CleanFlow: Sustainable wastewater management
CleanFlow is an innovative wastewater treatment process built on a patented chemical approach in which iron is used in two successive stages. In the first stage, carbon dioxide (CO₂) reacts with iron to generate hydrogen. In the second stage, rather than discarding the iron once it has been spent, CleanFlow reuses it as a catalyst to break down the harmful substances remaining in the water. This is the core innovation: iron that would normally be considered used up and thrown away turns out to still be chemically active, and can drive a further purification reaction at no additional material cost. The result is a treatment system that is both effective against the specific contamination profile of hospital wastewater and economically viable in real hospital settings.
- The 7th Health Region of Crete (Greece)
- Heidelberg University Hospital (Germany)
- Wellbeing services county of Päijät-Häme (Finland)
Cyprus University of Technology
Context
Hospitals generate wastewater carrying harmful substances, from drug residues, pathogens, to antimicrobial-resistant bacteria that can contaminate rivers, groundwater, and drinking water sources if insufficiently treated. Yet EU legislation does not specifically require hospitals to treat their wastewater before it enters the municipal sewer system, leaving the burden on general urban infrastructures that were never designed to handle the specific mix of pollutants found in hospital wastewater. Healthcare facilities therefore need dedicated, cost-effective treatment solutions suited to the nature of their discharges.
The solution
CleanFlow is an innovative wastewater treatment process built on a patented chemical approach in which iron is used in two successive stages. In the first stage, carbon dioxide (CO₂) reacts with iron to generate hydrogen. In the second stage, rather than discarding the iron once it has been spent, CleanFlow reuses it as a catalyst to break down the harmful substances remaining in the water. This is the core innovation: iron that would normally be considered used up and thrown away turns out to still be chemically active, and can drive a further purification reaction at no additional material cost. The result is a treatment system that is both effective against the specific contamination profile of hospital wastewater and economically viable in real hospital settings.
Impact
CleanFlow reduces the environmental and public health risks of hospital wastewater through an innovative treatment process that is both cost-effective and resource-efficient. By reusing materials across treatment stages, it lowers overall consumption and waste. A feasibility study has demonstrated that the process delivers both environmental and economic benefits in a real hospital context.
The solution has been tested in
CleanFlow has been developed and tested in laboratory conditions, and a feasibility study demonstrating its environmental and economic sustainability has been conducted at:
- The 7th Health Region of Crete, Greece
- Heidelberg University Hospital , Germany
- Wellbeing services county of Päijät-Häme , Finland
Developer(s)
Cyprus University of Technology (Cyprus)
Ioannis VYRIDES, Ioannis.vyrides@cut.ac.cy
