SUSNANO targeted water pollution in Albania
Albania is a country rich in freshwater resources with approximately 150 streams and rivers flowing from east to west. The water of the rivers is used in urban areas, agriculture, aquaculture, recreation, hydropower, and industry. There are a number of deltas, lagoons and wetlands in western Albania, which are critical because of their tremendous biodiversity and their function as wildlife habitats.
For this reason, the wetlands have both national and international protection status. However, Albania’s water quality has deteriorated significantly over the last several decades. Water pollution due to high concentrations of N and P come from a growing number of fertilizer and pesticide storage facilities, other identified point sources, industrial or urban, and urban liquid and solid waste. Furthermore, antibiotic contamination is a pollution issue due to poor control and overconsumption of antibiotic medications in the healthcare and veterinary sectors.
Hydrographic map of Albania modified after UNEP (2000) (miho et al., 2013).
SUSNANO project DEVELOPED SUSTAINABLE NANOSENSORS and DEVELOPED them in Albania’s rivers and lakes. It will help to:
-
Document all sources of water contamination and types of organic and inorganic contaminants
-
Quantify amounts and fluxes of contaminants from sources to surface and ground waters
Project objectives
-PhotoRoom%20(1)_ed.png)
1
Conduct exploratory research on sustainable nanosensors to detect water pollution in Albania
4
Improve UT’s management and administrative capacity for European R&D programmes
2
Transfer knowledge between experienced researchers of UT and the Twinning partners
3
Enhance career prospects of early-stage researchers of UT and the Twinning partners
5
Raise the research profile of UT and the Twinning partners
Project Team
The Principal Investigators of the partner institutions have strong research background and capacities to implement the project and achieve its objectives.
Lead researcher and lecturer in the Analytical Chemistry Group. She obtained her Ph.D. in Chemistry at UT. Has pursued postdoctoral research in various international universities supported by TEMPUS programme, DAAD, Erasmus mundus, etc. Her research is focused on environmental monitoring and the development of electrochemical sensors and biosensors. She is the author of 55 publications, the co-coordinator of NanoAlb.
Prof. Dr. Majlinda Vasjari, UT
ICREA Professor and director of the Nanobioelectronics & Biosensors Group at ICN2, part of Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST).
He has published around 310 peer review research papers (H-index: 71 WOS; 86 GS), supervised 30 PhD students and has been invited to give plenary lectures and keynote speeches in around 200 occasions in various countries.
Prof. Arben Merkoçi, ICN2
The head of the CATRIN research group Carbon Nanostructures, Biomacromolecules and Simulations. He has visited and worked in several universities and research institutions around the world including. Prof. Otyepka has authored and co-authored over 300 research articles in peer reviewed journals in the field of physical chemistry with +14300 citations (H-index: 59 WOS; 68 GS).
Prof. Michal Otyepka, UPO
Managing director at Intelligentsia Consultants Sarl, highly experienced in providing training for proposal writing and project management for EU funded R&D projects. Has worked on nearly fifty (50) FP7 and H2020 projects with many involving research institutes in Associated Countries concerning the development of centres of excellence, integration into ERA, and technology transfer, especially in the fields of physics, nanomaterials and sensors.
Giles Brandon, INT