Identification of aerobic mesophilic bacilli isolated from board and paper products containing recycled fibres

AIMS: To identify aerobic mesophilic bacteria isolated from coreboard, kitchen roll paper and food packaging boards containing recycled fibres and to create a rapid fingerprint-based database for their identification. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 197 isolates and 20 relevant type strains were characterized by automated ribotyping and as far as possible identified by the similarities of their riboprints to the relevant type strains. One strain from each unidentified ribotype, a total of 87 strains, was subjected to partial 16S rDNA sequencing and in most cases also to fatty acid analysis and physiological tests. From the isolates 113 and seven different ribotypes were generated belonging to the genera Bacillus and Paenibacillus, respectively. The dominating species, or closest related to them, were B. simplex (22.8% of isolates), B. licheniformis (18.3%) and B. amyloliquefaciens (12.7%); 5.1% of the isolates were identified as B. cereus, a potential food-borne pathogen. In particular, this species was present in one food packaging board (26.3% of isolates). Based on these results, 40.1% of the isolates and 45.0% of ribotypes were so different from the relevant type strains that they may represent novel species. CONCLUSIONS: All isolates were aerobic spore-formers, indicating that all non-spore-formers were eliminated during the drying stage of the processes. Although many isolates could be affiliated to described species of Bacillus or Paenibacillus, a significant proportion of the isolates could not be identified unambiguously as members of a described species. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: A RiboPrint identification database, composed of 120 composite patters, was established for bacteria originating from the pulp and paper industry. Considering the discrimination power of ribotyping, this database will be extremely useful in future for the reliable and rapid identification of bacteria isolated from pulp and paper industrial sources.     

武汉市造纸行业资源代谢分析

资源代谢问题是造成产业系统生态环境影响的主要原因.在分析武汉市造纸行业资源代谢的基础上从资源输入-资源使用-环境胁迫-系统循环共生4个方面构建武汉市造纸行业资源代谢分析指标体系.运用模糊综合评判法和问题树模型对2007年武汉市造纸业的原材料、水、能源等资源的代谢与全国造纸行业平均水平进行了比较分析.结果表明:(1)武汉市造纸业资源代谢水平总体上评价等级为优,但某些指标与全国平均水平比还略有差距;(2)从资源输入角度分析,原材料输入生态效率及水资源输入生态效率等级为优,能源输入生态效率等级为良;(3)从资源使用角度分析,单位产品的原材料消耗及单位产品的水资源消耗等级为优,单位产品的能源消耗等级为良;(4)从环境胁迫角度分析,单位污染物工业总产值及单位产品污染物排放等级均为优,污染物达标排放率等级为良;(5)从系统循环共生分析,企业清洁生产达标率等级为良,资源持续利用及污染物治理等级为优,而中水回用率等级为差.通过代谢分析可得,武汉市造纸行业能源输入生态效率、单位产品能源消耗与全国平均水平比还有一定距离,整个行业中企业清洁生产比例还具有提升的空间;中水回用方面较弱,需要特别加强.     

Levanases for control of slime in paper manufacture

Formation of slime deposits is a major problem facing paper industries. The slime may be biological or nonbiological. Biological deposits that are composed of varied microflora along with fibers, fillers and dirt are the most troublesome. Slime producing microbes secrete extracellular polysaccharides that gum up the process machinery. The specific nature of slime and its formation depend on the mill environment. Correspondingly, countermeasures vary with the type of slime deposit. Conventional slime control methods generally employ combinations of biocides. This leads to effluent toxicity, as well as high processing and treatment costs. Therefore, alternative control measures are in demand. Once such measure is the use of enzymes (levanases) that dissolve the slime to some degree and improve biocide penetration into the slime layer. As a result, the amount of biocide required is reduced, process economics improve and effluent treatment is simplified.     

