Clean water is of vital importance. Micropollutants such as herbicides endanger the lives of non-targeted plants, mammals, humans, and aquatic life. This research addresses the removal of in water sustaining herbicide contaminants through the use of Biological Oxygen-Dosed Activated Carbon (BODAC), using a herbicide solution to, in turn, inquire the capabilities of sustainable and eco-friendly filtering method of BODAC and find a way of water detoxication.  

Many pharmaceuticals used daily by millions of people end up in the sewer. Because these molecules are small, they are difficult to filter out of sewage. The drug residues thus enter surface water, posing a threat to the water chain.

To address this problem, research was conducted to see if it is possible to develop toilet paper that will bond with the drug residues, so that they are better removed from sewage. Lignin, a common network polymer in plants, was found to bond well with the micropollutants. Our research showed that it is possible to significantly reduce the pollutant pharmaceuticals in surface water using toilet paper containing lignin.

Algae have shown they are all-round problem solvers; they can be used as food, biofuel and a clean air source. The research ‘The Green Gold vs. Salt’ explored whether halophilic algae can selectively absorb sodium from the wastewater of the greenhouse horticulture, in order to make this sector 100% circular.

After conducting the experiment, analyzing algae-growth and microscopic examinations, the outcome of our experiment is rather positive. On one hand, algae are not suitable as a desalination method for the greenhouse horticulture. This is because the algae only absorb sodium when the salinity of the water is substantially higher.

On the other hand, this result does offer perspective for a promising future with algae as a desalination method for sodium rich water such as seawater. Using algae will substantially reduce the ecological footprint and financial costs of desalination and as a result the process will become more sustainable and a better contribution to our earth’s future. In other words: this green gold defeats the salt!

As the world’s population grows, the demand for food is growing as well. Therefore we need to handle our agricultural grounds with all love and care it needs. Fertilizers are essential in the optimization of the soils. In this project the effect of particle size in fertilizers was researched, especially in dried organic compounds like hay. Firstly the concentration of soluble content out of dead organic material in various particle sizes was looked at. After the first experiment the influence of particle size on water absorption and retainment was researched. In this manner water can be used as efficiently as possible, which leads to less water needs and higher yields. This shows why size matters.

Biomimicry is an art that uses processes that are found in nature to solve human problems. Biomimicry can be used to clean water. During this research, the problem-driven approach is used. This approach starts with the essence of a problem and follows various research steps to find a solution. The filtration processes that were put in practice were filtration through sedimentation, soil and plants. These processes showed the most potential from processes that were researched. The filtered water was then tested on various components.
The conclusion was that the design for a water filtration system that is broadly applicable and provides safe drinking water needs to be based on the filtration processes in the kidneys, soil and plants.

It is reasonably certain that microplastics are the most dangerous pollutants of plastic for aquatic organisms and humans. Thus far, there is not yet a large-scale system in place to eliminate microplastics from major bodies of water. In this report we describe different developmental phases of one such design and suggest possible applications. It is named ‘The Banana’, and takes its name from its distinctive shape.

The Blue Battery is an alternative storage medium in which electrical energy can be stored and extracted by reactions from a redox couple. When a Blue Battery is charged, energy, in the form of electrical energy, is added to energy-poor substances. The acid-base-salt fuel stack can serve as a sustainable alternative. The principle of this fuel stack is based on the properties of ion-selective membranes in combination with acidic, basic and saline solutions, whereby water can be split and formed without the formation of gas. The substances can be re-used and the battery could form an new alternative to store solar or wind energy on household level. In this way people can sustainable produce and store energy by using water.