A Refrigerated High Speed Centrifuge for Water Science and Technology Research

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Access to safe drinking water has been considered a fundamental human right by the United Nations (UN) since 2010. Unfortunately, more than 1.2 billion people have no access to safe drinking water (1). Further, many of the limited surface water sources are polluted by untreated wastewaters. Every day, more than two million tons of human waste are dumped into water bodies; and more than 70% of industrial wastewater enters into receiving water bodies untreated in developing countries (1). Thus, it is highly desirable to develop a fundamental understanding of water science, and water and wastewater purification technologies to solve water scarcity problems globally. The applicant's (Dr. Baoqiang Liao) research has been focused on identifying the next generation of technologies for water purification since 2002. There are three main themes in their research: 1.) Development of advanced membrane filtration technologies for drinking water production; 2.)Development of advanced membrane bioreactor technologies for sustainable wastewater treatment, bioenergy production, and system closure; and 3.) Development of advanced membrane technologies for forest wastes biorefinery and microalgae cultivation, harvesting and biofuel production. All of this research requires a fundamental understanding of water characteristics, water treatment systems, and their impact on water purification. Water science and technology are among the strategic research priorities of Lakehead University. There are more than 10 faculty members working in these research areas. To facilitate cutting-edge research in these areas, state-of-the-art research facilities, like a refrigerated high speed centrifuge (RHSC), are essential and required for aquatic colloidal particles and biopolymers characterization in water and wastewater. The proposed RHSC system will provide fundamental information on the concentrations and sizes of aquatic colloidal particles and water soluble polymers and biopolymers. This is essential for the development of an understanding of aquatic colloidal particles, polymers, and biopolymer molecular interactions with membranes and thus optimization of membrane separation systems and their impact on treated effluent toxicity. This equipment will advance the applicants' research program significantly. This equipment will provide training of highly qualified personnel (HQPs) and improve process efficiency, process design and operations of membrane and biological wastewater treatment systems, and thus reduce the operating cost and the lifespan of membranes and the quality of treated effluent. It is anticipated that the addition of the proposed RHSC will enhance the research capacity in these areas significantly and provide opportunities of HQP training in Northwestern Ontario and Canada. (1) Shannon et al. (2008), Nature, 452, 301-310.