Environmental assessment of enzyme assisted processing in pulp and paper industry

Background Aims and Scope  The pulp and paper (P&P) industry is traditionally known to be a large contributor to environmental pollution due its large consumptions of energy and chemicals. Enzymatic processing, however, offers potential opportunities for changing the industry towards more environmentally friendly and efficient operations compared to the conventional methods. The aims of the present study has been to investigate whether the enzyme technology is a more environmentally sound alternative than the conventional ways of producing paper. The study addresses five enzyme applications by quantitative means and discusses the environmental potential of a range of other enzyme applications by qualitative means. Methods  LCA is used as analytical tool and modelling is facilitated in SimaPro software. Foreground LCA data are production/company specific and collected from P&P technology service providers, specific P&P companies and P&P researchers. The background data on energy systems, auxiliary chemicals, etc. are primarily taken from the ecoinvent database. Results  The study shows that fossil energy consumption and potential environmental impacts (global warming, acidification, nutrient enrichment, photochemical smog formation) induced by enzyme production are low compared with the impacts that they save when applied in bleach boosting, refining, pitch control, deinking, and stickies control. Discussion  The general explanation is that small amounts of enzyme provide the same function as large amounts of chemicals and that enzymatic processes generally require less fossil energy inputs than conventional processes. Data quality assessments and sensitivity analyses indicate that this observation is robust for all processes except deinking, although the results are subject to uncertainty and much variation. Conclusions and Recommendations  The environmental improvements that can be achieved by application of enzymatic solutions in the P&P industry are promising. To get a greater penetration of enzymatic solutions in the market and to harvest the environmental advantages of biotechnological inventions, it is recommended that enzymatic solutions should be given more attention in, for instance, ‘Best Available Technology’ notes within the framework of the European Directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC). ESS-Submission Editor: Roland Hischier (roland.hischier@empa.ch)     

Effects of a pulp and paper mill on the ecology of the La Trobe River,Victoria, Australia

Four riverine animal communities were measured to assess the impact of extensively treated wastewater from a pulp and paper mill on the lower La Trobe River in Victoria, Australia. Benthic macroinvertebrates in channel and bankside habitats were sampled using a new air-lift corer. Population density was expressed in relation to substrate volume. Other communities measured at five sites upstream and downstream of the mill's wastewater outfall were the zooplankton, and the animals associated with submerged littoral vegetation. Ten environmental variables were also measured during the two sampling periods.A total of 50 benthic macro-invertebrate taxa were dominated by Oligochaeta, Chironomidae and Bivalvia. Benthic communities upstream and downstream of the outfall were very similar. Benthic samples showed large unexplained variation between stations and seasons, despite the similarity of stations and the stratified sampling design, but within-sample variation was small. There was some evidence that benthic faunal patchiness was associated with patterns of stream-bed scouring and deposition in periods of high flow. Littoral samples collected 28 taxa, dominated by Decapoda and Hemiptera. The benthic and littoral communities were quite distinct, with only three species common to both.Only two of the biological and environmental variables responded to wastewater from the mill: total dissolved solids rose by 20–25% over upstream levels; and zooplankton density increased by 2–3 orders of magnitude. It was concluded that wastewater treatment had successfully avoided the major environmental problems often associated with pulp and paper mills.     

Energy use and recovery strategies within wastewater treatment and sludge handling at pulp and paper mills

This paper presents an inclusive approach with focus on energy use and recovery in wastewater management, including wastewater treatment (WWT) and sludge handling. Process data from three Swedish mills and a mathematical model were used to evaluate seven sludge handling strategies. The results indicate that excess energy use in WWT processes counters the potential energy recovery in the sludge handling systems. Energy use in WWT processes is recommended to aim for sufficient effluent treatment, not for sludge reduction. Increased secondary sludge production is favourable from an energy point of view provided it is used as a substrate for heat, biogas or electricity production.     

新型杀菌剂在造纸生产流程中的中试研究

造纸白水中的可溶性有机物以及造纸系统的pH值、温度等环境条件都极其有利于微生物生长。当白水中的微生物含量大于10~8CFU/mL,造纸系统就会产生腐浆,进而引起断纸、洞眼等问题。因此造纸系统要使用杀菌剂抑制微生物生长。本研究采用两种新型杀菌剂分别进行了实验室和中试抑菌试验,结果表明在两种杀菌剂协同作用下,造纸系统没有明显的腐浆产生。     

