disseminated, especially as a means for facilitating project-project exploitation of the results.
The impacts of the dissemination activities carried out during the project have been measured in order to gauge their effectiveness. Below are the quantitative and qualitative indicators that were considered and the outcome at the end of the project:
Number of industry visitors at trade shows and exhibitions: < 300
Number of articles published: 10 in food-specialised magazines, 16 in the VITISPEC website, 12 in partners' websites
Number of posters and oral presentations in conferences: 4
Number of consultations from research community: 5
Number of face to face meetings: > 20
Number of policy makers reached: > 3
Number of press releases and articles published in the press: 5 news articles
Number of TV and radio interviews: 1 posted on YouTube.
Number of hits on the project website: 713 hits from 1 June 2011 to 31 August 2012. 981 hits from 1 September 2010 to 31 August 2012.
Following on social media networks: > 100
Project website:
http://www.vitispec.eu(opens in new window)
For further information please contact:
Dr Edurne Gaston
Innovació i Recerca Industrial i Sostenible
Avda Carl Friedrich Gauss
08860 Castelldefels
Barcelona
Spain
The VITISPEC logo, factsheet and brochure can be downloaded from the project website. On-line training material can also be consulted on the site.