Water Pollution Control and Resource Utilisation of Activated Sludge
A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Wastewater Treatment and Reuse".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 August 2026 | Viewed by 218
Editors
Interests: landfill leachates; waste disposal facilities; municipal solid waste; water quality; water pollution control
Interests: wastewater treatment; energy and resource recovery from wastewater and biosolids; environmental pollution and protection; water pollution control; environmental microbiology and biotechnology
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Protecting water resources is one of the most important challenges in modern environmental engineering. In the face of growing urbanisation, industrial activity and climate change, controlling water pollution and managing activated sludge effectively have become priorities for achieving sustainable development.
Activated sludge technology remains a crucial component of modern wastewater treatment, playing a vital role in controlling water pollution and facilitating resource recovery. Its ability to remove organic matter and nutrients, coupled with the potential for energy and material reuse, makes it indispensable for sustainable water management and the development of a circular economy. However, challenges such as sludge overproduction, pollutant removal efficiency and integrating resource utilisation pathways continue to limit its potential.
This Special Issue, 'Water Pollution Control and Resource Utilisation of Activated Sludge', aims to bring together cutting-edge research and comprehensive reviews that address these critical issues. We are seeking contributions that go beyond incremental improvements and focus on innovative approaches to optimising sludge treatment, enhancing pollutant removal and unlocking new opportunities for resource recovery.
The scope of this Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, the following topics:
- Advanced strategies for minimising sludge production and improving process stability;
- New ways to recover pollution and generate energy from activated sludge;
- Integration of activated sludge systems with emerging technologies (e.g., membrane bioreactors and microbial electrochemical systems);
- Approaches for controlling micropollutants and emerging contaminants in wastewater;
- Circular economy applications, such as converting sludge into valuable products (e.g., bioenergy, biopolymers and fertilisers);
- Process modelling, optimisation and digitalisation for enhanced performance;
- Environmental and economic assessments of sludge management focused on resources;
- Case studies on the implementation of full-scale projects and their long-term operational performance.
This Special Issue provides a platform for researchers, engineers and practitioners to share transformative solutions that will advance activated sludge technology and promote sustainable water pollution control and resource utilisation.
We invite original research articles, critical reviews and short communications that will help shape the future of activated sludge systems within the global wastewater treatment landscape.
Dr. Justyna Koc-Jurczyk
Dr. Jun Zhou
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- water pollution control
- activated sludge management
- circular economy
- sustainable water management
- wastewater treatment
- organic pollutants removal
- sludge resource utilisation
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