Recovering carbon from contaminated matrices by exploiting the nitrogen and sulphur cicles (RECYCLES)

Waste and wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse not only help mitigate adverse environmental impacts, but also contribute to alleviating water scarcity and fostering more sustainable resource management. So far, recovery of resources from wastes is limited. Funded under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie programme, the aim of RECYCLES is to simultaneously recover energy and several organic and inorganic added-value products – carbon, nitrogen and sulfur – out of liquid and gaseous effluents by integrating novel bioreactor configurations. The project brings together researchers from different fields including environmental chemistry, bioinformatics and mathematics, as well as companies specialised in reactor design and construction. The proposed technology will represent a paradigmatic shift in waste and wastewater management, and will be well aligned with circular economy principles.