GIUV2013-061

The CALAGUA-UV group is formed by professors belonging to the Department of Chemical Engineering of the Universitat de València. Within the different research groups of the Department of Chemical Engineering, the CALAGUA-UV group focuses its activity in the area of knowledge of Environmental Technologies and more specifically in the treatment and purification of wastewater. CALAGUA-UV has been collaborating for more than two decades with different national and international research groups in research lines related to the development of technologies for the elimination of pollutants and the recovery of resources in both urban and industrial wastewaters. It is worth mentioning the more than 25 years of collaboration with the Water Quality group of the Institute of Water and Environmental Engineering of the Universitat Politècnica of València (UPV), which have resulted in the development of control systems in wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), simulation models of biological processes in wastewater treatment plants, as well as methodologies for the characterisation of water and biomass.

http://www.aguas-residuales.es

• To develop biorefineries as key elements of biopolygons and industrial symbiosis, promoting the comprehensive recovery of wastewater, sludge, and other bio-waste for the production of renewable energy, bioproducts, and other high-value-added circular raw materials.
• To transform wastewater treatment plants into resource recovery facilities, promoting the recovery of water, energy, nutrients, carbon, and other resources through circular economy processes and the comprehensive recovery of waste streams.
• To design and optimize advanced technologies for the treatment of water and biowaste, integrating biological, physicochemical, electrochemical, membrane, and thermochemical processes to maximize their efficiency and sustainability.
• To investigate the behaviour, fate, and removal of priority, emerging, and pathogenic contaminants, as well as antibiotic resistance genes, ensuring the health and environmental safety of reclaimed water and the products obtained.
• To assess the technical, economic, energy, and environmental sustainability of the technologies developed using life cycle assessment (LCA), life cycle cost (LCC), and circular economy indicators, thereby facilitating decision-making for their implementation on a real-world scale
• To develop innovative solutions for the sustainable management of the entire water cycle, promoting the regeneration, reuse, and advanced monitoring of water resources
• To promote digitalization and artificial intelligence for the modeling, monitoring, smart control, and real-time optimization of resource treatment and recovery processes.

• Digitization, Artificial Intelligence, and Smart Control of Biofactories.Mathematical modeling of biological and physicochemical processes. Digital twins for treatment and recovery plants. Artificial intelligence and advanced data analytics. Real-time monitoring systems, advanced control, and energy optimization. Tools to support operations and decision-making.
• Sustainability, Circular Economy, and Environmental Assessment.Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Life Cycle Cost (LCC), and sustainability assessment. Carbon, water, and energy footprints. Development of indicators for circularity and resource efficiency. Decision-support tools for the design and operation of urban water cycle infrastructure. Technical, economic, and environmental evaluation of innovative technologies
• Water Quality and Environmental Monitoring.Comprehensive characterization of wastewater, reclaimed water, sludge, and process streams. Development of analytical methodologies for the detection and quantification of emerging contaminants, pathogens, and antibiotic resistance genes. Advanced water quality monitoring and assessment of environmental and health risks.
• Environmental Microbiology and Process Biotechnology.Characterization of microbial communities using high-throughput sequencing techniques and omics tools. Study of the microbial ecology of biological processes. Determination of kinetic and stoichiometric parameters for the design and optimization of bioprocesses
• Anaerobic Biotechnologies for the Production of Biogas and Biomethane.Anaerobic digestion and co-digestion of wastewater and biowaste. Development and optimization of high-efficiency anaerobic reactors. Production, purification, and utilization of biogas and biomethane. Recovery of dissolved methane and improvement of the energy efficiency of biorefineries.
• Membrane Technologies for Water and Biowaste.Direct filtration, MBR, and AnMBR. Membranes for nutrient recovery, dissolved methane, and biogas. Membrane contactors for gas transfer and resource recovery. Development of hybrid membrane-based processes for treatment and recovery.
• Nutrient Recovery and Separation Technologies.Advanced biological recovery of nitrogen and phosphorus. Selective recovery of nutrients using membrane technologies, selective electrodialysis, ion exchange, crystallization, and membrane contactors. Production of circular fertilizers and critical raw materials
• Water Regeneration and Safe Reuse.Development of advanced tertiary and quaternary treatment processes. Membrane technologies, adsorption, advanced oxidation processes, and electrooxidation. Production of reclaimed water for agricultural, industrial, and urban reuse. Removal of emerging contaminants and pathogenic microorganisms.
• Biotechnology of Phototrophic Microorganisms.Cultivation of microalgae, cyanobacteria, and purple bacteria. Nutrient recovery and carbon sequestration. Production of biomass and bioproducts. Integration with anaerobic and biorefinery processes.
• Urban Biorefineries and Bioproducts Production.Development of biorefineries for the comprehensive utilization of waste streams. Production of volatile fatty acids, fermentation gas, microbial protein, bioplastics, and other high-value-added compounds. Biological conversion of CO2 and CH4 into bioproducts. Integration of biological processes to maximize resource recovery
• Thermochemical Technologies for the Recovery of Biowaste.Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and co-hydrothermal carbonization (co-HTC). Production of hydrochar and other carbonaceous materials. Recovery of energy and nutrients through thermochemical processes. Integration of thermochemical and biological technologies to minimize waste generation

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• Chemical Engineering

• MATHEMATICAL MODELLING
• MICROALGAE
• CRYSTALLISATION
• MEMBRANE CONTACTORS
• MASSIVE SEQUENCING
• LIFECYCLE ANALYSIS
• ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
• CARBON FOOTPRINT
• SUSTAINABILITY
• PROTEINS
• BIOPRODUCTS
• WASTE
• MICROORGANISM
• MEMBRANE
• CYANOBACTERIA
• WASTEWATER
• BIOFERTILIZERS
• DIGITAL TWINS
• ADVANCED CONTROL
• BIOWASTE
• MONITORING
• LIFE CYCLE COST
• WATER FOOTPRINT
• MICROCONTAMINANT ANALYSIS
• WATER RECLAMATION AND REUSE
• HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS
• TERTIARY TREATMENT
• NITROGEN AND PHOSPHORUS RECOVERY
• ELECTRODIALYSIS
• ANAEROBIC DIGESTION
• BIOREACTORS
• BIOMETHANE
• DISSOLVED METHANE
• BIOGAS
• BIOPLASTICS
• BIOREFINERIES
• VOLATILE FATTY ACIDS
• NUTRIENT AND ENERGY RECOVERY
• HYDROCHAR
• ANMBR
• DIRECT FILTRATION
• NUTRIENT RECOVERY
• CARBON CAPTURE
• CALIBRATION OF BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES
• HYDROTHERMAL CARBONIZATION
• PURPLE BACTERIA
• MICROBIAL ECOLOGY