The effect of wastewater treatment on the ecotoxicity of chiral chemicals. This project aims to assess the environmental implications of pharmaceuticals discharged in effluents from wastewater treatment plants. Trace levels of human pharmaceuticals occur in sewage and urban waterways, but during sewage treatment, some pharmaceuticals can undergo a chemical transformation known as 'chiral inversion'. In some cases, this may convert relatively benign environmental contaminants to more ecologically ....The effect of wastewater treatment on the ecotoxicity of chiral chemicals. This project aims to assess the environmental implications of pharmaceuticals discharged in effluents from wastewater treatment plants. Trace levels of human pharmaceuticals occur in sewage and urban waterways, but during sewage treatment, some pharmaceuticals can undergo a chemical transformation known as 'chiral inversion'. In some cases, this may convert relatively benign environmental contaminants to more ecologically toxic species. This project will investigate why and how some pharmaceuticals become susceptible to chiral inversion and assess ecotoxicological differences. This work is expected to determine the significance of considering chiral inversion in environmental risk assessment, with applications to a broader range of chemicals including pesticides and industrial chemicals.Read moreRead less
Fate of engineered nanoparticles: Challenges in informing human and ecological health risk assessments. Engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) have generated significant public and scientific excitement due to their unique properties. This has led to their application in a wide variety of industries (for example, in composite materials and drug delivery). However, there is concern that some ENPs can have detrimental environmental impacts. This project aims to quantify, for the first time, the fate of E ....Fate of engineered nanoparticles: Challenges in informing human and ecological health risk assessments. Engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) have generated significant public and scientific excitement due to their unique properties. This has led to their application in a wide variety of industries (for example, in composite materials and drug delivery). However, there is concern that some ENPs can have detrimental environmental impacts. This project aims to quantify, for the first time, the fate of ENPs that have leached out of commercial products in groundwater systems. This information is expected to assist regulators in developing appropriate legislation to balance the tremendous benefits and potential risks of nanotechnology.Read moreRead less
Activating lazy stormwater wetlands through real time monitoring & control. Constructed stormwater wetlands are the last line of defence preventing pollution of urban waterways, but wetlands often fail, with their passive operation unable to adapt to the highly variable climate and hydrology they experience. This project aims to use advances in real-time control technology to turn these lazy wetlands into active wetland systems, optimising their performance. It aims to deliver new-generation tec ....Activating lazy stormwater wetlands through real time monitoring & control. Constructed stormwater wetlands are the last line of defence preventing pollution of urban waterways, but wetlands often fail, with their passive operation unable to adapt to the highly variable climate and hydrology they experience. This project aims to use advances in real-time control technology to turn these lazy wetlands into active wetland systems, optimising their performance. It aims to deliver new-generation technologies to enhance water quality treatment, enhance urban water security and guarantee environmental flows to maintain healthy waterways. Working in partnership with waterway managers and water retailers, this project strives to deliver a nationally and globally relevant technology to change how we manage water in cities.Read moreRead less
Validation and monitoring of advanced oxidation for potable water reuse. This project aims to address an important limitation in the ability to monitor performance of advanced oxidation processes used to treat recycled water for drinking. The project will be conducted using a novel pilot system, designed to facilitate flexible operation and detailed monitoring. Through carefully designed experiments, observed operational parameters will be related to treatment performance for a range of contamin ....Validation and monitoring of advanced oxidation for potable water reuse. This project aims to address an important limitation in the ability to monitor performance of advanced oxidation processes used to treat recycled water for drinking. The project will be conducted using a novel pilot system, designed to facilitate flexible operation and detailed monitoring. Through carefully designed experiments, observed operational parameters will be related to treatment performance for a range of contaminants. An expected outcome is the development of a framework to provide validation of process performance relationships and ongoing performance monitoring for use by water utilities and regulatory agencies that oversee their operations. This highly practical framework for validation and performance monitoring of an advanced water treatment process should result in improved viability of water recycling projects, increased urban water supply security and enhanced protection of public health.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140100524
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$395,220.00
Summary
