The PerFORM WATER 2030 project is divided into four research lines based on their thematic area.
To support the four research lines there are also a series of transversal activities for the implementation of physical and digital infrastructures, aimed at constituting a shared platform for experimentation and dissemination of the results obtained.

The research line is divided into five areas:

1) innovative treatments on the mainstream to reduce energy consumption for nitrogen removal through a cold anammox process

2) development of methods for removing emerging inorganic and organic micropollutants (eg drugs and perfluorinated compounds) through adsorption on activated carbon, chemical oxidation processes and by using microalgae and nanoparticles

3) groundwater quality assessment

4) development of methods for monitoring and reduction of emissions from wastewater biological treatment, consisting of aerosols and particulates generated in biological purification processes

5) development of tools for monitoring, modeling and management control of sewer systems, water disinfection processes and aqueduct systems

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The research line is divided into three areas:

1) testing both on a laboratory scale and on a full scale of pure oxygen treatment for the sludge production minimization

2) full-scale experimentation of sludge thermal valorization (drying and waste-to-energy)

3) development of measurements and modelling for sludge production minimization and measurements and modelling for sludge thermal valorization

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The research line is divided into four areas:

1) experimentation activities on anaerobic digestion of sludge aimed at increasing the quantity of biogas produced, through co-digestion processes or with ozonolysis pre-treatments and experimentation activities aimed at biogas quality improvements through micro-oxygenation

2) testing of innovative biogas to biomethane upgrade processes either by biological means or by chemical means through green solvents

3) analysis of possible energy recovery with heat pumps that exploit the thermal potential of groundwater

4) experiments on the recovery of material from wastewater and sludge, with recovery of water and nutrients for aquaponics and with phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge ashes

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The research line is divided into three areas:

1) analysis of the social acceptability of sludge treatment technologies

2) analysis of operation & maintenance phases of sludge treatment technologies, in order to guarantee maximum continuity and reliability of operation and therefore a more eco-sustainable overall performance

3) overall economic analysis of management options of sludge treatment technologies in various contextual scenarios, in order to guarantee an "efficient" selection of investments

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The research, implementation and dissemination actions implemented transversally, in support of the four experimental research lines, with the aim of ensuring optimization of the results achieved by the entire project, can be grouped into three areas:

1) and research and implementation activities for a web platform especially meant for management, visualization and analysis of the experimental data collected within the project

2) activities to make functional and maintain the basic facilities for each experimental activity and the start-up of the analysis laboratory at the San Giuliano Milanese West wastewater plant

3) technical-scientific management activities coupled with the promotion of the project and scientific results dissemination, both through scientific dissemination and through technical-industrial dissemination

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