DEMOCRATIA - AQUA - TECHNICA
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DEMOCRATIA - AQUA - TECHNICA
Funded by the DAAD from funds of the Federal Foreign Office:
1
EDITORS
Prof. Dr. Maja Turk-Sekulić,
Prof. Dr. Ulrike Gayh
GRAPHIC CONCEPT
SchulzundSchramm GbR
LAYOUT AND TYPESETTING
SchulzundSchramm GbR
COVER DESIGN
SchulzundSchramm GbR
PROOFREADING
Douglas Fear
John Lugongo
ORGANIZER
SRH University Heidelberg
University of Novi Sad
FURTHER Contributors
Prof. Benjamin Zierock
ISBN E-PUB
978-3-9822521-1-7
FUNDED BY
The DAAD from funds of the Federal Foreign Office
DAAD – German Academic Exchange Service
© DEMOCRATIA 2020 AND THE AUTHORS
2 3
9 Foreword 51 Treatment & Potential Utilizations Of Contamined Biomass
After The Phytoremediation Of Landfill Leachate
13 SRH Hochschule Heidelberg
54 Competitive Study Of Pharmaceutical Adsorption Onto Novel Biochair
15 Water Technology (M.Eng)
56 Water Resource Management To Achieve Sustainable Development
17 University Of Novi Sad In Busher (A Coastal City In Iran)
18 The Program 60 Biological Treatment For Liquid Waste Generated In Livestock Processes
Conference
62 Re-Use Of Greywater For Construction Purposes
20 Sustainable Water Resources Management
64 Climate Change & Water Resources Allocation
24 Summer School “Neckar Now” Managing Users´ Conflicts Through Modeling
26 Designing A Democratic Future: 66 Health Risk Assessment Of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons In Ambient Air
Making A Case For Transdisciplinary Approaches
68 The Emission Of BTEX Compounds During The Movement Of Passenger Cars In
28 Linking Economic & Environmental Gains: Urban Environment
Conversion Technologies & Applications In Support Of Circular Economy
70 Concentration Levels Of The Atmospheric Particles PM10, PM2.5, & PM1
30 Water Conflicts & Limitation Methods During The Winter Season On The Territory Of Novi Sad, Serbia
A Case Study Of Water Conflict In Egypt & Ethiopia
74 Hackathon
34 Water, The New Weapon Challenge 01
35 Fuelling Fire With Water 76 Water Conflicts & Limiting Methods
A Case Study Of Conflicts Around Lake Chad Challenge 03
36 Fuelling Fire With Water 78 Digital Exploration Rally
Conflict Research & Lake Chad Crisis Waste Water Treatment
38 Improvement Of Drought Management 80 Gamification
A Short Introduction
41 Sustainable Wastewater Management & Resource Recovery Systems Through
Novel Anaerobic & Bioelectrochemical Processes 84 Thank You!
42 Wastewater Treatment From Nitrogen Compounds In The Trickling Biofilter 86 Partner
43 Steps Towards Green Technology
Utilisation Of Natural “Low-Cost” Coagulant In Wastewater Treatment
44 The Lake Chad Water Chrisis
Violent Intrastate Conflict In The Lake Chad Basin
46 Case Study Of Water Conflict Between India & China
48 Research On The Quality Change Of Doc In Stored Peat
4 5
Prof. Dr. Ulrike Gayh
Ulrike Gayh is Professor for Environmental and
Process engineering and is the Dean of the Mas-
ter ´s program in Water Technology (M.Eng.) at the
School of Engineering and Architecture of the SRH
FOREWORD
University Heidelberg. She conducts international
research activities in the field of water technolo-
gy solutions for the prevention and reduction of
local and regional water conflicts. Together with The idea of the initiative Democratia-Aqua-Technica is about transform-
colleagues from the Serbian partner university, ing local and regional water conflicts into pathways to peace and democ-
the University of Novi Sad, she established the racy incorporating innovative science and technology approaches.
Democratia-Aqua-Technica initiative which deals
with the question of innovative technical concepts
The project is funded as part of the DAAD programme “East-West Di-
for sustainable water resource management. She
has further research interests in the fields of bio- alogue“, and three events have been planned for 2020 which will deal
gas, wastewater management and water protec- with the question of innovative technical concepts for sustainable water
tion. The focus being mainly alternative sanitation resource management. The events were organized together with the Ser-
systems as well and the removal of micropollutants bian partner university “University of Novi Sad” and other partner univer-
using alternative adsorbents. sities in Russia, Hungary and Turkey. The special feature of this project
was that the students and doctoral candidates should work together on
projects throughout the year, even between courses.
Prof. Dr. Maja The initial project plan consists of the following three events.
Turk-Sekulić tudy Visit in Germany: crossing the bridge from higher education to
S
water practice and technology;
Maja Turk-Sekulić is a Professor of Environmental
Engineering at the Department of Environmental
Objective: to develop sustainable and innovative project ideas
Engineering and Occupational Safety and Health, to solve the most common conflicts related to water technolo-
Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad. gies, as well as getting to know different companies involved in
She is a Chair of Master´s academic studies program this field.
Water Treatment and Safety Engineering, and Vice Planned in Heidelberg and Munich (IFAT), dates: 04/05/20 - 08/05/20.
President of the Serbian Chemical Society (Sec-
tion for Environmental Chemistry). Her main activi- Young Scientist Research Week in Serbia: traveling projects at UNS.
ties and responsibilities are teaching, research and Objective: to obtain an overview of the water conflicts in Serbia,
leadership in national and international scientific and to develop a research project in teams with the purpose of
projects. Her main areas of specialization are green comparing the current technical stand of the water supply and
technologies for wastewater treatment, wastewater
different ways of engaging civil society.
management, monitoring and low-cost decontam-
ination and remediation; The partitioning, disper-
Planned in Novi Sad, dates: 29/06/20 - 03/07/20.
sal and retention of organic pollutants in Biotic and
Abiotic Systems; Analysis, environmental processes, Workshop with Partner Universities
and the fate of POPs in the environment, biotic and Objective: to expand the geopolitical “catchment area” of the
abiotic transformations. Other fields of specializa- project and to increase the variety of perspectives, experiences
tion are air pollution, gas/particle partitioning, and and practical examples.
the partitioning of polychlorinated biphenyls. Planned in Novi Sad, dates: 24/09/20 – 29/09/20.
6 7
Because of the Covid-19 pan- promote the reduction of regional
demic, the whole project plan was and local distribution conflicts.
changed to a digital format. Using a
cross-media approach with differ- Thanks are due to all participants
ent digital components, the proj- and partners who made the Hack-
ect could be successfully realized. athon a success, and made the
The main digital components were: conference so exciting for every-
body.
