On 09/2021 was the kick-off conference for the Water Mining project. The project was initiated and will be coordinated by TU Delft. 38 partners from 12 countries will work on sustainable solutions for desalination and resource recovery from (waste)waters. Overall six case studies with such technologies will be implemented. The project has a budget of about 20 mio. Euro.
These technological process are supplemented with modern approaches from social, political, economic and environmental sciences to stimulate the commercialization of these technologies and their concomitant recovery products. More information can be found here: https://watermining.eu/
One of the case studies deals with Kaumera Nereda® Gum. Nereda® aerobic granular sludge plants will be urban biorefineries in near future. The development of Kaumera Nereda® Gum extractions from granular sludge was the first step. Kaumera is a biopolymer that can substitute oil derived polymers.
In the frame of the Water Mining project, a transportable Kaumera extraction installation is build. Additional technologies will be integrated: (I) nitrogen recovery, (II) phosphorus recovery and (III) alkaline fermentation of organic sludge residuals. The installation will have a capacity of 5 m³/d and will be operated at the Nereda® Wastewater treatment plants in Utrecht and Faro from 11/2021 on for about one year.
Together with our industrial and public partners we combine fundamental research (alkaline fermentation and phosphorus recovery) with classical engineering (for the Kaumera Nereda® Gum extraction installation and nitrogen stripping) and process design.
Eventually, the installation will harbor technologies for nitrogen and phosphorus recovery and for alkaline fermentation of the organic residuals. For these technologies fundamental insights are currently established.
Partners in the Kaumera case study are: Acciona Aqua, Áquas do Algarve, Lenntech, Royal Haskoning DHV and Wetsus. The coordination is with TUDelft.
Slimy author and contact: Philipp Wilfert email