Optimal Source Control in Urban Water Cycle Management. Major opportunities exist to improve the management of the urban water cycle by better use of source control technology such as the use of rainwater tanks and water-sensitive design. This program will optimise the use of this technology at three scales, allotment, subdivision and regional, using genetic algorithms, parallel computing and shadow pricing. The aim is to minimise community lifecycle costs subject to sustainable use of ecosystem ....Optimal Source Control in Urban Water Cycle Management. Major opportunities exist to improve the management of the urban water cycle by better use of source control technology such as the use of rainwater tanks and water-sensitive design. This program will optimise the use of this technology at three scales, allotment, subdivision and regional, using genetic algorithms, parallel computing and shadow pricing. The aim is to minimise community lifecycle costs subject to sustainable use of ecosystems and maintenance of public health standards. The benefits include national savings of the order of $2 billion and significantly reduced demand on water supply and stormwater infrastructure and its supporting ecosystems.Read moreRead less
The Development of a Model for Confined Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) Stormwater Filtration/Infiltration Systems for Australian Conditions. There is an increasing strain on scarce Australian water supplies and this requires effective water cycle management and protection of water resources as a whole. The proposed research aims to develop a model for the effective management of stormwater runoff through the investigation of confined filtration and infiltration devices in four separate loca ....The Development of a Model for Confined Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) Stormwater Filtration/Infiltration Systems for Australian Conditions. There is an increasing strain on scarce Australian water supplies and this requires effective water cycle management and protection of water resources as a whole. The proposed research aims to develop a model for the effective management of stormwater runoff through the investigation of confined filtration and infiltration devices in four separate locations. These confined systems will minimise the impacts of pollutant concentrations on native soils and groundwater. A model will be developed to predict required native soil permeabilities and residence times for adequate tertiary treatment in a variety of Australian conditions for non-potable reuse of runoff and/or groundwater recharge.Read moreRead less
Characterisation and Treatment of Reverse Osmosis Concentrates from Water Recycling Applications. Concentrates from reverse osmosis (RO) pose a considerable threat to both the environment but also the successful implementation of reverse osmosis as a technology. Naturally, the concentrate contains everything that the RO retains and hence contaminants such as viruses, organics such as pharmaceutically active compounds and hormones as well as nutrients and salinity. Treatment of such waste streams ....Characterisation and Treatment of Reverse Osmosis Concentrates from Water Recycling Applications. Concentrates from reverse osmosis (RO) pose a considerable threat to both the environment but also the successful implementation of reverse osmosis as a technology. Naturally, the concentrate contains everything that the RO retains and hence contaminants such as viruses, organics such as pharmaceutically active compounds and hormones as well as nutrients and salinity. Treatment of such waste streams will enhance the health of receiving water bodies and reduce the risk of increased build up of contaminants if wastes are recycled into wastewater treatment plants. New ways to treat such contaminants will be explored, the efficiency and cost evaluated in the broader water cycle and sustainability framework.Read moreRead less
Supported biomass membrane bioreactor: optimisation of aeration for better fouling control. This project will lead to a sustainable, affordable, energy-efficient treatment system for water reuse. The technology developed will particularly benefit small sewage treatment plants in coastal and isolated communities in Australia, by maximising the utilisation of water resources where water is limited, and by reducing the environmental impact of waste discharges. This project will also strengthen rese ....Supported biomass membrane bioreactor: optimisation of aeration for better fouling control. This project will lead to a sustainable, affordable, energy-efficient treatment system for water reuse. The technology developed will particularly benefit small sewage treatment plants in coastal and isolated communities in Australia, by maximising the utilisation of water resources where water is limited, and by reducing the environmental impact of waste discharges. This project will also strengthen research links between Australian and European institutions through the development of this innovative technology. Local water industries will directly benefit from this frontier research.Read moreRead less
Innovative strategy for salt management and water recovery from newsprint mill effluent using membrane processes. Newsprint mills are a major employer in regional Australia. The mills are located in environmentally sensitive areas, consume large quantities of water and return high levels of salt to the environment. To remain competitive the newsprint industry, like all industries in regional Australia must develop new strategies for water recycling and salt management. Successful execution of t ....Innovative strategy for salt management and water recovery from newsprint mill effluent using membrane processes. Newsprint mills are a major employer in regional Australia. The mills are located in environmentally sensitive areas, consume large quantities of water and return high levels of salt to the environment. To remain competitive the newsprint industry, like all industries in regional Australia must develop new strategies for water recycling and salt management. Successful execution of this project will minimize water consumption in newsprint production, mitigate the effects of increased sodicity in soils irrigated with mill effluent and accelerate the commercial development a hydrophobic microporous membrane for water recycling and salt removal in environmentally sensitive areas of inland Australia.Read moreRead less
Cost effective in-line filtration system to improve water quality in rainwater tanks. This research will provide the basis for developing an affordable and innovative water treatment solution for domestic rainwater collection systems. The main elements of this research are:
. Provision of a cost -effective submerged membrane operated under gravity to provide water of potable standard.
