Category: News

On 17th April a technical conference was held to show the technology developed in the framework of the project entitled ‘Demonstration of continuous reactors for solar photo-Fenton for the regeneration of secondary effluents from WWTPs’ (ANUKIS). The technical description of the technology was presented at the Municipal Theatre ‘La Canal’ in Uleila del Campo, and afterwards, the project facilities at the local WWTP were visited.

The event was attended by more than 25 people from 14 companies and public institutions, as well as members of the Centro de Investigación de la Energía Solar (CIESOL), a joint UAL-PSA centre.

Regenerating wastewater using solar radiation is the main objective of the ANUKIS project, which started in December 2021 and will run until the end of May 2024. This technology enables competitively priced disinfection of treated wastewater while removing pollutants of emerging concern and toxic by-products generated in conventional disinfection processes. It also generates a great environmental benefit by avoiding discharging pollution into the environment and allowing the reuse of water, an increasingly scarce resource. As it is a technology proposed for small treatment plants, the availability of this resource promotes, in turn, the fixation of rural population, especially in inland areas.

The project involves the Water Regeneration, Environmental Analysis and Modelling and Control units of CIESOL, together with the Economic Development and Agri-Food Economy group of the CIMEDES centre. It is funded by the Ministry of Universities, Science and Innovation (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033) and by the European Union ‘Next GenerationEU’/PRTR (PDC2021-121772-I00).

The DIH Group has released a ranking highlighting the research potential of the University of Almería (UAL). Among approximately 2,500 listed researchers, a dozen distinguished professors from UAL have achieved high scores in h(ISI-DIH) indices until 2023, gaining international recognition in fields such as Chemical Engineering, Analytical Chemistry, Systems Engineering, and Zoology. Half of these researchers are affiliated with the Center for Solar Energy Research (CIESOL), and eight additional researchers from the province also have connections with UAL.

In Chemical Engineering, notable figures include Emilio Molina Grima, Francisco Gabriel Acién Fernández, José Antonio Sánchez Pérez, José María Fernández Sevilla, and Francisco García Camacho, focusing on marine microalgae biotechnology, desalination, water purification, and water regeneration for irrigation. In Analytical Chemistry, Amadeo Rodríguez Fernández-Alba, Ana María Agüera López, José Luis Martínez Vidal, and Antonia Garrido Frenich are engaged in the analysis of pollutants, pesticide residues, and water treatment.

Manuel Berenguel Soria and José Luis Guzmán Sánchez excel in Systems Engineering, concentrating on automatic processes, robotics, and mechatronics. In Zoology, Francisco Javier Moyano López specializes in digestive modeling of fish. Half of these researchers belong to the Center for Solar Energy Research (CIESOL), a joint center of UAL and the Solar Platform of Almería, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration.

Furthermore, the ranking includes eight other researchers from the province with links to UAL, four from the Solar Platform of Almería and four from the Experimental Station of Arid Zones (EEZA-CSIC), collaborating closely with UAL professors, mainly from the Department of Agronomy.

The ranking was established considering the Fhm impact parameter, calculated based on the number of articles and citations a scientist has compared to others in their field worldwide. According to this parameter, Almería ranks 22nd among the 42 Spanish provinces present in the ranking, being the second in Andalusia after Granada.

For more information: https://news.ual.es/ciencia/doce-investigadores-de-la-ual-se-mantienen-como-referentes-mundiales-en-cuatro-areas-de-conocimiento/

Rosa María Crujeiras Casais, Irene Valenzuela Agüí, Blanca Ausín González and Isabel Oller Alberola have stood out in the IV Edition of the Young Female Scientific Talent Awards, supported by Mastercard and the Royal Academy of Sciences of Spain Foundation (FRACE).

The distinction in the category of ‘Sciences Applied to Technology’ has been awarded to Isabel Oller Alberola, who has been recognised for her outstanding work in research into the regeneration of wastewater. In this respect, the scientist stressed that science “is not practised individually” and expressed her appreciation for the award, pointing out that it not only recognises her personal effort, but also that of all the people who have collaborated and accompanied her throughout her years of research.

