GAIA - Laboratory of Environmental and Engineered Water Processes & Systems

GENERAL INFORMATION

Name of infrastructure: GAIA - Laboratory of Environmental and Engineered Water Processes & Systems

Hosting Entity

University of Cyprus

Scientific Domain: Environmental Management Infrastructures

Description and purpose of the Research Infrastructure

GAIA is a laboratory of environmental and engineered water processes and systems. It specializes in the monitoring of the presence of pollutants such as contaminants of emerging concern (e.g., CECs), of pathogens, antibiotic-resistant bacteria and their genes as well as their associated impacts, in aqueous matrices (raw and treated wastewater and drinking water) and reclaimed-water receiving environments (soil, crops, leachate), through cutting edge analytical methodologies. Additionally, the laboratory delves into the treatment of urban wastewater through advanced methods such as advanced chemical oxidation processes, filtration and biological processes for the removal of pollutants of concern and potential toxicity, from treated effluents. Dr. Despo Fatta-Kassinos is the coordinator of GAIA.

USEFUL FIGURES

9

Personnel

1%

Male

8%

Female

191

Publications

ACCESS TO INFRASTRUCTURE

Academia
Industry
Public

CONTACT INFO

Postal Code: 2109

City: Nicosia

Website: https://www.eng.ucy.ac.cy/Gaia/

INFORMATION OF INSTRUMENTATION OPERATING IN THE INFRASTRUCTURE

Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS)

Name: Ultra-Performance Liquid Chromatography - tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS)
Description: This is an Acquity System and the software is the MASSLynx (Waters). It consists of the LC system equipped with autosampler, triple quadrupole mass spectrometer (QqQ) equipped with ESI source, Masslynx software, N2 generator and a UPS system.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The UPLC-MS/MS is used for the detection and quantification of organic compounds at very low concentrations in aqueous matrices.

Year: 2009

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

High Performance Liquid Chromatography with UV-Vis detector (HPLC)

Name: High Performance Liquid Chromatography with UV-Vis detector (HPLC)
Description: This is a e2695 system (Waters) and the model of the UV/Vis detector is 2489 Alliance.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The HPLC with UV/Vis detector is used for the detection and quantification of organic compounds in aqueous matrices.

Year: 2013

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Ion Chromatography

Name: Ion Chromatography
Description: The model of equipment is 881 Compact Icpro (Metrohm).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The ion chromatography instrument is used for the detection and quantification of inorganic and organic ionic compounds in aqueous matrices.

Year: 2012

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

TOC Analyzer

Name: TOC Analyzer
Description: The model is the Aurora 1030 (O.I. Analytical) and is used for the measurement of total organic carbon in aqueous matrices.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer is an analytical instrument that measures the total amount of dissolved organic carbon contained in urban wastewater samples.

Year: 2012

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Accelerated Extraction System (ΑSE)

Name: Accelerated Extraction System (ΑSE)
Description: The model is ASE350 (DIONEX).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Accelerated solvent extraction is a technique for extracting organic compounds from solid and semisolid samples with liquid solvents. Dionex ASE systems use organic and aqueous solvents at high temperatures and pressure to increase the efficiency of the extraction process.

Year: 2015

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Gas Chromatography - FID/TCD

Name: Gas Chromatography - FID/TCD
Description: The model is 6890N (Agilent Technologies). It comprises of the injector, the GC Column, the oven, the carrier Gas System, the FID and TCD.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Gas Chromatography (GC) is used for the qualitative and quantitative analysis of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds found in a variety of matrices (gases, liquids, and solids) in foods, medical materials, plastics, environmental samples, and samples for occupational monitoring. Α flame ionization detector (FID), and thermal conductivity detectors (TCD) are used for determining the concentration of specific compounds.

Year: 2006

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Solid Phase Extraction System

Name: Solid Phase Extraction System
Description: This equipment by Waters utilises solid phase extraction (SPE) cartridges and comprises of a SPE manifold, a vacuum pump and a waste container.
Units: 2
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Solid-phase extraction (SPE) is a solid-liquid extraction technique, by which the compounds that are dissolved or suspended in a liquid mixture are separated, isolated or purified, from other compounds of the mixture , according to their physical and chemical properties.

Year: 2007

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Rotary Evaporator System

Name: Rotary Evaporator System
Description: The model is RE 301 (Stuart).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

It is used to remove the solvent of the sample by evaporation with the aid of low-pressure vacuum.

Year: 2007

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Atomic Absorption Spectrometer

Name: Atomic Absorption Spectrometer
Description: The model is AAnalyst 200 (Perkin Elmer).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) detects trace of metals in organic and inorganic samples.

Year: 2003

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

UV-Vis Spectrophotometer

Name: UV-Vis Spectrophotometer
Description: The model is V-530 (JASCO).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

A UV-vis spectrophotometer is an analytical instrument that measures the amount of ultraviolet (UV) and visible light that is absorbed by a sample.

