Periodic Reporting for period 3 - ULTIMATE (ULTIMATE: indUstry water-utiLiTy symbIosis for a sMarter wATer society)
Période du rapport: 2023-06-01 au 2024-10-31
ULTIMATE supports the transition to WSIS (Water Smart Industrial Symbiosis). The main objectives:
- Showcasing successful high profile WSIS paradigms where water and industrial sectors collaborate to deliver innovative resource-efficient, circular solutions, with special emphasis on cross synergies, transferability and applicability.
- Developing, optimising and demonstrating technologies for water reclamation and reuse, exploitation of energy and heat, nutrient and material recovery/reuse, and assessing the impact within key industrial sectors.
- Assembling and applying digital support tools to improve the design, control and operation.
- Developing and demonstrating exploitation/valorisation schemes for these resources.
- Designing, promoting and accelerating business transformation to WSIS.
- Reducing existing barriers for recovery, reuse and commercial exploitation of valuable water-related resources.
ULTIMATE is a unique project that has developed 9 lighthouse WSIS cases, where ULTIMATE brings together the water sector with the agri-food, chemical/petrochemical, biotechnology and beverage industries.
- Showcasing successful high profile WSIS paradigms where water and industrial sectors collaborate to deliver innovative resource-efficient, circular solutions, with special emphasis on cross synergies, transferability and applicability.
- Developing, optimising and demonstrating technologies for water reclamation and reuse, exploitation of energy and heat, nutrient and material recovery/reuse, and assessing the impact within key industrial sectors.
- Assembling and applying digital support tools to improve the design, control and operation.
- Developing and demonstrating exploitation/valorisation schemes for these resources.
- Designing, promoting and accelerating business transformation to WSIS.
- Reducing existing barriers for recovery, reuse and commercial exploitation of valuable water-related resources.
ULTIMATE is a unique project that has developed 9 lighthouse WSIS cases, where ULTIMATE brings together the water sector with the agri-food, chemical/petrochemical, biotechnology and beverage industries.
Main activities and results:
CS1 Taragona (ES)–Enable increased water availability for the petrochemical complex (closing Water cycle) through: ammonia removal from urban reclaimed water via zeolite adsorption (pilot, TRL 6) and increasing water recovery with near Zero Liquid Discharge by combining NF and RO (pilot, TRL 7).
CS2 Nieuw Prinsenland (NL)–Reusing wastewater from greenhouses; residual and geothermal heat (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles) through: Electrodialysis to produce irrigation water in greenhouses and recover nutrients (pilot, TRL 6); High Temperature Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage to reduce fossil fuel demand (feasibility study, TRL 7).
CS3 Rosignano (IT)–Increasing production of water from municipal wastewater for industrial purposes (closing Water/Material cycles) through: RT data driven process control system for sewers (TRL 7) and a matchmaking platform for water reuse (TRL 7); dual media filter plus NF as pretreatment for RO (pilot, TRL 7), and RO to remove salts from wastewater (pilot, TRL 8), re-use of industrial byproducts as treatment chemicals in a clari-flocculation plant (pilot, TRL 7), and an UV/AOP with locally produced H2O2 (pilot, TRL 7); fluorescence sensors to monitor organic micropollutants in AOP (pilot, TRL 7).
CS4 Nafplio (EL)–Production of water from fruit processing industry wastewater and recovery of Value Added Compounds (closing Water/Material cycles): filtration, adsorption, super critical water extraction, AOP and a small bioreactor platform (pilot, TRL 7) for water reuse and polyphenols extraction a mobile unit for (seasonal) recycling of water, nutrients and value added compounds in aqueous industrial by-products (pilot, TRL 7).
CS5 Lleida (ES)–Water, resources and energy recovery and from brewery wastewater (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles): industrial-size Electrostimulated Anaerobic Reactor plant developed for full scale pre-treatment of brewery wastewater (pilot and pre-commercial scale, TRL7) and ELSAR in combination with an UF membrane in an AnMBR configuration to increase the yield in biogas (pilot, TRL 7); Solid Oxide Fuel Cell for valorisation of biogas (pilot, TRL 9); NF and RO to reuse wastewater (pilot, TRL 9); solar driven hydrothermal carbonization tested for Biochar production (pilot, TRL 6).
