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TKI Project wins Excellence Award for Innovative Membrane Monitoring

International Award at IWA MTC 2025 (Daegu, South Korea) for KWR and partners

KWR has been awarded the Membrane Technology Specialist Group Global Project Excellence Award in Membrane-based Water Treatment for the project Natural viruses to monitor the integrity of membrane installations. The award was presented during the  11th IWA Membrane Technology Conference & Exhibition for Water and Wastewater Treatment and Reuse 2025 in Daegu, South Korea. Emile Cornelissen (KWR) accepted the prize on behalf of the entire consortium consisting of drinking water utilities from the Netherlands, Belgium and Sweden, as well as partners from industry.

The project Natural viruses to monitor the integrity of membrane installations is part of a TKI Water Technology initiative with partners KWR, Evides, PWN, De Watergroep, Oasen and Pentair X-Flow. In the project, a highly sensitive method using qPCR (quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction) has been developed that uses naturally (unknown) occurring viruses in water to monitor the integrity of membrane systems in full-scale drinking water treatment plants. These viruses are present in very high concentrations in surface water. Measuring these viruses before and after a membrane plant enables even the smallest membrane defects to be detected. The development offers a simple, non-invasive alternative to other monitoring methods such as challenge testing or artificial tracers. 

The jury recognised the project for its excellence, innovation and leadership in applying membrane-based technologies for water treatment. 

Monitoring purification processes with natural viruses

The award winning project has been followed up by a new project: Process Monitoring of Drinking Water Treatment Plants Using Natural Viruses. In this new TKI-project, KWR and partners (De Watergroep, Evides, PWN, Vitens, Pentair X-flow, Orvion and Norrvatten) will look at

  1. developing an online frequency monitor,
  2. determining the integrity of other treatment processes,
  3. characterisation of the unknown viruses.   

Emile Cornelissen (KWR) presents the award winning TKI Water Technology Project “Natural viruses to monitor the integrity of membrane installations” during IWA MTC 2025 in Daegu, South Korea.

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