Web-based network portal:
www.democratia-aqua.org In the future, further projects at
the EU level are to follow under
igital game application - Explor-
D the umbrella of the Democra-
er app tia-Aqua-Technica initiative. We
are looking forward to carry-
4-hours hackathons with dif-
2 ing out the second Democra-
ferent challenges (took place on tia-Aqua-Technica conference in
September 1st and 2nd) September 2021.
igital Conference (took place on
D
September 24th and 25th) Prof. Dr. Maja Turk-Sekulić &
Prof. Dr. Ulrike Gayh
This E-book provides an overview
of our cross-media approach by
presenting the main results of us-
ing the different digital compo-
nents.
One of the main advantages of the
digital concept of the Democra-
tia-Aqua-Technica initiative 2020
was that not only partners from
the Western Balkans, but from all
over the world participated in the
Hackathon and the conference to
find and discuss innovative techni-
cal concepts for sustainable water
resource management, in order to
8 9
SRh Hochschule
Heidelberg
The SRH University Heidelberg was ly on a maximum of two subjects within
founded in 1969, and it is one of the old- one 5-week period. To ensure that stu-
est and largest private universities na- dents remember what they are learning,
tionwide. It sets standards in the field of the university takes a practical approach
education, and at six schools 42 study to teaching, using case studies, seminars,
programs are offered. A highly import- team projects, role plays and presenta-
ant part of this process is the close co- tions. From the profusion of examination
operation between students and tutors. methods available, the method that best
The concept for success: offering new, fits the skills taught in a particular module
practical courses of study, individu- is chosen. Scheduling a great number of
al support and a fast track to the labour exams within a short period of time is now
market. For the students, this means the a thing of the past, thanks to the new pro-
best chance of an optimal start in profes- gram. The graduates are capable of prov-
sional life - with a tight network of con- ing themselves in a real business environ-
nections to enterprises and educational ment after their studies. In their roles as
institutions worldwide. Cooperation with mentors and coaches, the teaching staff
business enterprises or integration in re- assist the students in every way possible,
search projects and colloquia enable the be it subject-specific content, study or-
students to make use of the knowledge ganization or in personal matters.
and skills they have acquired. 92% of the
students graduate successfully. The School of Engineering and Architec-
ture offers an excellent education that
The “CORE-Principle” – is subject-specific: ready for take-off in
Competence-Oriented Research and Ed- working life, with a unique mix of theo-
ucation – places the acquisition of occu- retical basics, field trips and internships.
pational competence at the center of the Today, being an engineer not only involves
THE
studies. This approach goes far beyond planning, designing and optimizing, but it
the delivery of theoretical knowledge. The is also about developing design and tech-
term occupational competence denotes nical solutions by taking the ecological,
all the skills that enable the students to social and economic factors into account
act independently and successfully in the and staying competitive in the global
labour market. Occupational competence market. Great importance is placed on
background
can be attained at many levels by acquir- the issues of energy efficiency and sus-
ing professional competence, method- tainability, so that future challenges can
ological competence, self-competence be met successfully and responsibly.
and social competence. Instead of hav-
ing to deal with numerous subjects at the
same time, the students can focus entire-
10 11
WATER TECHNOLOGY Program duration
Main Course (90 CP): 18 months
MASTER OF ENGINEERING ith the preliminary course (120 CP) or
W
optional internship in Semester 3 (120
CP): 24 months
The Master´s Program Water Technology (M.Eng.) provides an overview of
the main challenges related to the availability and supply of water, its use as
a source of energy, and the treatment of wastewater.
Objectives of the program
To understand the major challenges re- Program overview
lated to the availability of clean water emester 1 modules: Water Quality, Wa-
S
ter Treatment I, Water Treatment II, Wa-
To learn how to mitigate the climate
ter Treatment III
change
emester 2 modules: Waste Manage-
S
o analyze methods of wastewater
T ment, Water as Energy and Waste to
treatment and water supply Energy, Water Project - Climate Change
Mitigation, Elective
To recognize the role of water as a
source of energy and how to turn waste Semester 3: Master Thesis
into energy
Discussion / Outlook
At the end of the program, students can J ob opportunities exist in global water
develop sustainable solutions to fight companies, technology providers in the
the environmental pollution and help water sector, research centers or insti-
mitigate climate change tutes and communal companies in the For more
water sector information,
please check
our homepage
CECILIA GARCIA, ULRIKE GAYH
SRH University Heidelberg, Germany
12 13
University of
Novi Sad
FACULTY OF TECHNICAL SCIENCES
With over 1,200 staff and more than offs of FTN employ about 4,000 IT engi-
14,000 students currently attending all neers in the region. The two largest ones
levels of academic studies, the Faculty (Schneider Electric and RT-RK) account
of Technical Sciences (FTN) is the largest for 1,700 of these.
single faculty of the University of Novi Sad
and Serbia, educating over 2,000 post- When it comes to research activities of
graduate and nearly 1,000 PhD students FTN, they are primarily oriented towards
at the moment. Founded in 1974, FTN the research projects which are direct-
traces its roots back to the establishment ly or indirectly aimed at practical appli-
of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering cation in industry, supporting innovation
in 1960. Today, the Faculty is comprised and technology development. So far, FTN
of 13 departments conducting research in has successfully completed around 200
virtually all areas of engineering. projects supported by the Serbian and
Provincial Ministry of Science and Tech-
In addition, FTN encompasses many cen- nology and more than 150 international
ters designed to focus intradepartmental projects realized within different frame-
efforts, including the Industry/University works: FP6, FP7, H2020, EUREKA, COST,
Collaborative Research Center for Ad- IPA, TEMPUS, ERASMUS+ and CEEPUS.
vanced Knowledge Enablement (KOI), es-
tablished in 2016 as a collaborative effort In order to keep up with the high level of
with the Florida Atlantic University, USA. performance, the Faculty has co-invest-
THE
The main objective of KOI is promotion, ed in the development of the Novi Sad
support and organization of joint research Science-Technological (ST) Park, which
projects between the industry and FTN opened its doors in January 2020, adding
researchers. 10,000m2 of laboratory and office space
to its facilities.