Life cycle assessment of printing and writing paper produced in Portugal

Goal, Scope and Background The environmental sustainability is one of the current priorities of the Portuguese pulp and paper industry. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was the methodology chosen to evaluate the sustainability of the printing and writing paper production activity. This paper grade represents about 60% of the total production of paper in Portugal and its production is expected to increase in the near future. The main goal of this study was to assess the potential environmental impacts associated with the entire life cycle of the printing and writing paper produced in Portugal from Eucalyptus globulus pulp and consumed in Germany, in order to identify the processes with the largest environmental impacts. Another goal of this study was to evaluate the effect on the potential environmental impacts of changing the market where the Portuguese printing and writing paper is consumed: German market vs. Portuguese market. Methods The main stages considered in this study were: forestry, pulp production, paper production, paper distribution, and paper final disposal. Transports and production of chemicals, fuels and energy in the grid were also included in these stages. Whenever possible and feasible, average or typical data from industry were collected. The remaining data were obtained from the literature and specialised databases. A quantitative impact assessment was performed for five impact categories: global warming over 100 years, acidification, eutrophication, non-renewable resource depletion and photochemical oxidant formation. Results In the German market scenario, the paper production stage was a remarkable hot spot for air emissions (non-renewable CO₂, NO_x and SO₂) and for non-renewable energy consumption, and, consequently, for the impact categories that consider these parameters: global warming, acidification and non-renewable resource depletion. These important environmental impacts are due to the energy requirements in the printing and writing paper production process, which are fulfilled by on-site fuel oil burning and consumption of electricity from the national grid, which is mostly based on the use of fossil fuels. The pulp production stage was identified as the largest contributor to water emissions (COD and AOX) and to eutrophication. Considering that energy consumed by the pulp production processes comes from renewable fuels, this stage was also the most contributing to renewable energy consumption. Discussion The paper distribution stage showed an important contribution to NO_x emissions, which, however, did not result in a major contribution to acidification or eutrophication. The final disposal stage was the main contributor to the photochemical oxidant formation potential due to CH₄ emissions from wastepaper landfilling. On the other hand, paper consumption in Portugal was environmentally more favourable than in Germany for the parameters/impact categories where the paper distribution stage has a significant contribution (non-renewable CO₂, NO_x, non-renewable energy consumption, acidification, eutrophication and non-renewable resource depletion) due to shorter distances needed to deliver paper to the consumers. For the remaining parameters/impact categories, the increase observed in the final disposal stage in the Portuguese market was preponderant, and resulted from the existence of significant differences in the final disposal alternatives in the analysed markets (recycling dominates in Germany, whereas landfilling dominates in Portugal). Conclusions The pulp and paper production stages were found to be of significance for almost all of the inventory parameters as well as for the impact assessment categories. The paper distribution and the final disposal stages were only of importance for some of the inventory parameters and some of the impact categories. The forestry stage played a minor role in the environmental impacts generated during the paper life cycle. The consumption of paper in Portugal led to a decrease in the environmental burdens of the paper distribution stage, but to an increase in the environmental burdens of the final disposal stage, when compared with the consumption of paper in Germany. Recommendations and Perspectives This study provides useful information that can assist the pulp and paper industry in the planning of future investments leading to an increase in its sustainability. The results of inventory analysis and impact assessment show the processes that play an important role in each impact category, which allow the industry to improve its environmental performance, making changes not only in the production process itself, but also in the treatment of flue gases and liquid effluents. Besides that concern regarding pollution prevention, other issues with relevance to the context of sustainability, such as the energy consumption, can also be dealt with.     

The Economic and Environmental Impact of Wastepaper Trade and Recycling in India

There have been increasing pressures by governments and nongovernmental organizations to restrict international trade in waste in the conviction that each nation has to take care of its own waste. We develop a sectoral flow model to investigate if free trade in nontoxic waste can support economic development and simultaneously reduce environmental degradation. The model is formulated as a nonlinear programming model with an objective function that minimizes environmental and economic costs. The model in principle describes the life cycle of Indian paper: Preliminary results suggest that trade in wastepaper is both economically and environmentally advantageous. The results also show that domestic and imported waste-paper are complementary and that import of wastepaper does not "crowd out" the domestic waste paper sector. This implies that the current trend of increasing trade of wastepaper does contribute to a more sustainable paper cycle in India.     

