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Juan M. Lema

Emeritus Professor | University of Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Juan M. Lema

Biography


Sessions

11:30h
Congress | Mediterranean Congress on Chemical Engineering (MeCCE)

Serendipities in Environmental Biotechnology: How Unexpected Observations Shaped Modern Wastewater Treatment – MeCCE Plenary Conference

Juan M. Lema
Juan M. Lema University of Santiago de Compostela Emeritus Professor Speaker

2026-06-03 11:30 2026-06-03 12:30 Europe/Madrid Serendipities in Environmental Biotechnology: How Unexpected Observations Shaped Modern Wastewater Treatment – MeCCE Plenary Conference
Some of the most transformative advances in environmental biotechnology were not originally planned, they were discovered. Unexpected observations, when interpreted with curiosity and scientific rigor, have repeatedly opened new directions in wastewater treatment. The activated sludge process itself emerged from early aeration experiments that unintentionally revealed the remarkable capacity of microbial communities to purify water. Later, surprising polyphosphate accumulation led to enhanced biological phosphorus removal, while unexpected microbial aggregation generated aerobic and anaerobic granular sludge systems. More recently, unexplained nitrogen and methane conversions revealed processes such as ANAMMOX, autotrophic denitrification and DAMO microorganisms. These examples illustrate how serendipity, guided by scientific insight, has played a decisive role in shaping modern environmental biotechnology.
 CC3. ROOM 3.11
Wed 3 11:30h - 12:30h CC3. ROOM 3.11 Pre-registration for the congress
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