A regional leader in technology transfer,
over the last two decades FTN has spun The University of Novi Sad, with around
background
off over 100 companies, mostly in the do- 50,000 students and 5,000 employees,
main of ICT, with a turnover of 100 million is one of the largest educational and re-
euros, making this the most important search centers in Central Europe. It be-
industry locally. To illustrate the dynam- longs to the group of comprehensive
ics, 40 of these companies were created universities which are characterized by
between 2005 and 2010, employed 850 providing training in nearly all fields of
engineers and were generating 18 million science and higher education.
euros already in 2007. Today the spin-
14 15
25.09.2020
9:00 - 9:15 Welcome from Prof. Dr. Maja Turk-Sekulić (UNS)
THE PROGRAM 9:15 - 9:45 Health risk assessments of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in am-
bient air in Novi Sad, Serbia: Prof. Dr. Jelena Radonić (UNS)
9:45 - 10:15 The emission of BTEX compounds during the motion of passenger
DIGITAL CONFERENCE cars in accordance with the NEDC: Prof. Dr. Dragan Adamović (UNS)
DEMOCRATIA-AQUA-TECHNICA Improvement of the Drought Management: Prof. Dr. Sándor Szalai
10:15 - 11:00
(SIU)
11:00 - 11:45 Fuelling Fire with Water: A Case Study on Conflicts around Lake
24.09.2020 Chad: Emil Unrath, Nikolaus Reeg (HIIK)
11:45 - 12:15 Water, the New Weapon: Cheikh Diallo (Species Analysis, Senegal)
9:00 - 9:30 Welcome from Prof. Dr. Carsten Diener (Rector SRH)
12:15 - 13:30 Lunchbreak - Poster session
9:30 - 10:15 Welcome and Keynote speech: Prof. Dr. Ulrike Gayh (SRH)
13:30 - 14:00 Results of the Hackathon Challenge 3 - Water Conflicts and Methods
of Limitation: Ajeesh Nellikunnel Jose, John Lugongo, Prof. Dr. Ulrike
10:15 - 11:00 Keynote speech - Research activities at the Department of Environ- Gayh (SRH)
mental Engineering and Occupational Safety and Health: Prof. Dr.
Maja Turk-Sekulić, Prof. Dr. Jelena Radonić (UNS)
14:00 - 14:30 The Influence of Water on a Rural Environment in its Economic and
Ecological Aspects, Shown in the example of the river Alb in the
11:00 - 11:45 Introduction and Review Hackathon, Results Hackathon Challenge 1: Albtal (Alb-Valley): Mathias Naar (SRH)
Prof. Dr. Benjamin Zierock (SRH)
Introduction Poster Session (Overview of topics + Participants + Pro- 14:30 - 15:00 Designing a democratic future: Making a Case for Transdisciplinary
11:45 - 12:00 Research Approaches: Belen Zevallos (SRH)
cedure): Prof. Dr. Ulrike Gayh / Prof. Benjamin Zierock (SRH)
Lunchbreak - Poster Session 15:00 - 15:30 Steps towards Green Technology: the Utilisation of Natural „Low-
12:00 - 13:30 Cost“ Coagulant in Wastewater Treatment: Sanja Radovic (UNS)
Sustainable wastewater management and resource recovery sys- 15:30 - 16:00 Treatment and Potential Uses of Contaminated Biomass after the
13:30 - 14:15 Phytoremediation of Landfill Leachate: Katarina Antić (UNS)
tems through novel anaerobic and bioelectrochemical processes:
Assist. Prof. Dr. Yasemin Dilsad Yilmazel (METU)
16:00 - 16:30 Contaminations of the Danube Sediment: Effects of Brominated
Flame Retardants effect: Maja Brboric (UNS)
14:15 - 15:00 Wastewater Treatment from Nitrogen Compounds in the Trickling
Biofilter: Olga Yantsen, Prof. Dr. Elena Gogina (NRU)
16:30 - 17:00 Conclusion and Outlook of the Democratia-Aqua-Technica Initiative:
Prof. Dr. Maja Turk-Sekulić (UNS) / Prof Dr. Ulrike Gayh (SRH) / Prof.
15:00 - 15:45 Introduction Digital Games-Application - Explorer App + Hackathon Dr. Jelena Radonić (UNS)
Challenge 4: Oliver Schlenker (SRH)
From 16:00 Final discussion + Poster session: Prof. Dr. Maja Turk-Sekulić (UNS) /
Prof Dr. Ulrike Gayh (SRH)
Digital city ralley Heidelberg - water and architecural highlights of
the city
16 17
SUSTAINABLE conditions, such as climate,
sediments, and other hydro-
sanitation systems are an
important topic to deal with.
WATER
logical conditions have an in- The concept of source sepa-
fluence on the water quality ration of wastewater is in the
in different regions, too. focus of new alternative san-
RESOURCES Within the framework of sus-
itation systems. Source sep-
aration means the direction
MANAGEMENT tainable water resources
management, there are dif-
ferent topics to be dealt with.
of wastewater into separate
black water and grey water
divisions, and is linked to the
Redesigning cities and public topic of domestic wastewa-
There are a lot of global challenges in spaces so that they are able ter recycling. Black water is
the world. The topic of clean water is to be resilient is as important defined as the wastewater
one of them. The United Nations (UN) as the adaptation and mitiga- from toilets, which consists
has defined the access to drinking wa- tion as the main short-term of urine, faeces, flushing wa-
ter as a human right, but billions have a factors for climate resiliency. ter and toilet paper. It can be
shortage. [UN 2019] Resources of water The relationship with water is further divided into yellow
are surface waters, such as river water important, as water is an es- water (urine) and brown wa-
or lake water, and sea water, groundwa- sential resource for the daily ter (faeces). Grey water is de-
ter, rain water, air humidity and leachate. life and is included in today´s fined as the wastewater from
More than 70 % of the earth´s surface sustainability goals and urban all other sources than the toi-
is covered in water, but most of this is development strategies. The let, e.g. from the kitchen, from
salt water in oceans and just a small objective should be to devel- the bathroom as well as from
amount is fresh water. About the half of op a future strategy and inte- the washing machine. Figure 1
the world’s population faces the risk of grating innovative scenarios. shows the composition of the
water shortage and the global water de- With regard to water sensi- domestic wastewater.
mand is projected to increase by 55% tive cities, new alternative
by 2050. [UN 2019] Furthermore the
amount of clean drinking water in many
regions is decreasing owing to pollution.
Effects related to climate change, such
as flooding or aridity are intensifying
challenges of water supply. In addition
to that the increasing energy produc-
tion requires water, but also clean wa-
ter requires energy. There are several
factors influencing the quality of water.
Some are man-made, such as industry
and land-use and well as the treatment
for water supply and wastewater. But Fig 1: Percentage composition of domestic wastewater
18 19From figure 1 it is obvious that With regard to domestic Thus, no conventional waste- areas or for evaporation in
the main volume flow of do- wastewater recycling the water treatment plant is nec- water retention boxes.
mestic wastewater comes main recycling processes essary. This concept has been A world map showing best
from the sources for grey wa- are the black water recycling applied in the residential area practice examples of public
ter. The volume flows of yel- process (LooLoop-Process) of Lübeck-Flintenbreite, Ger- spaces in different countries
low water and brown water and the grey water recycling many. [Ott 2009]. that are next to a river, water
are negligible, but with regard process (BlueLoop-Process). front or a place that estab-
to the organic load, the main Both could be realised by a Source separation also helps lishes a relation to
part is in the brown water. The bio-membrane treatment in improving the climate a water site
brown water also contains and re-using the water for in cities. The future of roof has been
problematic substances (e.g. toilet flushing. Also the col- greening in cities is direct- developed
faecal bacteria, pharmaceu- lection of rain water and use ly linked with topics, such as by the par-
tical residues) of the domes- of a sand filtration can be a the cleansing of grey water on ticipants in the
tic wastewater. The yellow simple process for re-using the roof surfaces of houses or international
water, is in comparison with rainwater for toilet flushing. car parks in constructed wet- summer school
the other domestic wastewa- lands or in biofilters, as well as Neckar Now.
