Theme 2

There is an abundance of nutrients and energy in wastewater, and in light of environmental concerns as well as rising energy prices and sludge disposal costs, the ‘business-as-usual’ approach of conveying and treating wastewater for the purpose of disposal is not sustainable. A paradigm shift is required to maximally capture and create value out of the various resources in wastewater. At the same time, it is important to ensure wastewater networks remain robust, with advanced sensing and smart features to monitor wastewater discharged into sewers for toxicity, or compounds which may affect downstream treatment processes.

This theme looks into the application of best practices, cutting-edge technologies and next-generation solutions for wastewater treatment, tertiary treatment and wastewater network management. A special focus is technologies relating to energy efficiency, resource recovery and environmental sustainability. Practices and applied research-oriented papers on the following topics are welcomed:

• Wastewater treatment
  • Membrane-based processes
  • Efficient carbon capture and management
  • Energy management and energy production
  • Synergies between centralised and decentralised treatments
  • Environmental impact

• Advanced wastewater and tertiary treatment
  • Low-energy organics & nutrients removal
  • Micro-pollutants removal
  • Nitrification/ de-nitrification
  • Nutrient and resource recovery
  • Densified biomass
  • Water reuse

• Wastewater management
  • Drainage and sewer management
  • Sensors for wastewater monitoring (including bio-sensors)
  • Green infrastructure in urban environment
  • Smart wastewater management

• Industrial wastewater management
  • Resource recovery
  • Risk management
  • Regulatory compliance