More information: https://forbes.es/brandvoice/408144/estas-son-las-ganadoras-de-la-iv-edicion-de-los-premios-al-joven-talento-cientifico-femenino-de-frace-y-mastercard/

It has been awarded at the 27th edition of the Andalusia Environment Awards, granted by the Regional Ministry of Sustainability, Environment and Blue Economy.

Through the PAMA awards (Andalusia Environment Awards), the Andalusian Government values the efforts and commitment of Andalusian society in favour of the environment. In this way, it rewards companies, scientific society, administrations, associations and foundations, as well as individuals, for their decisive role in promoting the ‘Green Revolution’ and the fight against climate change.

El acto de entrega de la XXVII edición se ha celebrado hoy en el Palacio de Congresos y Exposiciones de Córdoba y ha estado presidido por el consejero de Sostenibilidad, Medio Ambiente y Economía Azul, Ramón Fernández-Pacheco Monterreal. El encargado de la entrega del premio ha sido Manuel Guzmán De la Roza, presidente de la Comisión de Sostenibilidad, Medio Ambiente y Economía Azul del Parlamento Andaluz, y el galardón lo ha recogido Lucas Díaz Gázquez, director de Aqualia en Andalucía, Extremadura y Canarias. La empresa ha sido premiada en la categoría de economía circular por el proyecto Life Ulises, que desarrolla en la depuradora El Bobar de Almería.

Lucas Díaz stressed that “this award encourages us to continue promoting initiatives that promote reuse and the circular economy applied to its maximum expression, converting wastewater into high-value products. At Aqualia we are committed to this approach in the face of the critical scenario of water scarcity that we are experiencing, and an example of this is the platform focused on the regeneration of wastewater for agricultural uses (Hub REUSA) that we have created in the city of Almeria”.

In this line, the company works to develop innovative technologies and responsible solutions in the integral water cycle that promote sustainability, both from the environmental and social point of view, as well as from the economic point of view. Thus, the company is committed to changing the paradigm of wastewater treatment by converting waste (wastewater) into value-added products, while significantly reducing energy consumption and promoting the circular economy.

The “LIFE Ulises” project.

The main objective of Life Ulises is to revolutionise conventional wastewater treatment processes through a set of novel technologies to produce valuable resources, such as biofuel for vehicles, agricultural biofertilisers and water suitable for reuse, from wastewater. The aim is to develop the concept of a zero-discharge wastewater treatment plant.
The project aims to reduce energy consumption and the carbon footprint associated with wastewater treatment by increasing the efficiency of a conventional wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) through the integration of different technologies in each of its main phases (water, gas and sludge).

All of these innovative technologies are low-cost and reduce the electricity consumption of the El Bobar treatment plant, minimising its environmental impact and carbon footprint, to the benefit of environmental protection and the fight against climate change.

In this way, Life Ulises has achieved, from wastewater:
– 100% renewable biofuel for vehicles. The project is producing more than 100 tonnes of renewable fuel per year, which could power a fleet of up to 90 cars. This fuel has been tested in a fleet of vehicles, which have driven more than 21,000 km, with an average consumption of 4.8 kg of biomethane per 100 km driven.
– Halving energy consumption in the purification process.
– Reclaimed water, using innovative solar technologies, which meets the strictest state sanitary limits for reuse
– Quality agricultural biofertiliser from WWTP sludge
– Recovery of nutrients from water (phosphorus and nitrogen) in the form of struvite, a product that can be reused as a highly effective agricultural fertiliser.
– Validate the efficacy of the last three products as biofertilisers through field tests on a 500 m2 crop of ornamental plants.
The LIFE Ulises project, now completed but still operational at the El Bobar WWTP, had a total budget of 1,902,784 €, with 55% European funding through the European Commission’s LIFE Environment programme. The consortium, led and coordinated by Aqualia, consisted of four Spanish partners: Aqualia, CIESOL – UAL, CETIM and Energylab.