ter streams, rich in nutrients New alternative sanitation the use of purified grey water
such as nitrogen and phos- systems could be integrat- for irrigation of intensive roof
phorus. So, in general, the ed in the technical design of
black water is mainly respon- residential areas. The source
sible for the effort needed to separation is the key factor
cleanse domestic wastewater here, as well. Concepts avail-
efficiently, as the grey wa- able are, for example, using
ter is not loaded with organic vacuum toilets and feeding
matter, nutrients and further the black water, together with
substances. Surfactants are bio waste from the kitchen,
the main critical group in this into a biogas plant. The heat
wastewater stream. New al- and electricity produced are
ternative sanitation systems used in the residential area
use the composition of the and the fermentation resi-
different wastewater streams dues are used in agriculture. Figure 2: Best practice examples of public spaces developed during the summer school Neckar Now
in adapting the source sepa- All other waste water streams,
ration in an efficient ecolog- i.e. the grey water, are treated
ical way. In addition to grey in a constructed wetland and REFERENCES
and black water, rain water is seeped away or are drained [Ott2009] - OtterWasser GmbH, 2009, Ecological housing estate,
Flintenbreite, Lübeck, Germany - Draft. Case study of sustainable
often integrated in new alter- into surface waters following sanitation projects, Sustainable Sanitation Alliance (SuSanA)
native sanitation systems. treatment. [UN2019] - United Nations World Water Development Report 2019,
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,
UNESCO 2019, ISBN 978-92-3-100309-7
ULRIKE GAYH
SRH University Heidelberg, Germany
20 21SUMMER SCHOOL
NECKAR NOW
The School of Engineering and Ar- expert feedback rounds gave the par-
chitecture presented the first ticipants the ability to develop differ-
interdisciplinary Summer School ent approaches to local problems, as
“Neckar Now: Transformative ap- well as to create their own projects
proaches for a sustainable future”, in an immersive experience. It was an
which took place from 16th until 21st of exciting one-week program for those
August 2020. considering future studies in Water
Technology (M.Eng.) or Architecture
The Neckar Now Summer School ad- (B.A. or M.A.).
dressed the potential and challenges
of a city along the river from an engi- Owing to the current Covid-19 pan-
neering and architectural perspective. demic, this Neckar Now Summer
Heidelberg provides the perfect set- School was carried out as a hybrid
ting to learn about current trends and model. That means, that some partic-
methods of sustainable innovation and ipants were physically in Heidelberg,
design. Field trips, input sessions and while others participated online.
Four different
projects have
been developed
by the participants:
FIND OUT
MORE:
22 23DESIGNING A What can we do as
researchers?
DEMOCRATIC FUTURE: So often researchers produce research that is
either too far away from reality or too compli-
cated to understand for the users that need
MAKING A CASE FOR TRANS- this research to solve a specific problem. This
often happens because of a lack of diversity in
research teams, they tend to be blindsided by
DISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
the heterogeneity in their disciplines. However,
this can be changed, and it is proven to yield
extraordinary results.
APPROACHES
Fig. 2: Film frame form the movie “12 Angry Men” (1957)
About transdisciplinarity
Transdisciplinarity connotes a research strate-
gy that crosses many disciplinary boundaries
to create a holistic approach. It applies to re-
search efforts focused on problems that cross
the boundaries of two or more disciplines.
Context What happens if we take research outside of
The world is currently living in the middle of a the bubble?
pandemic; this has exacerbated the gap be- Based on our experience with the “Reallabor
tween the haves and have-nots making envi- STADT-RAUM-BILDUNG”, the German for Re-
ronmental and social issues even more visible. al-World Laboratory: City-Space-Education,
The questions of how we want to live and what real-world laboratories give researchers the
we can do have suddenly become central. Fig. 3: Transdisciplinary approaches, Workshops with dif- chance of developing solutions for real-world
ferent actors. Reallabor STADT-RAUM-BILDUNG (2019)
problems.
By following the model of Constanza (2003) it
is possible to see our resources as unlimited or
limited, and so to develop either pessimistic or
optimistic views of the world. Schäpke et al. (2015) describe real-world lab- knowledge production takes place in real-world
In this sense, it is possible to live in either a oratories as the targeted set-up of a research environments instead of scientific laboratories.
“Start Trek” world with unlimited resources and “infrastructure“ or a “space” in which scientific By creating transdisciplinary teams to develop
an optimistic view of the world, or in, the op- actors and actors from civil society cooperate research, it is possible to develop solutions for
posite of that, a Mad Max world with limited in the joint production of knowledge in order real problems while at the same time dealing
resources and a pessimistic view of the world. to support a more sustainable development of with the actors that face this problem. Trans-
I like to think we want to live in an “Ecotopia”. society. […] He then addresses two key chal- disciplinary research can be applied to any re-
lenges of real-world laboratories: 1. both sci- search field; it is time we work not just for soci-
Callenbach describes how his “Ecotopians” at- entists and civil society actors are involved in ety, but with(in) the society.
tach fundamental importance to environmen- the process of knowledge production; and 2.
Fig. 1: Based on the Model of Constanza (2003:665)
tal and social stability within which variety can
flourish.
This sounds like a great place, but how can we
get there?
references
According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, happen if often the decision makers look like a
democracy is defined as “A government in scene from the movie “12 Angry Men” (1957)? rnstein, Sherry R.(1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation
A tadt Raum Bildung (2019): Stadt Raum Bildung.[online]
S
Schäpke N., Singer-Brodowski M., Stelzer F., Bergmann M. www.stadt-raum-bildung.de, [online] Retrieved March 16,
which the supreme power is vested in the peo- We need to create diverse spaces where all and Lang D. J. (2015). Creating space for change: Real-world 2020.
ple and exercised by them directly or indirectly people are represented, as only in this way we laboratories for sustainability transformations. The case of Urban Catalyst Studio (2020):Schutzenmatte [online] www.
through a system of representation usually in- can create a future that works for everyone. Baden-Württemberg. GAIA, 24, 4: 281-283. [online] (DOI): urbancatalyst.de, [online] Retrieved March 16, 2020.
10.14512/gaia.24.4.17
volving periodically held free elections.” Here it Space Transcribers (2020):Space Transcribers. [online]
is important to note that it is defined in terms www.spacetranscribers.com, [online] Retrieved March 16,
of representation of people, but how can this 2020.
