Welcome to the first quarterly technology update of 2024!
Continuous Monitoring for Freshwater
United Utilities, a UK water company, has invested significant amounts in continuous monitoring of the freshwater bodies they use for drinking water production. The company aims to monitor pollution levels and water quality indicators such as ammonia and oxygen levels, both to establish a data baseline as well as for the improvement of their drinking water filtration processes.
Membrane Research Centre Grants
Aston University has received a grant to set up a membrane research centre in England. The centre’s research will be focused on the molecular level of membranes: proteins and lipids. This is expected to lead to improved bio-inspired membranes that have a higher water filtration rate than current reverse osmosis membranes. An example of an industrially produced membrane using proteins for higher filtration rate is Aquaporin, a Danish scale up that now produces forward osmosis and reverse osmosis membranes that use bio-mimicked aquaporin protein channels that allow for a greater water flux than traditional CTA or PA based membranes.
Advancement of Drones for Water Treatment
WEFTEC, the water treatment technology event from the water environment foundation (WEF), has included a presentation on drones for the first time. The WEF promotes drones as a major technological advancement for the inspection and monitoring of water infrastructure and treatment plants. The organisation has now decided that the technology is advanced and mature enough to promote the larger scale implementation of drones by water companies.