Influence of waste water from the paper industry and UV-B radiation on the photosynthetic efficiency of Euglena gracilis

The green flagellate Euglena gracilis has been used as a model organism to elucidate the possible large-scale and short-term effects of waste substances from the pulp and paper industry on photosynthetic efficiency (PE). Different concentrations of waste substances before and after treatment in a cleaning system were studied. The uncleaned sample at concentrations up to 1:10 and the cleaned sample at concentrations up to 1:5 showed stimulating effects on the PE after 7 days of incubation compared to the control. The effects of waste substances on the PE of E. gracilis were also studied in combination with short-term studies (20 and 40 min) of ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B, 280–320 nm). It was shown that increasing concentrations of the uncleaned sample had continuously stimulating effects on the PE and worked protectively against UV-B radiation. The cleaned sample exhibited no effects, or negative effects, on the PE of E. gracilis together with UV-B radiation compared to the experiments with only UV-B radiation. At the concentration 1:1 of the cleaned sample an increase in the PE was detected due to the high concentration of the coloured substances and a decrease in the UV-B penetration. PE revealed itself to be highly sensitive for detecting toxic effects on E. gracilis and is thus very promising for use in regular toxicity tests of waste water from pulp and paper industry. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Description and validation of a rapid (1 h) flow cytometry test for enumerating thermophilic bacteria in milk powders

AIMS: The aim of this study was to develop a rapid assay for enumerating thermophilic bacteria in milk powder. METHODS AND RESULTS: The BactiFlow flow cytometer was used to count bacteria based on esterase activity in viable bacterial cells. A protocol for total viable bacteria was modified by heat-treating the sample to selectively label thermophilic bacteria. Samples of milk powder dissolved in 0.1% peptone were treated with 0.8% ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid to reduce background interference because of denatured milk proteins. Either thermophilic bacteria were added to the dissolved milk powder or milk powder solutions were incubated at 55 degrees C for 2-3 h to enrich the natural thermophile population for testing. Results from the BactiFlow were compared with traditional plate count results. CONCLUSIONS: Thermophilic bacteria in milk powder can be enumerated within 1 h using the BactiFlow flow cytometer. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Microbiological test results obtained within 1 h can potentially be used to monitor manufacturing processes, effectively trace problems and provide confidence in the manufacture of product.     

Effects of pulp and paper mill effluents on estuarine and marine ecosystems in Canada: a review

This review examines the impact of pulp and paper mill effluents by comparing effects from Canada's east and west coasts at a time when revisions to the federal Fisheries Act (Pulp and Paper Effluent Regulations) are being finalized. Pulp and paper mill effluents from Canadian coastal mills were usually acutely toxic at source, and in many cases had marked deleterious effects on receiving waters due to toxicity, high biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and total suspended solids (TSS) loadings. Extreme reductions in ambient dissolved oxygen, impacts on benthic and intertidal organisms, changes in water colour and primary productivity, have been demonstrated over the years and continue to cause environmental damage. Contamination of biota by a wide range of chlorinated organic compounds has been more recently the focus of investigations.While sublethal effects of lowered dissolved oxygen levels and suspended solids on the water column and bottom communities are well known, the potential effects of major organochlorine contamination of water (measured as Adsorbable Organic Halogens=AOX), sediments, and biota are not fully understood, especially under natural and perturbated conditions. The findings of recent North American and Scandinavian studies which describe liver enzyme activation, histological damage, reproductive and population level changes in fish, are a major concern as they are a sign of ecosystem stress and pathology.The environmental effects described herein are long-term impacts which will not respond quickly to changes in pollutant loading. Integrated site-specific assessments need to be undertaken to document ecosystem response to process and treatment improvements at mill sites. Current biomonitoring techniques including measures of population structure and ecosystem function are needed in addition to sensitive biochemical indicators of contaminant exposure.     