BELEN ZEVALLOS
SRH University Heidelberg, Germany
24 25LINKING ECONOMIC AND
ENVIRONMENTAL GAINS:
CONVERSION TECHNOLOGIES AND
APPLICATIONS IN SUPPORT OF
CIRCULAR ECONOMY
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This study was financially support-
Exploring new and sustainable tech- development - multifunctional bio- ed by the CEEPUS student exchange
nologies for low-cost, eco-friendly chars and activated carbons capable program and by the Ministry of Ed-
and efficient wastewater remediation of highly efficient separation of a wide ucation, Science and Technological
and decontamination present en- range of micropollutants (heavy met- Development, project n° 451-03-
vironmental, economic and human al ions, chlorophenols, pharmaceutical 68/2020-14/200156: “Innovative sci-
health challenges. Modern society compounds [sulfamethoxazole, car- entific and artistic research from the
supports transition towards an econ- bamazepine, diclofenac, naproxen, ke- FTS (activity) domain“.
omy in which different materials are toprofen, ibuprofen] and radionucle-
kept as long as possible while reduc- ides) within different waste treatment
ing the generation of waste. Nowadays, systems. In this paper we will present
the majority of generated organic solid the novel design and synthesis de-
wastes are either applied to the land or tails, characterization (performed by
REFERENCES
sent to landfills. Knowledge, research elemental analysis, scanning electron Pap, S., Kirk, C., Bremner, B., Turk Sekulic, M., Shea- taminants on multifunctional carbonous adsorbent:
rer, L., Gibb, S., Taggart, M. (2020). Low-cost chito- Mechanisms, modelling and metal coadsorption.
and innovation are an essential part of microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray san-calcite adsorbent development for potential Journal of Molecular Liquids: Vol. 284, pp. 372–382.
the systemic changes needed for the spectroscopy, Fourier transform in- phosphate removal and recovery from wastewater
effluent. Water Research, Volume 173, 15 April 2020, aunović, O., Pap, S., Maletić, S., Taggart, M. A., Bos-
P
revision of the conventional methods frared spectroscopy, and the Brunau- 115573. kovic, N., Turk Sekulic, M. (2019). Ionisable emerging
of treating different waste streams, er, Emmett and Taller technique), the pharmaceutical adsorption onto microwave func-
with the main goal of tapping into their evaluation of their capability of high- Pap, S., Kirk, C., Bremner, B., Turk Sekulic, M., Gibb, tionalised biochar derived from novel lignocellulo-
S., Maletic S., Taggart, M. (2020). Synthesis opti- sic waste biomass. Journal of Colloid and Interface
largely unrealized potential in terms of ly efficient separation, batch studies misation and characterisation of chitosan-calcite Science: Vol. 547, pp. 350-360.
environmental and economic benefits. performed, desorption and regenera- adsorbent from fishery-food waste for phosphorus
Another critical environmental and hu- tion study results, as well as eco-de- removal. Environmental Science and Pollution Re- urk Sekulic, M., Boskovic, N., Slavković, A., Garunović,
T
search: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-07570- J., Kolaković, S., Pap, S. (2019). Surface functionalised
man health challenge is presented by sign, life-cycle assessment, compara- 0. adsorbent for emerging pharmaceutical removal:
micropollutants in wastewater. Com- tive adsorption study and cost analysis Adsorption performance and mechanisms. Process
Turk Sekulić, M., Boskovic, N., Milanović, M., Grujić- Safety and Environmental Protection: Vol. 125pp.
mercial activated carbon can effec- of the processes. The results of the Letić, N., Gligorić, E., Pap, S. (2019). An insight into the 50–63.
tively remove them, but its produc- study should add significant capacity adsorption of three emerging pharmaceutical con-
tion is energy intensive and expensive. to green remediation, decontamina-
Inspired by these current issues, our tion and waste utilization efforts.
team is focused on different materials
MAJA TURK-SEKULIĆ JASMINA KOŽAR LOGAR PAP SABOLČ
Faculty of Technical Sciences, Depart- Department for low and medium energy Environmental Research Institute, North Highl-
ment of Environmental Engineering and physics, Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova and College, University of the Highlands and Is-
Occupational Safety and Health, Univer- cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia lands, Castle Street, Thurso KW14 7JD, UK
sity of Novi Sad, Trg Dositeja Obradovića
6, 21 000 Novi Sad, Serbia Faculty of Technical Sciences, Department of
Environmental Engineering and Occupational
Safety and Health, University of Novi Sad, Trg
26 Dositeja Obradovića 6, 21 000 Novi Sad, Serbia
27WATER CONFLICTS & POLITICAL IMPACTS ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
LIMITATION METHODS he lack of water may drive the countries
T
into riots and social and political chaos.
This would entail a strain on diplomat-
Increasing probability of a seismic event.
Negative impacts on local fish populations.
Downstream sediment erosion.
ic relations between Ethiopia, Egypt and The disappearance of archaeological and
A CASE STUDY OF WATER CONFLICT Sudan, possibly resulting in a war. historical sites.
Riparian habitat fragmentation and habi-
IN EGYPT & ETHIOPIA tat loss.
Flooding and the destruction of surround-
ing habitats and ecosystems.
BACKGROUND AND SOURCES OF THE CONFLICT
he River Nile is shared by 11 riparian coun-
T a capacity of 74 billion m³ for electricity
tries. generation.
Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopiaall depend on the The estimated annual volume of the river is
river for their social-economic activities. 110 billion m³. SOLUTIONS TO THE CONFLICT
Approximately 95% of water in Egypt is Ethiopia proposes to fill the reservoir in less dherence to the principle of cooperation
A national Expert Committee’s recommen-
sourced from the river. than 7 years, while Egypt proposes taking by Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan, based on dations on the initial filling, and rules and
Social-economic activities relating to wa- more than 15 years to do this. their water needs, is key to averting a full- guidelines on the annual operation of the
ter uses from the river have created huge There is no equitable distribution of water blown water-related conflict Grand Renaissance Dam.
tensions between the countries. flow between the riparian countries, which The principles of development, regional in- The principle of trust building is key for
Ethiopia is constructing a mega-dam with has resulted in this conflict. tegration, and sustainability will ensure the the amicable resolution of any conflict
peaceful co-existence of Ethiopia and her that may emanate from Ethiopia’s sale
neighbours Egypt and Sudan, given that and Egypt’ and Sudan’s purchase of power
the Blue Nile will be generating clean and generated by the Grand Renaissance Dam.
sustainable energy which will contribute to The principle of the peaceful settlement
the economic growth of all three countries. of conflicts and the principle of dam safe-
SOCIAL IMPACTS The principle of not causing significant ty will ensure transparency and drastically
ultural ecosystem services, including the
C harm is important if Egypt and Sudan are ease tensions with reference to the safety
use of the Blue Nile for recreational purpos- to be assured that, in the absence of an of Egypt and Sudan during the operation of
es, will be negatively affected. agreement, harm will be alleviated, and, if the Grand Renaissance Dam.
