Stephanie Rusch Fehrmann: “My research aims to recover nutrients from Blackwater”

Stephanie Rusch Fehrmann's project is about recycling the nutrients in wastewater and at the same time preventing eutrophication. Collecting blackwater (Toilet water) seperatly makes it possible.

Where do you come from? Where have you been?

I am from the South of Chile. I grew up in a rural area surrounded by magnificent nature. I moved 1000 km to the capital Santiago, to study Bioengineering. I always believed that biology is a great tool to fix our environmental problems. I did my master’s in chemical and Bioprocess Engineering at the Technical University of Hamburg. While I studied, I also worked for the The Institute of Wastewater Management and Water at the Technical University Hamburg-Harburg. I finalised with my master's thesis at the University of Auckland New Zealand. Later I worked at the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany. I moved to Luleå in September 2021 and in July 2022 I had the incredible experience of doing a work volunteer about sanitation in rural areas in Mexico.

What brought you to Luleå University of Technology?

In Chile, I volunteered for low-income adults and students and there I discovered one of my biggest passions; teaching. Later in my studies I also discovered how exciting and important research is, therefore at an early age I knew I wanted a career in academia. It was clear I needed a PhD. For me, where was not important, but the topic needed to be something special and powerful to keep me motivated for many years. When a PhD position in Luleå was announced, that combined all of my previous experiences with my expectancies of an interesting research issue, I appled. Luleå University of Technology is a place with a very positive energy, full of collaboration and support.

What is your research contribution to Creaternity?

To feed the urban population, farms apply fertilisers, mostly NPK (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium). The production of inorganic nitrogen is energy intensive and most of the time requires natural gas, while phosphorous and potassium come from mine sources. Once we consume that food, most of those nutrients end up in the toilet (blackwater). Right now wastewater streams mix blackwater with greywater (showers, sinks, wash machines, etc.). This means that the nutrients are highly diluted but at the same time, they have to be removed, to avoid eutrophication (algae blossom in superficial waters).

My research aims to separate blackwater from greywater and to concentrate it with the aim of producing a fertiliser, that not only contain NPK, but also a range of other macro and micronutrients essentials for healthy soils and plants.

Why is Creaternity important?

The network with other young researchers from very different fields but with a similar aim is for me the most important role that Creaternity plays. I also think that what enriches the graduate school, is that we need a supervisor from a different department, which makes us integrate different methods and perspectives into our research.

• Contact: Stephanie Rusch Fehrmann