Social and Economical impacts

SCERA will disrupt the current water treatment by a sustainable and environmentally-friendly system, either for contaminant elimination at its source or at the end of pipe, potentially coupled to solar energy and adapted to industrial needs. Several advances in the involved technologies are expected: from new ways of producing porous ceramic nanostructure through nanotechnology, to new methods of measuring and elimination of contaminant contents through real-time electrical impedance spectroscopy and thermal degradation.

Regarding the pollution control, the new nanostructured device will serve efficiently to preconcentrate the contaminants in-situ. The use of real time-measurements using EIS will allow for the first time the non-selective fast detection of compounds present in water during treatment and can be easily used as a  preventive awareness system.

Regarding pollution prevention, another scientific impact is the possibility to use the proposed thermal degradation to eliminate contaminants retained in the nanostructured and functionalized ceramic.

The proposed technology is cost-effective and thus applicable in all countries for the remediation of contamination, especially usefull for upgrading the quality of surface and drinking water in areas with scarce and polluted resources.

The SCERA project aims to create valuable results like knowledge, methods, and patents that could significantly impact and even revolutionize water monitoring and treatment. This innovation focuses on making these processes easier to use, deploy, and maintain.

The smart ceramic nanostructure installed at contamination sources (e.g., industrial effluents, landfill leachates) or wastewater treatment plant effluents, would eliminated on-site contaminants, thus, reducing their impact on the ecosystems.

Our proposal aligns with the ecological transition and aims to combat pollution beyond current regulations, benefiting the environment and society. It also seeks to develop guidelines for the technology's implementation, aiding environmental agencies in achieving the 'Zero pollution' goal set by the European Union. The reduction of contaminant discharges into receiving water bodies, aligns with EU directives on Environmental Quality Standards, and contributes to pharmaceutical pollution control also. It also supports biodiversity conservation efforts and adheres to the One Health concept, promoting the health of ecosystems, biodiversity, and human populations.