CircRural4.0

Conversion of small and medium-sized wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in rural areas into facilities aimed at resource recovery

Financed by:

Funder Program: Interreg Sudoe

Partners

• Asociación Centro Tecnológico Ceit

• FUNDACION INSTITUTO TECNOLÓGICO DE GALICIA ES

•  Institut National des Sciences Appliquées de Toulouse FR

• Universidade Nova de Lisboa PT

•  Asociacion empresarial de investigacion centro tecnologico nacional agroalimentario extremadura ES

• Consorcio para la gestión de servicios medioambientales de la provincia de badajoz ES

• Águas de Portugal - SGPS, SA PT

• Syndicat Mixte de l'Eau et de l'Assainissement de Haute-Garonne FR

• Agencia EFE S.A.U. - S.M.E. ES

Summary

The main challenge of CircRural4.0 is to undertake the conversion of small and medium-sized wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in rural areas into facilities aimed at resource recovery.

Unlike large WWTPs where resource recovery occurs at the plant itself, CircRural4.0's proposal for rural areas is based on a holistic vision of waste and wastewater management in which the main sub-processes that If possible, the recovery of resources in large WWTPs will be geographically distributed so that the solution as a whole is economically feasible and environmentally sustainable.

The technical solution proposed by CircRural4.0 consists of four great products:

• The first is an advanced control product that will allow the biological elimination of phosphorus in oxidation dikes (the most common configuration in rural WWTPs).

• The second is a data analysis software tool that will convert raw data from multiple rural WWTPs into information that is easy to analyse and interpret. In order to facilitate the integrated management of rural WWTPs, all this information will be centralized and accessible via the Internet.

• The third product is a treatment technology that combines dry anaerobic co-digestion with precipitation of N and P. To make feasible the production of methane and the recovery of N and P in rural areas, CircRural4.0 proposes a centralization of sludge treatment and agri-food waste based on said technology.

• The fourth product is model-based software that will help carry out studies on optimal design solutions for integrated management of wastewater, sludge and agrifood waste in rural areas.

The large number of oxidation dams (> 1000 facilities) present in Spain, France and Portugal makes it impossible to reach all of them without the active participation of partners from each country. For this reason, transnational cooperation is necessary not only to address the technical aspects of the project but also to ensure a wide dissemination of the project results in each country.

Ceit's role in the project

Ceit is the coordinator of this project, in which he will have a leading role in the development of three of the four products. First, you will be responsible for both the development of the advanced control product and the model-based software tool. Likewise, Ceit on the one hand will lead the construction of the pilot plant with which the technology for the production of methane and fertilizers will be validated, and on the other hand, will provide technical assistance during the operation of this pilot plant.