Could algae that feast on wastewater produce clean bio-fuels and a healthful supply of fish food?
Can impoverished African community gardeners learn to use and maintain a simple centuries-old, non-electric water pump to grow more vegetables?
Two Johns Hopkins student teams are working hard to move these “green” ideas off the drawing board and into the real world. Both teams will showcase their progress at the 2013 National Sustainable Design Expo, scheduled April 18 and 19, in Washington, D.C. The event, which will be open to the public on the National Mall, is sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which provided $15,000 initial grants to each of the Johns Hopkins teams and to more than 40 other students groups that will also participate.
During the Expo, student teams will compete for follow-up grants of up to $90,000 to bring their concepts closer to real-world applications. The awards are part of an EPA program called P3: People, Prosperity and Planet Student Design Competition for Sustainability.
One of the Johns Hopkins student projects focuses on growing large masses of algae to address three sustainability issues: pollution control, the limited supply of fossil fuels and production of healthy food. This team, dubbed AlgaFuture, is composed of undergraduates and graduate students from the departments of Geography and Environmental Engineering and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. Their goal is to deploy algae at wastewater treatment facilities to feed on hard-to-remove pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphorus, which are found in human and animal waste and in agricultural runoff containing fertilizer. If algae can flourish while dining on these pollutants, the plant-like organisms could then be used to produce renewable bio-fuels or food for fish farms.
But the process is not as simple as it sounds. “Wastewater can contain pathogens and dangerous metals like mercury, chromium and arsenic,” said Pavlo Bohutskyi, an environmental engineering doctoral student and leader of this team. “If algae grow in these materials and then are eaten by fish, is it safe for us to eat these fish?”
At the same time, the pathogens in wastewater, such as viruses, fungi and bacteria, could destroy the algae themselves and thwart the plans to produce biofuels and fish food. With an initial EPA grant, the student team tested 20 species of algae. “We found two strains that can grow well alongside pathogens and one that is already present in wastewater samples,” Bohutskyi said.
If the team receives one of the additional EPA grants, he said, the students plan to do further studies to see whether fish food or biofuel production is the most economically viable use for algae grown in wastewater. Their faculty advisers are Edward Bouwer, professor and chair of the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering, and Michael Betenbaugh, professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. Both departments are within the university’s Whiting School of Engineering.
The other Johns Hopkins team aims to improve the irrigation of vegetable gardens that provide nutrition and income for families in remote rural communities in South Africa. In these areas, women and children often spend hours each day hauling heavy containers of water from the local stream for drinking and to water crop-growing sites up to a half-mile away.
Since 2006, students with the Johns Hopkins chapter of Engineers Without Borders-USA (EWB-USA) have journeyed to Africa to help install low-cost ram pumps, devices that date back to the 1700s and do not require electricity or fuel. Instead, they use the kinetic energy of flowing stream water to power the lifting of a fraction of this water to a higher elevation. The process eliminates hand-carrying water and provides much needed irrigation water for the cultivation of winter vegetables. In an additional effort aimed at sustaining the benefits from the EWB-USA effort, a team of undergraduate and graduate environmental engineering students obtained an initial EPA grant to develop a new understanding of pump performance and repair and to help plan sustainable “service centers.” The goal is to enable the community gardeners to maintain and repair their pumps. The focus is on a particularly inexpensive, appropriate and robust type of ram pump designed by a South African named David Alcock.
“We’re working on detailed descriptions of the pump parts and how the pump can be assembled and how it can operate most efficiently,” said Emily Prosser, an undergraduate environmental engineering student who is helping to lead the team. Dano Wilusz, a graduate student member, has been assisting with the plans for the project’s next phase. He added, “We’ve also been working with the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School and South African partners to plan different types of government-supported service centers that could provide advice, spare parts and other help to the community in running these irrigation systems. It’s important because the water allows the farmers to grow more vegetables during dry seasons for their own use and for sale to others.”
If this team is awarded one of the EPA’s follow-up grants, the funds will be used to help open and evaluate two of the proposed service centers in South Africa. The students’ long-range goal is to create a model sustainability program that could be used to enable farmers and community gardeners in other regions to run their own ram pump irrigations systems without relying on outside assistance.
The Latest Bing News on:
Algae farming
- Deadline to enact Lake Erie's pollution diet now seton May 6, 2024 at 12:13 pm
Algae blooms in Lake Erie has tainted the water for years, causing issues for cities that use it for drinking water as well as the animals that call it home.
- Studies assess feasibility of aquaculture wastewater treatment methodson May 2, 2024 at 9:21 am
Aquaculture production operations that help feed the world's growing population also generate polluted wastewater that harms the environment. Four studies published by Purdue University scientists ...
- Biofertilizers Market to USD 6.81 Billion by 2030, Propelled by Global Shift Towards Sustainable Farming Practiceson May 2, 2024 at 6:35 am
Biofertilizers Market to USD 681 Billion by 2030 Propelled by Global Shift Towards Sustainable Farming Practices ...
