At first sight I want to thank Abe I initiative
scholarship for giving opportunity to participate in the water reuse conference
held in Atlanta, GA. I also want to thank my supervisor Mr. Takahiro
Fujioka who spared no effort to expose
me in this environment full of water sciences experts. This trip in USA was
very exciting for me cos it was my first one in this continent. It was a new
experience for me as a student who is interested in water area. As I expected I
found very kind and humble people who shared their knowledge and experience
with me. The water research conference has united many workers from the US
public and private sector. Some foreign researchers were also part of the even. All the presentations
were mostly about DPR (Direct Potable Reuse) and IPR (Indirect Potable Reuse). Therefore, during three days
from 08:30 am to 5 pm participants were sharing their experience and research
about water treatment. The first workshop which I was part of focused on waste
water treatment for irrigation purposes. The results presented in this workshop
were very concluding in term cost and environment protection. It was proved
that when the populations are well informed they will agree to use products
from irrigation by treated wastewater. I was also attracted by a post which was
talking about waste water treatment for drinking purpose. This study was done
in California and based on three steps filtration Microfiltration-Reverse
osmosis and UV treatment. In this world where water resource is becoming rare
this process could be an alternative. Thus, another presentation captured my
attention. It was one did by Sense Fujioka Takahiro which about modifying RO
membrane for N-nitrosodimethylamine rejection improvement.
Therefore, by heating the membrane he succeeds to get a high removal of the
carcinogenic molecule. However further researches should be done to limit the
flux decreasing due to the heat. During the three days of the conference I
hanged out after sessions in order to discover Atlanta city. I really like the
town. I even met an African guy who speaks my mother tongue. He shared some
information with me about life in Atlanta city. Finally, I can say that this
trip was an amazing experience for me as a student in water and environment but
also as a tourist.
During a workshop in the Water Research
Foundation Conference
Sense Fujioka Takahiro presenting his
research about Modification of reverse Osmosis Membranes for Improved Removal
of N-nitrosodimethylamine
Santos Ghemire presenting on Life Cycle Impact Assessment of a rainwater
Harvesting System Compared with an A/C Condensate System
Author: Sidy Ka