Provision ecosystem services, including the need be, appropriate compensation will be The principle of sovereignty and unity of
Blue Nile as a source of fish for Egypt and paid. the region will ensure that Egypt, Eth-io-
Sudan, will be negatively affected. The principle of impartial and suitable use pia, and Sudan exhibit good intentions on
Water as a provision ecosystem service for will ensure that Ethiopia protects and pre- the basis of equal sovereignty, unity of the
Egypt and Sudan will diminish significantly. serves the Blue Nile, being mindful of the region and mutual benefit, settling all con-
The Grand Renaissance Dam will help the socioeconomic needs of Egypt and Sudan flicts consensually through consultations
economies of Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan to with reference to the usage of the Blue Nile. and negotiations.
grow through reliable power generation. The principle of cooperation in the prelim- The principle of the peaceful settlement of
The Grand Renaissance Dam will expand the inary filling of the reservoir and manage- conflicts is of great relevance in ensuring
economies of rural communities in all three ment of the dam will avert a water con- a conflict-free Nile basin with an overall
countries. flict between Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan lasting peace between Egypt, Ethiopia, and
Displacement of human populations. through the implementation of the Inter- Sudan.
28 29CASE STUDY: WATER CONFLICT
IN EGYPT & ETHIOPIA
CONCLUSION
If a potential water conflict between Egypt, A solution to this conflict without the co-
Ethiopia and Sudan is to be averted, all three operation of all these countries and trust of
Nile basin countries should respect the 10 each other is impossible.
principles of “The Declaration of Principles There should be some arrangement to re-
on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam”, spond to shortages in the water supply
which encompasses the resolution of dis- during drought crises.
putes through peaceful coexistence. Transboundary water conflicts may be ex-
REFERENCES
The riparian countries must agree on pro- acerbated as population increases if effec-
ww.bbc.com/news/world-africa-50328647
w
cedures to share the available water supply. tive cooperation is not improved. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/02/09/world/
Downstream countries can claim their
africa/nile-river-dam.html
share of water by helping Ethiopia with fi- https://fanack.com/sudan/history-past-to-present/
blue-nile-dispute/?gclid=CjwKCAjw4rf6BRAvEi-wAn-
nancial aids and other technical services. 2Q76jaggkp62WTX3W3131caBI1qodww0YYLoounCF9eGLP-
m9y-W8a3MNRoCCVQQAvD_BwE
https://www.ethiopoint.com/who-owns-the-nile-egypt-
sudan-and-ethiopias-history-changing-dam/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341655131_THE_
CONFLICT_BETWEEN_EGYPT_AND_ETHIO-PIA_OVER_
THE_NILE_WATER
www.hydropower.org/case-studies/ethiopia-grand-ethio-
pian-renaissance-dam-gerd
Tawil N. E. (June 2020). Declaration of Principles on Re-
naissance Dam is ‚exclusive agreement‘ bin-ding
Egypt, Ethiopia, Sudan together: intl. law expert
WORLD MAP OF WATER CONFLICTS https://www.egypttoday.com/Article/1/88909/Declaration-
of-Principles-on-Renaissance-Dam-is-ex-clusive-agree-
ment-binding [September 1 2020]
Salman S.M.A. (2017). The Declaration of Principles on the
Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam:
An Analytical Overview. In: Yihdego Z., Desta M., Merso
F. (eds) Ethiopian Yearbook of International Law 2016.
Ethiopian Yearbook of International Law, vol 2016. Springer,
Cham.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55898-1_9
FOR MORE
DETAILS!
AJEESH NELLIKUNNEL JOSE, CHEIKH DIALLO, JOHN LUGON-
GO, KENNETH BEDU-ADDO, ADITI DAS, BAI XUE, DANIELA CHI-
QUITO, LI WEI, LOUIS BOANSI OKOFO, MATHIAS NAAR, SERENA
KWAKYE-MINTAH, SUDHANSHU AVASTHI
SRH University Heidelberg, Germany
30 31WATER, FUELLING FIRE
THE NEW WITH WATER
WEAPON A CASE STUDY OF CONFLICTS
AROUND LAKE CHAD
How can (non-)violent political conflicts be tion growth, and poor regional water manage-
The annual consumption of drinking By 2025, more than 7.9 billion people measured? What is international conflict man- ment have resulted in the lake losing nearly 90
water over the past 50 years has dou- will be living in countries with a scarci- agement and which new problems does it face? percent of its water surface. However, recent
bled to 3800 km3. In 1990, more than ty of water. Are the ongoing conflicts around Lake Chad il- studies show that the lake has now regained
1 billion people did not have access to In several regions, there are current- lustrative of these? about half of its original water volume. In con-
trast to previous decades, the water in the lake
drinking water. The minimum water re- ly systems of water supply crossing The study of political conflict is a complex field, and the amount of precipitation in the region
quirement is 50l per day per person, several countries. A number of bi- or and comprehensive and reliable information is are subject to wide fluctuations and have simi-
and the need tends to increase. Ev- multilateral treaties exist between the seldom found. The presentation will therefore lar negative effects.
ery 12 seconds someone is a victim of countries involved for cooperative ex- outline basic do’s and don’ts of conflict re-
search - and thus give the listener a first guide Overall, the above factors are conducive to the
poor water quality. 80% of the diseas- ploitation of water resources to the
on how she can herself think critically about outbreak of several conflicts of different types
es in underdeveloped countries come benefit of their inhabitants, but usu- political conflict. Focusing on the “Heidelberg in Lake Chad, especially intrastate conflicts.
from poor water quality. ally these treaties are not respected, Approach” and a material understanding of In the context of water conflicts, intrastate
which leads to bad outcomes. conflict (i.e. excluding the digital realm), we will conflicts often arise over the use and distribu-
try to achieve this in a short amount of time. tion of water as a source to provide livelihoods
Additionally, an empirical spotlight is provid- for individual (ethnic) groups. Water scarcity
Some Conflicts around the World ed, focusing on new developments of political and water unpredictability have direct and in-
conflicts. Historically, we can observe these direct negative effects on intrastate conflicts.
Nile 1902: Egypt - Sudan-Ethiopia especially with the onset of globalization in the Direct effects are disputes over the allocation
1980s and the end of the so-called Cold War. of water between different users and uses. Less
1929 und 1959: Egypt - Sudan Münkler´s concept of the “New Wars” shall ex- reliable access to water can also threaten the
Senegal 1989: Senegal - Mauritania emplify these developments of privatization, sustainability of different types of livelihoods,
Euphrat 1987: Turkey - Syria asymmetry and autonomization. which can have various effects, all of which
1990: Syria - Iraq have the potential to cause or intensify intra-
In the second part, we will look at methods of state conflicts. These effects can include mass
Jordan 1994 : Israel - Jordania how to contain violence, namely internation- migration, increased urbanization, and loss of
Yarmuk 1987 : Syria - Jordania al conflict management. Different approach- trust in institutions.
