Prof. Guanghao CHEN, Dr. Hao HUANG, and Dr. Dao GUAN Win Silver Medals at International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva

Prof. Guanghao CHEN, Chair Professor of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and CIVL post-doctoral fellows Dr. Dao GUAN and Dr. Hao HUANG have been awarded silver medals at the 48th International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva. The medals were won by their inventions “Low Energy Electrical Odor Control of Sludge” (LEEO®) (credited to Chen and Huang), and “Economic Energy-Efficient Membrane Bioreactor” (3E-MBR) (credited to Chen and Guan).

LEEO®, an electrochemical pretreatment process, was developed on the basis that the odor in sewage is mainly traceable to its hydrogen sulfide content, but due to hydrogen sulfide’s toxicity and corrosiveness, the substance has long been challenging to control; conventional methods tend to be expensive and ineffective. In turn, the development of LEEO® has presented a promising solution to the problem. LEEO® functions by preventing the odor from forming at the source. Additionally, the technology has the advantages of entailing a very small footprint, having ease of operation and zero use of chemicals.

3E MBR, on the other hand, is a low–carbon footprint wastewater treatment technology. With an activated sludge process as its basis, 3E-MBR uses the typical MBR’s biological layer (rather than more conventional and expensive materials such as polyvinylidene fluoride and polytetrafluoroethylene) as a “second membrane” to achieve efficient solid-liquid separation. The innovative use of this self-forming, dynamic membrane with larger pores can significantly reduce 3E-MBR’s cost, carbon footprint and use of older technologies.

The International Exhibition of Inventions Geneva, organized by the Swiss Government, the city of Geneva, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and the International Federation of Inventors’ Associations (IFIA), is the biggest event in the world devoted exclusively to inventions, where the industries, universities and academic institutions, inventors and researchers, as well as private and state organizations present their the results of their research and new products.

Congratulations to Prof. Chen, Dr. Guan and Dr. Huang!