Optimal management of corrosion and odour problems in sewer systems. Pollutants in wastewater undergo complex changes in sewers, leading to the production and release of odorous and corrosive compounds. Despite major efforts and expenditure by water utilities to mitigate these problems, odorous emissions from sewers are still commonly occurring in urban areas. Furthermore, the value of public assets is significantly diminished due to sewer corrosion, costing hundreds of millions of dollars a yea ....Optimal management of corrosion and odour problems in sewer systems. Pollutants in wastewater undergo complex changes in sewers, leading to the production and release of odorous and corrosive compounds. Despite major efforts and expenditure by water utilities to mitigate these problems, odorous emissions from sewers are still commonly occurring in urban areas. Furthermore, the value of public assets is significantly diminished due to sewer corrosion, costing hundreds of millions of dollars a year in Australia alone. This project is a major joint effort by the Australian water industry and world-leading scientists to generate advanced knowledge and develop effective technologies for optimal odour and corrosion management in sewers, delivering large social, environmental and economic benefits.Read moreRead less
Understanding the Biotransformation Processes in a Sewer System to Achieve Optimal Management. Sewer corrosion and odour emissions are incurring massive costs to the wastewater management authorities. These problems are primarily caused by the hydrogen sulfide produced by the in-sewer biotransformation processes. Through integrating controlled laboratory experiments, extensive field measurement/experiments and advanced computer modelling, the project aims to generate a fundamental understanding ....Understanding the Biotransformation Processes in a Sewer System to Achieve Optimal Management. Sewer corrosion and odour emissions are incurring massive costs to the wastewater management authorities. These problems are primarily caused by the hydrogen sulfide produced by the in-sewer biotransformation processes. Through integrating controlled laboratory experiments, extensive field measurement/experiments and advanced computer modelling, the project aims to generate a fundamental understanding of the in-sewer biotransformation processes, in particular those occurring in sewer biofilms and sediments, and to provide scientific and engineering support to the wastewater authorities to manage their sewers in a more cost-effective way. Emphasis is placed on the integrated sewer and wastewater treatment performance to achieve overall optimal wastewater management.Read moreRead less
Estimating per capita use and release of chemicals by wastewater analysis. This project aims to systematically collect and analyse wastewater to assess human exposure to chemicals including drugs, pharmaceuticals, lifestyle chemicals and environmental pollutants. By combining temporal sampling from key sewage treatment plants with comprehensive nationwide sampling over the week of the 2016 census day, the project expects to estimate the per-capita human exposure to chemicals in the Australian po ....Estimating per capita use and release of chemicals by wastewater analysis. This project aims to systematically collect and analyse wastewater to assess human exposure to chemicals including drugs, pharmaceuticals, lifestyle chemicals and environmental pollutants. By combining temporal sampling from key sewage treatment plants with comprehensive nationwide sampling over the week of the 2016 census day, the project expects to estimate the per-capita human exposure to chemicals in the Australian population. Accurate and objective per-capita based consumption and release estimates for a wide range of chemicals is intended to provide a baseline against which to measure changes in our chemosphere.Read moreRead less
Treatment of secondary sludge using free nitrous acid to enhance performance and economics of a wastewater treatment plant. This project will deliver a new process that utilises a by-product of wastewater treatment to reduce the environmental and financial costs of wastewater treatment. The project will significantly reduce waste materials discharged from wastewater treatment plants and enhance bioenergy recovery from wastewater, in addition to improving effluent quality.