. Establishing an adaptive membrane cleaning system using the concept of volume control.
. Characterisati ....Cost effective in-line filtration system to improve water quality in rainwater tanks. This research will provide the basis for developing an affordable and innovative water treatment solution for domestic rainwater collection systems. The main elements of this research are:
. Provision of a cost -effective submerged membrane operated under gravity to provide water of potable standard.
. Establishing an adaptive membrane cleaning system using the concept of volume control.
. Characterisation protocol of membrane fouling and stored rain water.
. Sizing of a permeate tank for storing treated water through demand management.
This project will increase the use of rainwater tanks, helping available water resources to go further.Read moreRead less
Cost effective treatment system for stormwater harvesting for medium scale developments. Stormwater harvesting is central to the integrated water cycle management approach now being formally endorsed by all tiers of governments as the best way to manage our water resources. Despite its immense potential, stormwater harvesting in urban centres throughout Australia is largely limited to household rainwater tanks. By developing economical and efficient treatment systems suitable for medium density ....Cost effective treatment system for stormwater harvesting for medium scale developments. Stormwater harvesting is central to the integrated water cycle management approach now being formally endorsed by all tiers of governments as the best way to manage our water resources. Despite its immense potential, stormwater harvesting in urban centres throughout Australia is largely limited to household rainwater tanks. By developing economical and efficient treatment systems suitable for medium density developments, this project will maximise the resource value of stormwater, and reduce demand on water supply systems. The project will lead to the development of medium sized communities within larger urban centres that maximises its use of stormwater for water needs.Read moreRead less
A Bayesian Hierarchical Approach for Simulating Multi-time Scale Hydrological Variability for Water Resource Planning. Assessments of future drought risks are dependent on simulations of hydrological inputs provided by stochastic models. The current models are limited to simulating variability at a single time scale using only local observed hydrological data. This data has only limited information on the long-term climate variability which is the cause of long-term severe droughts. The proposed ....A Bayesian Hierarchical Approach for Simulating Multi-time Scale Hydrological Variability for Water Resource Planning. Assessments of future drought risks are dependent on simulations of hydrological inputs provided by stochastic models. The current models are limited to simulating variability at a single time scale using only local observed hydrological data. This data has only limited information on the long-term climate variability which is the cause of long-term severe droughts. The proposed research will develop a new Bayesian framework for simulating multi-time scale variability in hydrological data. This will enable the dynamic processes which simulate long-term variability to be identified using auxiliary information in an uncertainty framework. This will provide water resource planners with more accurate assessments of long-term drought risks.
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Optimising dissolved air flotation (DAF) for algae removal by bubble modification in drinking water and advanced wastewater systems. Algal blooms in potable water reservoirs and advanced wastewater treatment lagoons can impact the performance and economic viability of water treatment processes resulting in taste and odour episodes and the risk of algal toxins as well as causing further limitation to already stressed water resources in Australia. This project aims to develop an adaptation of the ....Optimising dissolved air flotation (DAF) for algae removal by bubble modification in drinking water and advanced wastewater systems. Algal blooms in potable water reservoirs and advanced wastewater treatment lagoons can impact the performance and economic viability of water treatment processes resulting in taste and odour episodes and the risk of algal toxins as well as causing further limitation to already stressed water resources in Australia. This project aims to develop an adaptation of the dissolved air flotation process that is already used for algae treatment that will provide a more robust, economic and sustainable barrier to algal cells in accordance with the Australian Drinking and Recycled Water Guidelines.Read moreRead less
The characterisation of wastewater distribution patterns for the production of decision support systems for pathogenic risk analysis in water catchments. The project will aim to collate data and map base-level distribution patterns of molecular and microbial markers of human sewage and natural/agricultural contamination with reference to diurnal and seasonal fluctuations. These data will then be used to develop decision support systems that predict contaminant dispersion and identify high-risk c ....The characterisation of wastewater distribution patterns for the production of decision support systems for pathogenic risk analysis in water catchments. The project will aim to collate data and map base-level distribution patterns of molecular and microbial markers of human sewage and natural/agricultural contamination with reference to diurnal and seasonal fluctuations. These data will then be used to develop decision support systems that predict contaminant dispersion and identify high-risk contamination sources. The diurnal collection of data is expected to show significant variations in the measured parameters associated with time of day, light intensity and temperature. Mapping of the sewage and nutrient loads throughout the year will provide base line data for identifying potential hotspots for targeting system upgrades or improved management programs.Read moreRead less