CS6 Karmiel/ Shafdan (IL)–Improve WWTP performance in treatment of wastewater from food processing industry and municipal wastewater and increasing biogas production (closing Energy/Material cycles): anaerobic immobilized high-rate reactor as a stand-alone treatment to produce biogas (2 pilots, TRL 8) and AAT in combination with activated carbon and with an anaerobic membrane bioreactor to produce biogas (pilot, TRL 6) and to remove COD (pilot, TRL 6).
CS7 Tain (UK)–Water reuse and recovery of resources and energy from wastewater from whiskey distillery (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles): treatment of effluent with an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (pilot, TRL 7); two stage treatment combining precipitation system for struvite from the AnMBR system (pilot, TRL 7) and ammonia recovery in a stripping unit (pilot, TRL 7); heat recovery from the AnMBR effluent (pilot, TRL 7).
CS8 Roussillion (FR)–Materials and energy recovery from waste treatment from chemical industry (closing Energy/Material cycles)–sulphur recovery from flue gas using condensation, scrubbing and dust removal (pilot, TRL 6); metal recovery from gas cleaning water (concept study, TRL 6); heat recovery from flue gas washing water for steam or electricity production (concept study, TRL 4).
CS9 Kalundborg (DK)–Water and resource reclamation from pharma & biotech industry and municipal wastewater (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles); Joint Control System for synergetic operation of municipal and industrial WWTPs realised (TRL 8); novel UF membranes combined with a dual media filter as pretreatment step in the treatment of wastewater (pilot, TRL 7); nutrient and value added compounds recovery (concept study, TRL >6).
In addition to the technological tools and the three control- and monitoring systems to support water smart industrial symbiosis, ULTIMATE has developed and applied digital tools and tools for stakeholder engagement, business models and economic impact, and tools for communication and dissemination.
CS1 Taragona (ES)–Enable increased water availability for the petrochemical complex (closing Water cycle) through: ammonia removal from urban reclaimed water via zeolite adsorption (pilot, TRL 6) and increasing water recovery with near Zero Liquid Discharge by combining NF and RO (pilot, TRL 7).
CS2 Nieuw Prinsenland (NL)–Reusing wastewater from greenhouses; residual and geothermal heat (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles) through: Electrodialysis to produce irrigation water in greenhouses and recover nutrients (pilot, TRL 6); High Temperature Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage to reduce fossil fuel demand (feasibility study, TRL 7).
CS3 Rosignano (IT)–Increasing production of water from municipal wastewater for industrial purposes (closing Water/Material cycles) through: RT data driven process control system for sewers (TRL 7) and a matchmaking platform for water reuse (TRL 7); dual media filter plus NF as pretreatment for RO (pilot, TRL 7), and RO to remove salts from wastewater (pilot, TRL 8), re-use of industrial byproducts as treatment chemicals in a clari-flocculation plant (pilot, TRL 7), and an UV/AOP with locally produced H2O2 (pilot, TRL 7); fluorescence sensors to monitor organic micropollutants in AOP (pilot, TRL 7).
CS4 Nafplio (EL)–Production of water from fruit processing industry wastewater and recovery of Value Added Compounds (closing Water/Material cycles): filtration, adsorption, super critical water extraction, AOP and a small bioreactor platform (pilot, TRL 7) for water reuse and polyphenols extraction a mobile unit for (seasonal) recycling of water, nutrients and value added compounds in aqueous industrial by-products (pilot, TRL 7).