Energy positive targeted resource recovery from sludge. Energy positive targeted resource recovery from sludge. This project aims to develop an innovative, cost-effective and sustainable technology to completely dewater sludge. Sludge management is a notorious and costly issue for water utilities. The poor dewaterability of sludge results in a high moisture content. The only solid residue is inorganic ash, from which valuable resources such as coagulants, phosphate, and metals can be extracted. ....Energy positive targeted resource recovery from sludge. Energy positive targeted resource recovery from sludge. This project aims to develop an innovative, cost-effective and sustainable technology to completely dewater sludge. Sludge management is a notorious and costly issue for water utilities. The poor dewaterability of sludge results in a high moisture content. The only solid residue is inorganic ash, from which valuable resources such as coagulants, phosphate, and metals can be extracted. The research is expected to support the water utilities to achieve sustainable sludge management and potentially bring large economic, environmental and social benefits to water utilities.Read moreRead less
Quantifying the effects of criteria air pollutants on child health - setting Australian air quality standards. The project is proposed and supported by the National Environment and Heritage Protection Council, who will be reviewing Australian air quality standards from 2005. The study aims to determine whether current air quality standards adequately protect the health of Australian school children, and to provide nationally-based information to inform any changes to the current standards. A cr ....Quantifying the effects of criteria air pollutants on child health - setting Australian air quality standards. The project is proposed and supported by the National Environment and Heritage Protection Council, who will be reviewing Australian air quality standards from 2005. The study aims to determine whether current air quality standards adequately protect the health of Australian school children, and to provide nationally-based information to inform any changes to the current standards. A cross-sectional study will examine cumulative effects; a nested panel study will quantify day-to-day effects of air pollution in sensitive children. Sampling will ensure national representation and generalisability of findings. This will be the first nationally-based study of the relationship between air quality and child health in Australia.Read moreRead less
Establishing advanced networks for air quality sensing and analyses. Establishing advanced networks for air quality sensing and analyses. This project aims to develop innovative, cost-effective, high resolution air quality networks. Recent developments in sensor technologies improve the ability to harvest atmospheric data. This project will develop, validate and implement methods for high sensitivity atmospheric sensing and apply cutting-edge statistical and analytic techniques to the data sets, ....Establishing advanced networks for air quality sensing and analyses. Establishing advanced networks for air quality sensing and analyses. This project aims to develop innovative, cost-effective, high resolution air quality networks. Recent developments in sensor technologies improve the ability to harvest atmospheric data. This project will develop, validate and implement methods for high sensitivity atmospheric sensing and apply cutting-edge statistical and analytic techniques to the data sets, unprecedented in scope and resolution. Outcomes include an open access database to quantify and visualise intra-urban air pollution and human exposure and develop air quality maps and smoke pollution management tools. It is expected to advance the evidence-based management of air as a resource, increasing economic prosperity and enhancing human health and quality of life.Read moreRead less
Enhancing Biological Denitrification by Addition of External Carbon Sources: What, Where and When. External carbon addition for enhancing nitrogen removal is being increasingly used by wastewater treatment industry both in Australia and worldwide. This technology adds considerably to the operating cost, to which the non-optimal use of carbon sources has contributed significantly. To ensure long-term optimal denitrification performance with minimal use of external carbon, we will perform the firs ....Enhancing Biological Denitrification by Addition of External Carbon Sources: What, Where and When. External carbon addition for enhancing nitrogen removal is being increasingly used by wastewater treatment industry both in Australia and worldwide. This technology adds considerably to the operating cost, to which the non-optimal use of carbon sources has contributed significantly. To ensure long-term optimal denitrification performance with minimal use of external carbon, we will perform the first comprehensive study of the impact of external carbon addition on the denitrifying community and denitrification performance and, on this basis, answer the questions of what carbon sources should be used, where and when/how they should be added under various process design and operational conditions.Read moreRead less
Development and calibration of aquatic passive sampler technologies for emerging water pollutants. Contaminated water is a key exposure source for many emerging pollutants either direct via consumption of water or indirect via consumption of aquatic biota. Monitoring of emerging aquatic pollutants remains a challenge. In this project we will develop cost effective monitoring technologies for emerging aquatic pollutants. The outcome will allow a more comprehensive and cost-effective monitoring ....Development and calibration of aquatic passive sampler technologies for emerging water pollutants. Contaminated water is a key exposure source for many emerging pollutants either direct via consumption of water or indirect via consumption of aquatic biota. Monitoring of emerging aquatic pollutants remains a challenge. In this project we will develop cost effective monitoring technologies for emerging aquatic pollutants. The outcome will allow a more comprehensive and cost-effective monitoring of these pollutants and related to that a decrease in risk related to water pollution. Furthermore it will enhance consumer confidence, improve water management and allow more comprehensive identification of emerging risks related to aquatic pollutants.Read moreRead less
Development and evaluation of a Phytotox-Test for field and laboratory testing of phytotoxic chemicals in water. Monitoring of trace pollutants in water is expensive, laborious and requires sophisticated analytical techniques. Building on the research team's new technique, which uses a phyto-tox test based on photosynthesis inhibition in algae, this study will further develop and evaluate methodologies and applications for measuring phyto-toxic chemicals in environmental water samples. The proj ....Development and evaluation of a Phytotox-Test for field and laboratory testing of phytotoxic chemicals in water. Monitoring of trace pollutants in water is expensive, laborious and requires sophisticated analytical techniques. Building on the research team's new technique, which uses a phyto-tox test based on photosynthesis inhibition in algae, this study will further develop and evaluate methodologies and applications for measuring phyto-toxic chemicals in environmental water samples. The project aims specifically to:
- identify suitable algae, sensitive to phyto-toxic chemicals
- determine dose-response for priority pollutants in selected algae
- evaluate critical parameters affecting measurements
- develop pre-concentration techniques.
The outcomes will provide the first on-site trace pollutant testing method allowing more effective management of water pollution
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