Competition: Breakthrough 2: Catalyst
Amount awarded: £445,577
Led by: Northumbrian Water
Partners: The University of Newcastle upon Tyne, University of Northumbria at Newcastle, Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water
Expected completion date: October 2025
Water cycle tag: Bioresources, resource recovery and circularity
Northumbrian Water, with Northumbria University, the University of Newcastle, and Welsh Water will trial the use of an innovative loofah to remove and recover phosphorous from wastewater. This prevents it from causing damaging algal blooms which can suffocate local ecosystems. This innovative ‘SuPR Loofah’ treatment system will place micro-algae on a loofah material, and use this to capture phosphorous from wastewater. As well as being a more affordable and sustainable process to wastewater treatment, this world-leading circular approach will generate a vital form of phosphorous which can be used as fertiliser.
“This innovative project has ground-breaking potential for the UK water sector and beyond. It plans to recover phosphorus from wastewater in a sustainable way that helps to ensure that impacts on receiving water courses are balanced. Using micro-algae to enhance phosphorus removal is truly exciting and will minimise the use of expensive chemicals like ferric and reduce impact on the environment.” – Richard Warneford, Waste Water Director, Northumbrian Water Group
Commissioning of field test complete – a couple of issues with heater and pumps became apparent but have been fixed and we expect to start getting results in the coming weeks.
For more information on SuPR Loofah, take a look at the following resources:
