Nature-Inspired Sustainable Water Treatment System
Students from Monash Chemical Engineering developed a sustainable, autonomous water treatment system that eliminates persistent organic pollutants from industrial wastewater using nature’s natural water treatment cycle as inspiration.
The unique Stand Alone Sunflow System (SASS) – developed by Ph.D. students Mostafa Dehghani and Mahdi Naseri, and also undergraduate student Clare Carew – utilizes conveniently accessible as well as affordable materials to offer an autonomous and sustainable water treatment alternative that calls for less labor and upkeep compared to the conventional systems. This system will certainly treat persistent organics pollutants of polluted water in small and medium industries.
Industrial wastewater is a universal concern. Untreated wastewater from industrial sites can include heavy metals, toxic substances, and petroleum hydrocarbons, directly affecting aquatic ecosystems and ultimately affecting food sources and water supply.
Appropriate operational management methods are needed to minimize the danger that industrial waste poses to the environment.
Ph.D. student Mostafa Dehghani claims that the primary inspiration for developing the SASS technology was to mitigate the international effect of industrial wastewater.
“According to recent statistics from the United Nations, by 2030, half of the globe, including many in reduced resource areas, will face water insufficiency. This was our main impulse to create a water treatment system inspired by nature, that uses sunlight, specifically in areas with a high light intensity like Australia,” Mr. Dehghani stated.
“The systems currently available in the market are either inefficient or generate an additional pollutant that must be discarded in the environment. Our prototype attempts to offer a lasting treatment of persistent organic pollutants such as fluorinated compounds in low resource environments.”
The SASS design, which the James Dyson Foundation recently identified, avoids using fossil fuel-based energy resources or chemicals that present a danger to human or environmental health. The system also utilizes a cellulose/zinc oxide stimulant triggered by sunshine to degrade organic contaminants in water circulated on a treatment tank.
The pilot prototype uses sunlight and mounted UV lights powered by photovoltaic panels are activated when not enough sunlight is available, while a microcontroller takes care of the flow of water along the system. At the very end of the treatment cycle, clean water is discharged from the system.
“The efficacy of the system was examined using a range of organic contaminants such as per-and polyfluoroalkyl materials (PFAS), dioxane solvents, industrial dyes, and real wastewater samples up until destruction to below health and also environmental advised levels were attained,” stated Mahdi Naseri.
Presently, there is a scarcity of sustainable and economical techniques to treat persistent organic contaminants, specifically for low source setups. The materials used in this specific system are from bountiful and cheap sources, making the SASS a much more affordable alternative.
Through additional developments and research, the SASS technology will certainly soon have the ability to be scaled up to accommodate the therapy of bigger water streams. The students are aiming to draw in financial investment to improve the SASS and apply purpose-built microcontrollers to regulate various sensors and manage the flow of contaminated and treated water. As soon as settled, the intention is to collaborate with targeted markets such as breweries, textile, food and beverage, and printing business to use the SASS modern technology right into their commercialization process.
Originally published on Monash University. Read the original article.
