Civil & Environmental Engineering
Caroline Van Steendam
Caroline Van Steendam
Previous Institution:
University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium (M.S. in Chemical Engineering)
Current Research Project(s)
I aspire to develop and implement wastewater treatment technologies that make it possible to shift away from discharging treated wastewater in the environment towards recovering resources (e.g., water, energy, nutrients) from wastewater. My current dissertation project revolves around designing and evaluating anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBRs) for domestic wastewater treatment in cold to moderate climates.
Laboratory approaches. I designed a novel bench-scale AnMBR that relies on biofilm treatment to make anaerobic microbial treatment possible at low temperatures. While this bench-scale research will provide insight into the fundamentals of low temperature anaerobic wastewater treatment, I am, in parallel, operating a 2,000-liter pilot-scale AnMBR system (Northfield, MI) to provide on-site proof of concept for AnMBR technology in cold to moderate climates.
Mathematical modeling. Another important step towards facilitating wide-spread implementation of AnMBRs entails developing a biological model that can assist engineers in establishing optimal design and operating conditions. I will employ both my bench and pilot scale systems to evaluate biofilm parameters necessary to develop such a mechanistic, population-based AnMBR model.