Muck to gold - UCD researcher uses waste to clean up waste water

A CLEVER BIT of research has turned a by-product destined for land fill into an effective way to clean up waste water. The plant-based scrubbing system works so well that the scientist behind it hopes to begin commercialising it once scale-up tests are done.

Dr Yaqian Zhao (right) is head of research and innovation in University College Dublin’s Centre for Water Resources Research. He developed an artificial wetland system that uses drinking water treatment sludge to clear nitrogen, phosphorus and organic pollutants from farm waste water streams.

“Constructed” wetland systems are an increasingly popular way to clean waste water, Dr Zhao said. Reed beds are used to pull chemicals out of the waste stream before it flows away into nearby water courses.

Dr Zhao has gone one better, using the sludge left behind by drinking water treatment instead of seeing it dried out and sent for dumping in land fill.

The sludge turns out to be wonderfully useful stuff that does a number of jobs, Dr Zhao said. The reeds grow in it, but so too do colonies of bacteria that form films on the surface. These gobble up the organic material in the waste stream.

The sludge forms when a substance called alum is added to raw water, polishing it clear before being sent forward for drinking. The alum-rich sludge proves to be excellent for mopping up nitrates and phosphates from waste water, he said. The Environmental Protection Agency-funded research has featured in a number of journals.

“It has very high commercial potential. It is almost ready for commercialisation, it needs a few changes for scaling up from our test systems, he said.

-

Igloo signs deal with Facebook

FLEDGLING Dublin-based animation studio Igloo Animations has just signed Facebook as a client. Igloo’s speciality is creating short, bespoke animations that let companies or organisations get complex information across in a brief but pithy way. The product is called “Give me the short version”.

To start, Igloo will be doing one animation for Facebook which will be translated into four languages. “Facebook set standards, so the fact that they are using us is a real break for a small company like us, said company founder Trevor Courtney.

Igloo is based in the Digital Hub in Dublin, and already has the ESB, the Health Safety Authority, AXA, the EPA and a number of City County Enterprise Boards as clients. The company is also currently developing a musical project for Irish educational publisher CJ Fallon. Igloo employs four people and has a panel of 16 actors it uses for voiceovers.

- OLIVE KEOGH