University of Antwerp (UA) is a young, dynamic and forward-thinking university which ranked 14th in the “Top 50 Universities Under 50 years” in 2018. The European Commission has awarded the University the “HR Excellence in Research” quality label. Within the Faculty of Science, the University created in 2006 the Department of Bioscience Engineering, recognizing a strong societal demand for research and education in the field of applied biological sciences. In this young Department, prof. Lenaerts founded the Research Group of Sustainable Energy, Air and Water Technology, joined by prof. Denys in 2013, and more recently by prof. Vlaeminck (2015) and dr. Spiller (2016). The research group rapidly established a well-equipped laboratory, and currently holds around 30 scientists. The team led by prof. Vlaeminck has a core focus on developing resource-efficient microbial technology for a sustainable water cycle and food production chain and on analyzing material/substance flows, environmental impact (LCA) and costing aspects of collection and treatment systems containing such technology.
Role in the project
For around 75% of UA’s task, Prof. Vlaeminck will work in close collaboration with TUDelft (Dr. Weissbrodt), IIT and MM Enviro Pvt. on the second treatment step in pilot 5 in WP2 and WP3, i.e. optimizing the design, start-up, control and operation of a high-rate sun-driven photoheterotrophic bioreactor (PHBR raceway pond). The PHBR will treat acidified wastewater and produce purple non-sulfur bacteria (PNSB), a high-value organic fertilizer. This strongly matches with the experience in biotechnology for sewage treatment and single-cell protein production in general, and production and application of phototrophs and PNSB more specifically. For around 25% of UA’s task, dr. Spiller will coordinate the environmental sustainability assessment (LCA) of the piloted technologies (WP5), in close collaboration with TUDelft, NITIE and IITKGP. Dr. Spiller has a strong expertise in conducting LCA of physicochemical and biological water treatment systems.
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Founded in 1632, the University of Tartu (UT) is the largest and most comprehensive university in Estonia and one of the most respectable centres of education and research in Central and Eastern Europe. As Estonia’s national university, UT stresses the importance of international co-operation and partnerships with reputable research universities all over the world, whilst maintaining the focus on national interests as well. University of Tartu belongs to the top 1% of the world’s mostcited universities and research institutions in Clinical Medicine, Chemistry, Environment/Ecology, Plant and Animal Science, Geosciences, Social Sciences, Biology and Biochemistry and Engineering. It is the region’s highest placed university in the prestigious QS and THE world rankings. The research group of wastewater technology at the Institute of Chemistry has been involved in a number of projects in water and wastewater research as well as development of technologies and best practices.
BOKU is one of the leading universities in the field of natural resources management in Europe. The Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity is one of the 15 Departments of BOKU and focuses on the analysis of the natural world from organisms to ecosystems and their interactions with humans and their societies. Within the Department, the Competence Centre for Decision Aid in Environmental Management has focused on sustainability assessment as well as policy aspects related to water and wastewater management in developing and emerging countries.
Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) is the largest technical university of the Netherlands. TU Delft is a member of the IDEA League, a strategic alliance of five of Europe’s leading universities of technology. TU Delft was founded in 1842 as the Royal Academy for the education of civil engineers and has grown into a university with eight faculties, more than 23,0000 students and 3,000 scientific staff members. TU Delft’s mission is contributing towards a sustainable society for the twenty-first century by conducting ground-breaking scientific and technological research which is acknowledged as world-class, by training scientists and engineers (education) with a genuine commitment to society and by helping to translate knowledge into technological innovations and activity with both economic and societal value (valorization). In the past few years, valorization has developed into a full third core activity of our university, after education and research. Translation of scientific inventions into innovation on the market is a core duty of the TU Delft based on its strong ties with the industry. The TU Delft harbors the maximum score on industry income (99.8%) within THE World University Ranking and ranks 18 in the field of Engineering and Technology. Staff from three departments divided over three faculties will participate in this consortium, namely the Department of Water Management within the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, the Department of Biotechnology within the Faculty Applied Sciences, and the Delft Center for Systems and Control within the Faculty of Mechanical, Maritime and Materials Engineering. Notably, the Department of Water Management is ranked position one in the most recent Shanghai disciplinary Ranking on Water Resources. TU Delft participates with the research groups Water Management (WM) and Delft Center for Systems and Control (DCSC) as main participants. Both groups have been working together on modelling, monitoring, management, and control of water systems since more than 20 years. The core research activity of DCSC consists in the development of new theories and numerical tools for modelling, monitoring, estimation, and control of complex, large-scale dynamical systems, as well as the validation of these new contributions in challenging engineering applications, including water management and water treatment.