Indus 1947/48: India - Pakistan es are then discussed. We will also look at the
Tanganyka Lake Congo (Kinshasa) - Tanzania - Zambia problems this faces, especially considering the Indirect negative effects are caused by inad-
Akpa Yafi 1998: Nigeria - Cameroon aforementioned new developments of violent equate strategies used by security forces to
political conflicts. counter violent conflict. Heavy-handed military
Lake Chad Cameroon - Chad - Niger – Nigeria responses, e.g. banning access to certain ar-
Gabcikovo 1998: Hungary - Slovakia... The third part will deal with the consequences eas that were formerly used for fishing or cat-
of the Lake Chad water crisis. Special attention tle herding, creates a situation in which people
will be paid to the negative effects that bad wa- cannot rely on their former livelihoods.
ter management and conflict management can
For historical reasons, instruments of have on conflict developments. The situation When considering the direct and indirect ef-
cooperative conflict settlement are at Lake Chad serves as an example to illustrate fects of water scarcity in the Lake Chad Basin,
not very well developed , especially in the cycle of water scarcity, misguided crisis it becomes clear that these have negative im-
management, and negative impacts on de- pacts on democracy and the cohesion of so-
arid regions. mocracy. ciety in the Lake Chad Basin thus creating a
Here, the right of the strongest was new starting point for another deadly cycle of
dominates in political relations. Since the 1970s, several droughts have hit Lake violence.
Chad. More intensive agriculture, rapid popula-
CHEIKH DIALLO EMIL UNRATH, NIKOLAUS REEG
Speciesanalytik, Senegal Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research, Germany
32 33FUELLING FIRE WITH WATER:
Conflict Research -
CONFLICT RESEARCH
The Heidelberg Approach
The Heidelberg Institute for International results on all political conflicts occurring
& LAKE CHAD CRISIS Conflict Research (HIIK) is a non-profit or-
ganization based at the Institute of Political
Science of the University of Heidelberg, and
throughout the world in one calendar year.
We refrain from any deeper analysis, limiting
ourselves to neutral and verifiable observa-
is devoted to the research, documentation, tions. Our basic research therefore serves as
and evaluation of intra- and interstate po- a starting point for other scientists studying
litical conflicts. It continually updates and the dynamics of collective violence.
When was the last time you The moment we turn on the news, watch maintains the CONTRA database. The Insti-
Netflix, play games, we often engage with tute´s publication, the Conflict Barometer, is
thought about war and produced annually and presents research
violent content . But what do we actually
violence ? know about these things? This poster shall
give a (very) short overview of how we think
Do you know where conflicts of high intensity are happening ?
about these matters. It will further make
you familiar with intense water conflicts“, Can you say which parties are fighting , and about what or why?
which are often overlooked in the media.
A state usually has the monopoly on vio- NGO reports. Naturally, they focus on the
lence. This means that the police and mili- reliability of the data presented, because, as
tary have the legal authority to force, or even a famous quote has it: “The first casualty of
hurt, people to ensure that they abide by war is truth”(origins dis puted). On the right,
the government‘s rules. Broadly speaking, if below the world map, you can find a graph-
many people inside a country challenge this ical representation of the findings of 2019.
authority, HIIK acknowledges this as a polit- The “conflict type” denotes the structure of
ical conflict. The central questions are then, a conflict. Are only non-state actors fighting
how do we assess conflicts and measure inside the same state (substate), two states
“violence”? against each other (interstate), a state
against a group inside its territory (intra-
HIIK has a unique approach which shall be state), or one (or several) non-state actor(s)
briefly introduced here. A five-level scale against several states (transstate)? This is an
shows the intensity of a conflict (see on important distinction, because the conflict
the right), two of which signify non-violent dynamics differ substantially between these
situations. The scale is computed by the types. The findings show a large number of
aggregated conflict measures of one cal- conflicts by conflict type. This corresponds
endar year. A conflict measure can con- with the conflict items; the most frequent
tain qualitative, as well as quantitative in- and fiercest fighting has been about the dis-
dicators. These are conflict-related deaths, tribution of power (inside) a state.
personnel, and internally displaced per-
sons or refugees (quantitative indicators), For the specific conflict descriptions or a
and levels of destruction (of infrastructure, deeper explanation of HIIK´s methodology,
housing, etc.) and weapon usage (quali- visit our website (hiik.de) or take a look at
tative indicators). Can you think of oth- the Conflict Barometer 2019, which can be
er ways to measure collective violence? downloaded for free.
Around 200 conflict observers collect all
this information by having a look at open
source material, such as newspapers or
EMIL UNRATH, NIKOLAUS REEG
Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research, Germany
34 35IMPROVEMENT OF 3.2 Remote Sensing
Drought indices are calculated and
DROUGHT MANAGEMENT mapped on the homepage, based on
satellite measurements. The most im-
portant variable is the soil moisture
from Sentinels. It makes the calculation
of different drought indices with soil
moisture involvement possible.
1. INTRODUCTION
The most general effect of the climate According to the same models and sce-
change on precipitation is the increas- narios, precipitation will increase, but
ing of intensity. This can lead to the re- some other models and scenarios proj- Fig. 3: Map of the volunteers’ reports (droughtwatch.eu)
duction of available water content even ect decreasing precipitation. Increasing
at those the places with an increas- drought frequency, duration and severity
ing quantity of precipitation. The Car- are foreseen for the region.
pathian basin is such a special place.
2. Background
The drought project was launched in the 4. Drought risk assessment
framework of the Danube Transnation-
Risk assessment and mapping of the The DriDanube project helped harmonize
al Programme with the title: Drought Risk
drought risk are the key parts of a suc- the drought risk calculation for the agri-
in the Danube Region. 7 EU and 3 non-EU
cessful drought risk-oriented manage- cultural sector and obtain insights into the
countries took part in the project under
ment process. As far as qualitative risk risk of loss of crop yield across the whole
the leadership of ARSO/DMCSEE (Slo-
definitions are the most accepted ones, region. Procedures implemented in the
venia). New monitoring tools have been
the practical realisation could be quite dif- software calculated the probability (fre-
developed and introduced, drought risk
ferent in different countries (or even within quency) of reduced crops, based on time
assessment methodology and examples
individuals countries), as has been shown series data and indicators of drought and
have been created and a drought strategy
by an appropriate questionnaire filled out non-drought years.
has been set up in the scope of the project.
by the participants of the project. Besides maps, results were presented in
Fig. 1: Participating countries in the DriDanube project
the form of a matrix for four main regional
crops (maize, wheat, rape and barley).