CS5 Lleida (ES)–Water, resources and energy recovery and from brewery wastewater (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles): industrial-size Electrostimulated Anaerobic Reactor plant developed for full scale pre-treatment of brewery wastewater (pilot and pre-commercial scale, TRL7) and ELSAR in combination with an UF membrane in an AnMBR configuration to increase the yield in biogas (pilot, TRL 7); Solid Oxide Fuel Cell for valorisation of biogas (pilot, TRL 9); NF and RO to reuse wastewater (pilot, TRL 9); solar driven hydrothermal carbonization tested for Biochar production (pilot, TRL 6).
CS6 Karmiel/ Shafdan (IL)–Improve WWTP performance in treatment of wastewater from food processing industry and municipal wastewater and increasing biogas production (closing Energy/Material cycles): anaerobic immobilized high-rate reactor as a stand-alone treatment to produce biogas (2 pilots, TRL 8) and AAT in combination with activated carbon and with an anaerobic membrane bioreactor to produce biogas (pilot, TRL 6) and to remove COD (pilot, TRL 6).
CS7 Tain (UK)–Water reuse and recovery of resources and energy from wastewater from whiskey distillery (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles): treatment of effluent with an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (pilot, TRL 7); two stage treatment combining precipitation system for struvite from the AnMBR system (pilot, TRL 7) and ammonia recovery in a stripping unit (pilot, TRL 7); heat recovery from the AnMBR effluent (pilot, TRL 7).
CS8 Roussillion (FR)–Materials and energy recovery from waste treatment from chemical industry (closing Energy/Material cycles)–sulphur recovery from flue gas using condensation, scrubbing and dust removal (pilot, TRL 6); metal recovery from gas cleaning water (concept study, TRL 6); heat recovery from flue gas washing water for steam or electricity production (concept study, TRL 4).
CS9 Kalundborg (DK)–Water and resource reclamation from pharma & biotech industry and municipal wastewater (closing Water/Energy/Material cycles); Joint Control System for synergetic operation of municipal and industrial WWTPs realised (TRL 8); novel UF membranes combined with a dual media filter as pretreatment step in the treatment of wastewater (pilot, TRL 7); nutrient and value added compounds recovery (concept study, TRL >6).
In addition to the technological tools and the three control- and monitoring systems to support water smart industrial symbiosis, ULTIMATE has developed and applied digital tools and tools for stakeholder engagement, business models and economic impact, and tools for communication and dissemination.
The environmental impact of WSIS is related to the reduction in the use of freshwater and to the improvement of the recovery and use of resources, materials, water and energy. A quantitative risk assessment for microbial (QMRA) and chemical risks (QCRA) has been conducted to demonstrate that the circular use of water or nutrients is not associated with an unacceptable increase of risk to humans or ecosystems. Business opportunities are related to mobilisation of water-related investments and synergies with other funding instruments. A number of Key Exploitable Results have been extracted. Valorisation schemes for value added products have been developed. For assessing broader impacts of WSIS solutions, the life-cycle based framework of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) has been applied. Economic benefits from WSIS can arise from savings in operational costs of water treatment, but also from revenues of selling circular products such as reclaimed water, recovered materials or biogas. Adequate treatment of industrial or wastewater is able to guarantee a safe use of reclaimed water for various purposes. ULTIMATE has benefited from stakeholder engagement through co-creation, CoPs and LLs to drive more sustainable and resilient water management systems. ULTIMATE recognises the vital role of local and regional authorities and stakeholders in implementing industrial symbiosis. Recommendations for (EU) policymakers and economic recommendations include:
- Increase political support of water reuse for industrial purposes
- Adapt regulations to the real needs to foster water reuse
- Use international experience to define ambitious vision
- Create regulations and a governance framework for material recovery purposes
- Create incentives to manage the price of the reused water
- Promote circular solutions using economic incentives
- Create a business framework promoting circular value chains
- Explore other sources of fundings
- Increase political support of water reuse for industrial purposes
- Adapt regulations to the real needs to foster water reuse
- Use international experience to define ambitious vision
- Create regulations and a governance framework for material recovery purposes
- Create incentives to manage the price of the reused water
- Promote circular solutions using economic incentives
- Create a business framework promoting circular value chains
- Explore other sources of fundings