Water Quality and Treatment Laboratory
The Water Quality and Treatment Laboratory (UQTA) is a research infrastructure of LNEC’s Urban Water Unit, where experimental activity is carried out to support R&D&I projects and advanced consultancy studies, as well as PhD and master theses and trainees co-supervised by Unit’s researchers, in the fields of urban water supply, wastewater and rainwater management, water reuse, as well as industrial water supply and wastewater management, collective irrigation systems, and resource recovery (water, energy, nutrients, wastes) in a circular economy approach.
Additional information can be found in this laboratory's flyer.
Activity areas
The activity involves laboratory, inspection, monitoring, and mathematical modelling facilities and skills for optimizing installed systems and proposing new solutions (including advanced technologies and nature-based solutions), and is grounded on four pillars:
- Efficient water management and water-energy nexus
- Infrastructure asset management
- Water quality, treatment, and reuse
- Reliability, safety, and resilience of urban water systems.
Examples of relevant projects or innovation alliances with water utilities
LIFE Fitting, EMPOWER+, B-WaterSmart, RECIRCULA, Water4All, LIFE IMPETUS, LIFE Hymemb, iEQTA.
Examples of advanced consultancy studies
- Performance assessment & improvement of drinking water treatment plants and of WWTPs/water resource recovery facilities
- Systems hydraulic operation and water quality (regulated and emerging contaminants)
- Smart water management – water & resources efficiency, circular economy, fit-for-purpose water allocation
- Risk assessment & management of water reuse
- Control of undue inflows to the drainage system
- Control of real and apparent water losses, water-energy efficiency
- Inspection of water systems
- Assessment of systems resilience
- Infrastructure asset management - planning & prioritization of interventions and investments
Indicator systems for assessing the water services quality (ERSAR, ERSARA)
Testing
UQTA is equipped to conduct: i) water and wastewater quality analyses; ii) bench-scale and pilot-scale assays of conventional and advanced treatment processes; iii) benchmarking of full-scale treatment plants (performance assessment and optimization); iv) water quality studies in distribution systems (e.g. chlorine decay and disinfection byproducts formation in drinking water supply and in reclaimed water distribution). Field devices are also available for water quality monitoring, water sampling, wastewater drainage systems inspection, and energy measurements.
Other services
UQTA is also engaged in training activities and capacity building of the water sector through MSc and PhD theses, Post-Doc fellows, short technical courses and seminars.