Wetland regeneration for effluent reuse, acid sulfate soil management and carbon credits. This project will research and develop a full-scale effluent reuse wetland to manage acid sulfate soils, regenerate wetlands and sequester atmospheric carbon. Many rural communities worldwide are affected by acid sulfate soils, unsustainable effluent disposal and wetland degradation, and the Greenhouse Effect threatens all coastal areas worldwide. This project is located at Byron Bay, a coastal and predomin ....Wetland regeneration for effluent reuse, acid sulfate soil management and carbon credits. This project will research and develop a full-scale effluent reuse wetland to manage acid sulfate soils, regenerate wetlands and sequester atmospheric carbon. Many rural communities worldwide are affected by acid sulfate soils, unsustainable effluent disposal and wetland degradation, and the Greenhouse Effect threatens all coastal areas worldwide. This project is located at Byron Bay, a coastal and predominantly rural electorate in northern NSW that is strongly affected by this combination of environmental stresses, causing serious degradation of water quality culminating in regular fish kills. The technology developed from this project will be readily transferable to other rural coastal communities worldwide.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354551
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
ARC Research Network for Renewable Energy. The proposed Research Network will integrate and coordinate the entire research field of renewable energy in Australia. This Network covers a diverse range of technologies, and includes all prominent researchers in the area of renewable energy in Australia. The Network is strengthened by the inclusion of key people from government agencies, industry, industry associations and international research organisations.
Australia is a leading player in the ....ARC Research Network for Renewable Energy. The proposed Research Network will integrate and coordinate the entire research field of renewable energy in Australia. This Network covers a diverse range of technologies, and includes all prominent researchers in the area of renewable energy in Australia. The Network is strengthened by the inclusion of key people from government agencies, industry, industry associations and international research organisations.
Australia is a leading player in the world's renewable energy industry. An effective structure for networking and for the exchange of people, information and research results will maintain and improve Australia's position in this rapidly growing industry.Read moreRead less
Thermal isolation: a novel pathway to transforming complex waste. This project aims to establish a novel pathway for transforming complex waste otherwise destined for landfill into valuable products and resources. By leveraging high temperature reactions, the team plans to thermally isolate useful carbons and silica from within automotive shredder residue (ASR) in situ, to produce activated carbon products and silica layers, and so completely recycle this bulk toxic waste for the first time. Suc ....Thermal isolation: a novel pathway to transforming complex waste. This project aims to establish a novel pathway for transforming complex waste otherwise destined for landfill into valuable products and resources. By leveraging high temperature reactions, the team plans to thermally isolate useful carbons and silica from within automotive shredder residue (ASR) in situ, to produce activated carbon products and silica layers, and so completely recycle this bulk toxic waste for the first time. Such innovative new pathways for separating out valuable materials from complex and toxic wastes offer industries an alternative low-cost and sustainable source of raw materials, while reducing pressures on landfills and finite natural resources.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
Removal of Potential Impact of Pharmaceutical Active Compounds during Wastewater Treatment. The increasing application of antimicrobial compounds in pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) requires improved understanding of their impact on the environment. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are a major removal process, however little is known about why certain PPCPs are removed during wastewater treatment and other are not. The project aims to study the fate of PPCPs and the spread of ....Removal of Potential Impact of Pharmaceutical Active Compounds during Wastewater Treatment. The increasing application of antimicrobial compounds in pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs) requires improved understanding of their impact on the environment. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are a major removal process, however little is known about why certain PPCPs are removed during wastewater treatment and other are not. The project aims to study the fate of PPCPs and the spread of bacterial resistance in wastewater treatment. Studies will compare the effects of different treatment processes, operational conditions and environmental factors on the removal and treatment of PPCPs. The outcome will be the development of more sustainable WWTPs design and operation in terms of PPCPs removal.Read moreRead less
Reactive flow through porous media by micro-imaging. Australia is embarking on the development of major gas fields offshore Western Australia. These developments are very costly and techniques to manage the risk in development are well sought after. This project assists in risk management of tertiary recovery methods and CO2 storage. Further, it can contribute significantly to the accurate forward modelling of storage of hazardous materials and pollution remediation strategies. The project could ....Reactive flow through porous media by micro-imaging. Australia is embarking on the development of major gas fields offshore Western Australia. These developments are very costly and techniques to manage the risk in development are well sought after. This project assists in risk management of tertiary recovery methods and CO2 storage. Further, it can contribute significantly to the accurate forward modelling of storage of hazardous materials and pollution remediation strategies. The project could shape important decisions in the future and impact on environmental risk assessment.Read moreRead less
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
Efficient and Robust Prediction at Ungauged Catchments. Hydrological models are an integral part of virtually all environmental models formulated at the catchment scale. They are used in the planning, design and operation of water infrastructure. Despite the importance of these models limited rainfall and streamflow gauging forces these models to be routinely applied at ungauged locations where predictive power is poorly understood and almost always unsatisfactory. This project will directly ben ....Efficient and Robust Prediction at Ungauged Catchments. Hydrological models are an integral part of virtually all environmental models formulated at the catchment scale. They are used in the planning, design and operation of water infrastructure. Despite the importance of these models limited rainfall and streamflow gauging forces these models to be routinely applied at ungauged locations where predictive power is poorly understood and almost always unsatisfactory. This project will directly benefit model users by providing (a) robust framework for quantifying uncertainty and (b) improved predictions at ungauged basins. This will provide more realistic guidance for design engineers and policy makers and be of significant benefit to a large range of Australian water users.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