- How kelp farms, an 'environmental powerhouse,' can help mitigate climate changeon May 2, 2024 at 5:26 am
Kelp, large brown algae or seaweeds that grow in shallow oceans ... Gobler said. Kelp from a kelp farm in Long Island, NY. A 1-acre kelp farm in the Moriches Bay can remove as much nitrogen as 20 ...
- Corals that recover from bleaching still struggle to breedon May 1, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Bleaching occurs when corals exposed to above-average ocean temperatures expel the symbiotic algae that live inside their tissues. These organisms give them their vibrant colours as well as ...
- Blue-green algae get a bad press – but we owe a debt of gratitudeon April 30, 2024 at 10:00 pm
But in nutrient-rich water, created by farm waste or sewage released into rivers and lakes, blue-green algae multiply fast, especially in warm sunshine. This is dangerous in still waters where they ...
- Is Algae Oil the New Fish Oil?on April 30, 2024 at 10:35 am
WHILE THE IDEA of algae oil sounds pretty gross to us ... but also presents a solution to the environmental concerns associated with overfishing and fish farming. Plus, “it tends to come with less of ...
- Everything You Need to Know About Algae Oilon April 30, 2024 at 10:35 am
“Algae oil can also have benefits for the skin,” says Zenker, citing this research. “Omega-3 fatty acids help maintain the skin's integrity, reduce the effects of aging, and may improve conditions ...
- Top 8 Best Red Algae Supplements in 2024on April 27, 2024 at 5:00 pm
The popularity of red algae-derived supplements is on the rise, thanks to the numerous potential health benefits they provide. Red algae, also known as Rhodophyta, fall under a group of seaweed ...
- Palmyra Township farm working with MSU to fight climate change by improving water quality, drainageon April 25, 2024 at 1:07 am
For nearly 160 years, the Isley family have cultivated Lenawee County soil. Now they are helping Michigan State University improve water quality and reduce toxic algae.
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Algae farming
[google_news title=”” keyword=”algae farming” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”] [/vc_column_text]The Latest Bing News on:
National Sustainable Design Expo
- KazanForum to gather experts from 80 countries, foster Russia-Islamic world cooperationon May 8, 2024 at 10:49 pm
Doha: Russia will host 15th edition of KazanForum a platform to foster economic, cultural and social cooperation between the Russian Federation ...
- UAE: AUS launches three research centres at inaugural innovation expoon May 8, 2024 at 11:01 am
Research at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) is set to grow with the launch of three cutting-edge research centres, each dedicated to addressing critical challenges and driving innovation in ...
- AUS launches three research centres at inaugural expoon May 8, 2024 at 2:15 am
The launch was announced at the AUS Innovation Expo ... Water and Sustainable Environment Research Centre in the AUS College of Engineering aims to address sustainability challenges in line with the ...
- How Can Data Centers Prioritize Energy Efficiency? Learn More At Bisnow’s May 21-23 DICE East Eventon May 2, 2024 at 9:24 am
Johnson Controls Product Director Merle Brubaker, a speaker at Bisnow's May 21-23 DICE East event, discusses enhancing sustainability in data center operations.
- "S+ Summit cum Expo" 2024: Together We Co-create a Sustainable Societyon May 2, 2024 at 1:23 am
Hong Kong is facing rapid social, economic, and environmental changes. In addition to significant challenges such as demographic shifts, economic transformation, and extreme climate, Hong Kong is also ...
- Tata Metal Lestari presents sustainable coated steel in Sydney Build Expo 2024on May 2, 2024 at 12:50 am
Australia's largest construction and design exhibition, Sydney Build Expo 2024, was held again from May 1-2 at the ICC Sydney exhibition center. With a focus on innovation, sustainability, diversity ...
- 8 Trends + Major Takeaways from Natural Products Expo West 2024on May 1, 2024 at 4:59 am
More than 3,300 companies worldwide exhibited at the event, including 840 new-to-show brands alongside nearly 700 international brands. B rands spanned 30 categories, with products ranging from ...
- Recalling Doha Expo 2023: A greener future for our planeton April 23, 2024 at 3:12 pm
Under the motto “Green Desert, Better Environment” and with the aim of seeking innovative and sustainable solutions to combat desertification — while also improving ...
- Data Center Investment Conference & Expo (DICE): Pacific Northweston April 22, 2024 at 4:59 pm
She has a B.S in Mechanical Engineering and M.S. in Sustainable Design ... hyper scale operators, national portfolio for wholesale co-location and been technical design build leader on over ...
- GreenPower to Exhibit at 2024 National Association of Fleet Administrators Expoon April 17, 2024 at 6:01 am
will exhibit at the National Association of Fleet Administrators (NAFA) Institute & Expo in booth #440 on April 22-24 in San Antonio, Texas at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center. The NAFA ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
National Sustainable Design Expo
[google_news title=”” keyword=”National Sustainable Design Expo” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]