Interactions between plants and faecal pathogens in urban water treatment: significance of soil microbes, plant debris, root exudates and rhizosphere. It is important to treat pathogens in stormwater and wastewater before release into downstream recreational waters or harvesting. Using plants in water treatment improves the removal of pollutants of concern to human and ecosystem health. However, the exact mechanisms which generate this improvement remain unknown, and this is especially true for ....Interactions between plants and faecal pathogens in urban water treatment: significance of soil microbes, plant debris, root exudates and rhizosphere. It is important to treat pathogens in stormwater and wastewater before release into downstream recreational waters or harvesting. Using plants in water treatment improves the removal of pollutants of concern to human and ecosystem health. However, the exact mechanisms which generate this improvement remain unknown, and this is especially true for faecal pathogen removal. This project will enhance our understanding of the interactive role that roots, their exudates, plant debris and soil microbes play in faecal pathogen removal in urban water treatment systems. Through this understanding, this project will lead to optimised low-energy, low-tech and low-maintenance treatment systems.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100042
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Virtual reality for planning of green urban water infrastructure. This project aims to research the planning-technical-social dynamics of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) infrastructure. WSUD management has become financially and logistically unsustainable due to major urban growth and a rapid uptake in WSUD assets. Solving this problem is, however, complex, as stakeholders have conflicting needs and tacit knowledge that is difficult to quantify. Using emerging virtual reality technology, par ....Virtual reality for planning of green urban water infrastructure. This project aims to research the planning-technical-social dynamics of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) infrastructure. WSUD management has become financially and logistically unsustainable due to major urban growth and a rapid uptake in WSUD assets. Solving this problem is, however, complex, as stakeholders have conflicting needs and tacit knowledge that is difficult to quantify. Using emerging virtual reality technology, participatory planning and operational models, this project intends to improve WSUD modelling science through integrated modelling. The anticipated outcome is more holistic and economically efficient planning of WSUD layouts in future cities. This is expected to address growing concerns about adequately managing these systems and ensure that they deliver intended environmental protection, liveability and public health benefits.Read moreRead less
Smart management of disinfectant in chloraminated water-supply systems. Smart management of disinfectant in chloraminated water-supply systems. This project aims to develop an adaptive, real-time control system for managing disinfectant residuals in chloraminated water supply systems. While chloramine delivers microbiologically safe drinking water in warmer climates and in long distribution systems, it is largely unpredictable, costs water utilities millions of dollars annually, and has uncertai ....Smart management of disinfectant in chloraminated water-supply systems. Smart management of disinfectant in chloraminated water-supply systems. This project aims to develop an adaptive, real-time control system for managing disinfectant residuals in chloraminated water supply systems. While chloramine delivers microbiologically safe drinking water in warmer climates and in long distribution systems, it is largely unpredictable, costs water utilities millions of dollars annually, and has uncertain benefits. This project’s control system will be guided by quantitative models formulated from multi-pronged, fundamental experiments. The project will quantify microbial chloramine decay and determine mechanisms to increase predictability. The project will develop and demonstrate a real-time control technology which delivered microbiologically safe, cost-efficient drinking water to people in warmer climates, despite warming climate and increasing population.Read moreRead less
On-line monitoring of cyanobacteria to predict coagulant doses and powdered activated carbon application in water treatment. Cyanobacteria, more commonly known as blue-green algae, can impact water quality by releasing toxins that can be harmful to human health and imparting unpleasant taste and odours to the water. This project will support the water industry in managing these risks by providing a rapid, on-line tool to assist in their removal during water treatment.
Adapting catchment monitoring and potable water treatment to climate change. Adapting catchment monitoring and potable water treatment to climate change. This project aims to make the water industry capable of foreseeing and managing adverse raw water organic matter quality from the catchment to the treatment plant. It will research the triggers for organic matter excursions that compromise treatment plant performance and affect public health. The project will develop and deploy innovative senso ....Adapting catchment monitoring and potable water treatment to climate change. Adapting catchment monitoring and potable water treatment to climate change. This project aims to make the water industry capable of foreseeing and managing adverse raw water organic matter quality from the catchment to the treatment plant. It will research the triggers for organic matter excursions that compromise treatment plant performance and affect public health. The project will develop and deploy innovative sensors to detect targeted water quality changes at the molecular level in situ and real time, and improve operating strategies for robust and reliable performance of existing treatment plants. This catchment to plant approach is expected to make existing treatment assets more productive and defer additional treatment costs.Read moreRead less
Performance of waste stabilisation ponds: controlling factors, novel performance indicators, and risk assessment. As the world population increases, maintaining robust, cost-effective and environmentally safe wastewater treatment systems is of vital importance. This project will enhance the ability to design, operate and manage Australia's extensive wastewater infrastructure for safer and more sustainable water resources in Australia and the world.