By Anthony Corea

UNBC WASTEWATER

UNBC Professor finding nutrients in Wastewater

Aug 11, 2022 | 5:06 PM

PRINCE GEORGE– Putting Good Use to water that goes to waste

That is what Assistant Professor Dr. Oliver Iorhemen is working on—exploring techniques to extract valuable resources from wastewater facilities. And recently he got a little help from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada receiving a $147,500 grant over five years.

The Grant allows Iorhemen to expand on his research whether that means expanding the testing to a bigger size than the current 5L tubes or bringing in other researchers to aid in the study. The professor is looking to bring in one post-doctoral fellow, two Ph.D. students, and two Master of Applied Science students, as well as undergraduate students with the extra money.

Currently, most municipal and industrial wastewater has been effectively treated using AGS biotechnology. A promising biotechnology made up of a dense consortium of millions of bacteria per gram of biomass held together by bacteria by-products. However, Iorhemen believes there are more ways to take out additional resources than what is already being used.

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If successful, the resources can be used again in everything from producing waterproof dressings for wounds to creating agents that inhibit HIV infection, to developing absorbent materials to help clean up contaminated sites.