3. Monitoring
The is a Web-based interactive homep-
age (droughtwatch.eu) for near-real-time
drought monitoring through different
drought indices and in-situ observations
undertaken with new techniques. The ba-
sic two information sources are as follows,
Fig. 4: R
isk map for maize (period 5-7 months, drought probability 20%)
(Szentimrey, 2018)
3.1 User Involvement
Interaction with volunteer reporters has
been set up. Reporters have to fill out a
questionnaire on a weekly basis, and their
result are collected and visualised on the Fig. 2: Opening screen of the droughtwatch.eu page
homepage.
36 375. Drought Strategy
An optimal model of drought risk management
model was developed and a pilot project inves-
SUSTAINABLE WASTEWATER
tigated its possible applicability in Serbia and
Hungary. The basic structure can be harmo-
nized, but the individual parts could be very dif-
MANAGEMENT AND RESOURCE
ferent according to the different national gov-
ernmental structures. The most important part
of the management model is the determination
RECOVERY SYSTEMS THROUGH
of appropriate measures in each drought devel-
opment phase. The suggested strategy contains
5 scale drought development and behaviour.
NOVEL ANAEROBIC AND BIO-
ELECTROCHEMICAL PROCESSES
The Middle East Technical Universi- In the Democratica - Aqua – Techni-
ty (METU) is an international research ca presentation, Assist. Prof. Yasemin
university located in the capital of Dilsad Yilmazel, Vice Chairperson of
Turkey, Ankara. The Department of the Department of Environmental En-
Environmental Engineering was es- gineering, focused on research con-
tablished in January 1973 as the first ducted by the Bioprocess Engineering
department in an environmental engi- Research Group (BioERG) at METU. The
neering program in Turkey. Currently, topics covered recent updates and
our Department is operating with 12 research in her group on bioelectro-
full-time faculty members conducting chemical systems and novel anaerobic
Fig. 5: Optimal Drought Management Model (ARSO/DMCSEE, 2019)
research in many different areas of En- systems that are used for waste treat-
vironmental Engineering, such as water ment. Her most recent research proj-
resources management, solid waste ects include a combination of anaer-
management, mathematical model- obic digestion-microbial electrolysis
ling of environmental systems, biolog- cells for improved methane produc-
ical and physico-chemical wastewater tion from animal wastes and the op-
6. Conclusion treatment processes, biofuel genera- eration of microbial electrolysis cells
Drought plays an increasing role in the Danube tion and novel environmental biotech- and dark fermentation for improved
catchment area. More successful actions re- nology systems. The department fully hydrogen production from renewable
quire a transnational approach and common supports international collaboration feedstocks.
measures, and should be based on harmonized and has a large number of past col-
monitoring, information networks, risk assess- laborations. For further information,
ment and drought management models. The please go to the official website at
DriSanube project gives a good example of how
https://enve.metu.edu.tr .
this can be done.
SANDOR SZALAI YASEMIN DILSAD YILMAZEL
Middle East Technical University, Turkey
Szent Istvan University, Hungary
38 39WASTEWATER TREATMENT STEPS TOWARDS GREEN
FROM NITROGEN COM- TECHNOLOGY
POUNDS IN THE TRICKLING UTILISATION OF NATURAL “LOW-COST“ COAGULANT
BIOFILTER IN WASTEWATER TREATMENT
Coagulation/flocculation (CF) is one of the is) were used for the production of natural
most implemented technologies extensive- “low-cost“ coagulant. Two types of extraction
Water bodies are the basis of the environmental sa- ly used in industrial-scale wastewater treat- processes were used, conventional solid/liq-
fety and comfort of the population living in cities and ment. CF is based on the destabilisation of uid and ultrasound extraction, using distilled
towns. Availability of water and wastewater systems is suspended and colloid particles in aquatic water and NaCl as extracting solutions. After
a mandatory element of a comfortable environment meda that further leads to enhanced par- the extraction, the liquid extracts were dried
for human life. Wastewater treatment systems must ticle agglomeration and precipitation. One at 120 °C, by a spray-drying process. The ob-
ensure the quality of the water in the water bodies. downside of this process is that many com- tained powdered coagulants obtained were
This issue is as relevant for small towns as it is for big mercial coagulants are themselves poten- tested in terms of turbidity, natural organic
cities. tially toxicants (e.g., aluminium, and ferrous matter, two NSAIDs (diclofenac and naprox-
In Russia, the norms for discharge into water bodies salts and synthetic organic polymers), which en), arsenic, phosphorus and nickel removal.
do not vary depending on the amount of discharged could cause environmental and health prob- Preliminary results showed a high potential
wastewater, unlike many other countries, particularly lems. One possible solution might be the use for turbidity removal, but lower efficiencies in
those in the European Union. of more sustainable coagulants of “green” terms of the removal of other pollutants with-
Thus, in Russia the issues of intensification of proces- origin. Natural coagulants can be obtained in the applied working parameters. In future
ses of small capacity wastewater treatment plants are from different plants, seeds, and crustaceans, work, optimisation of CF process parameters
especially important. since these contain active compounds such and integration with other techniques (e.g.,
as proteins and carbohydrates. In this work, adsorption) should be considered to achieve
The article describes effective wastewater treatment common bean seeds (Phaseolus vulgar- higher removal efficiencies in these complex
technology from nitrogen compounds and phospho-
rus, methods of intensification of the biofilters. The
article shows the research results of the operation of
biofilters, and the analysis of different feeding mate- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
rials. Along with the control reactors with the sanitary
and chemical analyses, the researchers implemented This research has been supported by the In- cilitated study at the Environmental Research
regular monitoring of the microbiological investigati- novation Fund, Republic of Serbia, ID 5156 Institute in Scotland, provided by ERASMUS
ons of biomass, using light and electron microscopy. through the project Proof of Concept, by the + Higher Education International Credit Mo-
Ministry of Education, Science and Techno- bility - Project 2018-1_UK01-KA107-047241
The article considers the methodology of modelling logical Development through the project no between North Highland College, Thurso and
processes of wastewater treatment in the biofilters: 451-03-68/2020-14/200156: “Innovative sci- the Faculty of Technical Sciences, University
laboratory models for hydraulic modelling and simu- entific and artistic research from the FTS (ac- of Novi Sad, Serbia.
lation processes of denitrification-nitrification in the tivity) domain“ and mobility funding which fa-
biofilters was developed. A mathematical model was
then developed.
SANJA RADOVIC, SABOLC PAP,
JELENA PRODANOVIC
MAJA TURK-SEKULIĆ BARBARA BREMNER
OLGA YANTSEN, ELENA GOGINA
University of Novi Sad, Faculty of Tech- Environmental Research Institute, University of Novi Sad, Faculty of
nical Sciences, Department of Envi-
ronmental Engineering and Occupa- North Highland College, University Technology Novi Sad, Bulevar Cara
Moscow state university of civil engineering, Russia tional Safety and Health, Trg Dositeja of the Highlands and Islands, Thur- Lazara 1, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Obradovića 6, 21 000 Novi Sad, Serbia so, Scotland, KW14 7JD, UK
40 41You can also read