Local factors control the community composition of cyanobacteria in lakes while heterotrophic bacteria follow a neutral model

1. Neutral community models are derived from the proposition that basic probabilities of species loss (extinction, emigration) and gain (immigration, speciation) explain biological community structure, such that species with many individuals are very likely to be widespread. Niche models on the other hand assume that interactions between species and differential resource use mediate species coexistence, thus invoking environmental factors to explain community patterns. 2. In this study, we compared neutral and niche models to test how much of the spatial variability of assemblages of heterotrophic bacteria and phytoplankton in 13 lakes they could explain. Analysis of phytoplankton was restricted to cyanobacteria, so that they could be studied with the same molecular fingerprinting method, automated ribosomal intergenic spaces analysis (ARISA), as heterotrophic bacteria. We determined local biotic and abiotic lake variables as well as lake age, glacial history and distance between sites. 3. The neutral community model had a good fit to the community composition of heterotrophic bacteria (R² = 0.69), whereas it could not produce a significant model for the community composition of cyanobacteria. 4. The community composition of cyanobacteria was instead correlated to environmental variables. The best model, a combination of total organic carbon, biomass of eukaryotic phytoplankton, pH and conductivity, could explain 8% of the variation. In contrast, variation in the community composition of heterotrophic bacteria was not predicted by any of the environmental variables. Historical and spatial variables were not correlated to the community composition of either group. 5. The pattern found for heterotrophic bacteria suggests that stochastic processes are important. The correlation of cyanobacteria with local environmental variables alone is consistent with the niche model. We suggest that cyanobacteria, a group of organisms containing bloom‐forming species, may be less likely to fit a neutral community model, since these blooms are usually triggered by a particular combination of environmental conditions.     

Oligotrophic properties of heterotrophic bacteria and in situ heterotrophic activity in pelagic seawates

Abstract The distribution of heterotrophic bacteria in polluted coastal and unpolluted pelagic seawaters was studied using a ¹⁴C-MPN method with either five of seven kinds of ¹⁴C-organic compounds as substrates. The total number of heterotrophic bacteria in pelagic waters ranged from 9.2 × 10³ to 5.4. ¢ 10⁴ cell/ml and more than 85% of the heterotrophic bacteria were represented by obligate oligotrophs. In coastal waters, the number of heterotrophs was one order of magnitude higher (av. 3.5 ¢ 10⁵ cells/ml), and eutrophic and facultatively oligotrophic bacteria were predominant. Oligotrophs in pelagic waters had a high specificity for the utilization of amino acids, especially glycine, and acetate-utilizing bacteria were scarce. The in situ maximum uptake rates of glutamate and glycine were much higher than those of glycolate and acetate. Acetate uptake rates were extremely low or not detectable in pelagic waters. The specificity of uptake kinetics is assumed to depend on the existence of obligate oligotrophs as dominant bacteria in pelagic seawater.     

Biological treatment of a pulp and paper industry effluent by Fomes lividus and Trametes versicolor

White rot fungi Fomes lividus and Trametes versicolor, isolated from the Western Ghats region of Tamil Nadu, India, were used to treat pulp and paper industry effluents on a laboratory scale and in a pilot scale. On the laboratory scale a maximum decolourization of 63.9% was achieved by T. versicolor on the fourth day. Inorganic chloride at a concentration of 765 mg/l, which corresponded to 227% of that in the untreated effluent, was liberated by F. lividus on the 10th day. The chemical oxygen demand (COD) was also reduced to 1984 mg/l (59.3%) by each of the two fungi. On the pilot scale, a maximum decolourization of 68% was obtained with the 6-day incubation by T. versicolor, inorganic chloride 475 mg/l (103%) was liberated on the seventh day by T. versicolor, and the COD was reduced to 1984 mg/l corresponding to 59.32% by F. lividus. These results suggested that F. lividus seems to be another candidate efficient for dechlorination of wastewater.     

A Life-Cycle Approach to Purchasing and Using Environmentally Preferable Paper

The PaperTask Force, a group of major U.S. paper purchasers convened by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), recently completed a life cycle-based study of various grades of paper that examined a broad range of economic, functional, and especially environmental issue. This 28-month effort culminated in the release of a final report and recommendations intended to educate paper purchasers about the consequences of their paper purchasing decisions. The report also provides actionable steps that can be taken to increase the purchase and use of environmentally preferable paper; defined as paper that reduces environmental impacts while meeting business needs. The technical basis for the PaperTask Force recommendations is an analysis of environmental impacts associated with the entire life cycle of several major grades of paper; reaching literally from the forest to the 1andfill. The Task Force's findings and recommendations cover each of the major areas of opportunity to lessen the environmental impacts of using paper: reduction in paper use; paper recycling and buying recycled paper: forest management; and pulp and paper manufacturing. journal of Industrial Ecology I5 paper recycling     

