Organic matter cause and contribute to a wide range of water supply challenges including colour, taste and odour, and treatment complications. Organic matter has been shown to rapidly change in water catchments due to different climatic events, including rainfall and drought, the onset of cyanobacterial blooms, and bushfires. However, there is a lack of knowledge on the various sources of organic matter to water catchments and their relative proportions. Understanding the various sources of organic matter in catchments and how they respond to these climatic events will improve the efficiency, performance and capacity of water treatment plants. As part of this project you will also work with WaterNSW staff.
School
Chemical Engineering
Research Area
Water / Environment
- Research environment
- Expected outcomes
- Supervisory team
- Reference material/links
Key features of the research environment include:
- The opportunity to work with the Algae and Organic Matter Laboratory (AOM Lab) team as well as relevant staff from WaterNSW.
- The student will work with the supervisory team of Dr Helen Rutlidge and Prof Rita Henderson.
This project will utilise existing datasets to explore organic matter dynamics from tributaries to the reservoir. The student is expected to gain experience in water quality analysis, data handling, and programming.