Year: 2003

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) Measurement Systems

Name: Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) Measurement Systems
Description: The model is OxiTop IS6 (OxiDirect).
Units: 2
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The system is used for biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) measurements in water and wastewater.

Year: 2004

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Solar Simulator

Name: Solar Simulator
Description: The model is Newport 91193 (Oriel).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The Solar Simulator Newport 91193 is used to simulate solar radiation conditions during experiments of water/wastewater disinfection and advanced oxidation processes.

Year: 2007

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Radiometers

Name: Radiometers
Description: The model is NEWPORT 1918-R (Ophir).
Units: 4
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The UV radiometers measure UV light intensity for a specific wavelengths during the conduction of light-driven advanced oxidation processes.

Year: 2006

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Gel electrophoresis System

Name: Gel electrophoresis System
Description: The model is the Mini-Sub Cell GT Horizontal Electrophoresis System (Bio-Rad).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Gel electrophoresis is a laboratory method used to separate mixtures of DNA, RNA, or proteins according to molecular size. In gel electrophoresis, the molecules to be separated are pushed by an electrical field through a gel that contains small pores.

Year: 2019

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Gel Documentation System

Name: Gel Documentation System
Description: The model is GelDoc XR+ (Bio-Rad).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Gel documentation systems are used to record and analyze the results of gel electrophoresis. These instruments are necessary for visualizing stained or labeled nucleic acids and proteins in media such as agarose, acrylamide, or cellulose

Year: 2019

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Qubit 4 fluorometer

Name: Qubit 4 fluorometer
Description: The model is Qubit 4 fluorometer (Thermo Fisher).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Qubit 4 Fluorometer accurately and quickly measures the concentration of DNA, RNA, or protein in a single sample. It can also be used to assess RNA integrity and quality.

Year: 2019

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

PMA-Lite LED Photolysis Device

Name: PMA-Lite LED Photolysis Device
Description: This model is PMA-Lite™ 2.0 LED Photolysis Device (Biotium).
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

This device is used for optimal photoactivation of samples treated with propidium monoazide (PMA) in viability PCR applications.

Year: 2021

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Pilot-scale compound parabolic collector (CPC) solar reactor

Name: Pilot-scale compound parabolic collector (CPC) solar reactor
Description: The pilot-scale CPC solar reactor has a maximum capacity of 250 L of wastewater and an irradiated volume of 85.4 L.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Τhis pilot plant is used for the treatment of urban wastewater through the use of solar irradiation in combination with chemical oxidants and other reagents for the conduction of solar-driven advanced oxidation processes.

Year: 2010

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Pilot-scale compound parabolic collector (CPC) solar reactor

Name: Pilot-scale compound parabolic collector (CPC) solar reactor
Description: The pilot-scale CPC solar reactor has a maximum capacity of 100 L of wastewater and an irradiated volume of 22 L.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

Year: 2010

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Pilot-scale membrane Bioreactor (MBR)

Name: Pilot-scale membrane Bioreactor (MBR)
Description: Τhe pilot-scale membrane Bioreactor has a maximum capacity of wastewater treatment of 10 m3/day.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The pilot-scale membrane bioreactor is used for the treatment of urban wastewater through biological treatment followed by membrane filtration to produce a highly clarified effluent.

Year: 2013

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Pilot-scale moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR)

Name: Pilot-scale moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR)
Description: The pilot-scale MBBR system has a maximum capacity of 60 L of wastewater.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The pilot-scale moving bed biofilm reactor is used for the biological treatment of urban wastewater through the degradation action of microbes immobilised on biofilms found on suspended materials within the reactor.

Year: 2012

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Microfiltration (MF) Pilot Unit

Name: Microfiltration (MF) Pilot Unit
Description: The pilot Microfiltration (MF) unit has a nominal pore size of 0.2 μm, and consists of 3 polymeric membranes (Microdyn-Nadir) and 1 ceramic membrane (Likuid Nanotek). It has a nominal filtration capacity of 2-3 L/min.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The pilot-scale microfiltration unit is used for the filtration of urban wastewater to remove suspended components, towards a more clarified wastewater effluent.

Year: 2014

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users

Ultrafiltration (UF) Pilot Unit

Name: Ultrafiltration (UF) Pilot Unit
Description: The pilot-scale ultrafiltration (UF) unit has a nominal pore size of 0.03 μm, and has a nominal filtration capacity of 1 m3/day.
Units: 1
Hosting Laboratory / Department: Department of Civil and Enviromental Engineering

Brief description of the utilization of the instrument:

The pilot-scale ultrafiltration unit is used for the filtration of urban wastewater to remove suspended components, towards a more clarified wastewater effluent.

Year: 2017

Funding Source:

Available for access
by external users