New approach for upgrading pulp & paper quality: Mild potassium permanganate treatment of already bleached pulps

The present work introduces mild – room temperature – potassium permanganate treatment of cellulosic materials, namely already bleached pulps. Such treatment represents a new approach for upgrading pulp and paper quality, which is lacking in the literature. Potassium permanganate was investigated as a purifying and mild oxidizing agent for commercial already bleached softwood and bagasse pulps. It was found that treatment of the bleached beaten pulps, with 0.25–2% KMnO₄ (based on pulp weight), led to significant improvement in paper properties. The strength (breaking length) increased greatly and the brightness increased significantly due to treatment. The improvements were related to the degree of polymerization, and to the alphacellulose content of pulps.Moreover, potassium permanganate serves as a disinfectant and deodorizer. Thus treatment of bleached pulps with KMnO₄ is a promising remedy for the side effects which pulps suffer, during transportation and storage, before papermaking.     

Enumeration and identification of dominant types of sulfate-reducing bacteria in pulp from a paper-recycling plant: a multiphasic approach

Multiple independent approaches were applied for monitoring the abundance and identity of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in pulp of a paper-recycling plant suffering from excessive sulfide emission. The methods applied included most-probable-number (MPN) enumeration of cultivable SRB, rate measurements, FISH and PCR-based retrieval of the functional marker genes dsrA and B (encoding the two major subunits of dissimilatory bisulfite reductase) and 16S rRNA genes. The SRB community was composed of phylogenetically highly different lineages all of low abundance relative to the total microbial community in the pulp, which hampered the applicability of FISH. It was also demonstrated that dsrA- or B -targeted PCR primers commonly used for denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and real-time PCR analyses were biased. However, using a novel approach combining MPN-PCR and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis of dsrAB amplicons generated from serially diluted DNA extracts allowed the enumeration and identification of the quantitatively most important members of the SRB community. For fast quantification of SRB in the pulp, the dsrAB -MPN-PCR assay and sulfate reduction rate measurements were found to be most suitable.     

纸浆废液中有机物资源的利用

将硫酸盐纸浆废液浓缩后,100%用作生产木材胶粘剂的原料.对废液中木素进行活化处理,用酚醛树脂、PAPI增强废液胶的效果.结果表明,在废液中加入甲醛后,可提高废液中木素的反应活性;用30%甲阶酚醛树脂或20%PAPI作增强剂,可使废液混合胶代替纯酚醛树脂生产Ⅰ类胶合板;原料成本比纯酚醛树脂分别降低了55.5%和49.0%.该法充分利用了废液中的有机物资源,减少了环境污染,具有较好的经济、社会和生态效益.文中还运用红外光谱分析了废液制胶粘剂方法的可行性.     

Potential microbiological hazards in the production of refined paper products for food applications

This study sought to investigate the significance of raw materials (starch-based glues, raw material papers) at different microbiologically critical stages in the manufacturing process of refined paper products. The study examined the occurrence of microorganisms in the process and in end-product samples. Microbiological surveys verified that the production and use of pasteurized starch-based glue was the most important factor threatening the process hygiene and product safety. Subsequently, the production and use of starch-based glue was changed, and a follow-up programme targeting the microbiological quality of glue was developed as part of a hygiene and safety management system. A total of 33 spore-forming bacterial and 15 enterobacterial isolates were ribotyped, and 22 and 10 different ribogroups (ribotypes), respectively, were generated. These isolates from starch-based glue, raw material paper and end products were atypical and, thus, in many cases physiological, chemotaxonomic (FAME) and molecular (partial 16S rDNA) results did not correspond. The most common spore-forming bacteria (55% of the isolates) were Paenibacillus sp. and within this genus several new species were also proposed. The most common enterobacteria (87%) were Enterobacter cloacae and Citrobacter freundii belonging to bacteria in hazard group 2, or species closely related to them. It was demonstrated that the same spore-forming bacteria (ribotypes) were present in both the glue samples and the end products (45% of isolates). All RiboPrint patterns were saved at the VTT identification library for future use.