Archive News

July 8, 2019Without phosphorus there would be no life; however, the mineable quantities are limited. The element was first described 350 years ago. This week, some 200 experts are meeting in Zurich to discuss the future of phosphorus.

June 11, 2019For 13 years, the "building" foundation has been committed to promoting the next generation of engineers in the construction industry, which also includes the Building Award for remarkable and innovative engineering achievements in construction. This year's award in the "Research and Development" category goes to NEST, the modular research and innovation building of Empa and Eawag.

May 21, 2019A team of engineers from ZHAW and Eawag has developed a smart-sensor solution for monitoring drinking-water mains. The system supplies its own energy and sends the data by wireless transmission.

May 17, 2019Wastewater contains valuable resources. However, because existing wastewater management systems have been designed primarily for pollution control and hygiene, the recovery of resources from wastewater is cumbersome.

March 11, 2019It’s no secret that urine contains valuable nutrients – or that diluting them with water which is then flushed into sewers is not the most sustainable way of managing this resource. But how can urine be kept out of wastewater? Eawag has been investigating this question for many years, and one answer is to use a urine-diverting toilet to separate it “at source”. What may sound simple turned out in practice to be a tricky task, and several generations of toilets were needed to optimise the source separation technology to the point where it can be more widely deployed. 

February 28, 2019Aquatic organisms are adapted to harsh conditions at high altitudes and are tolerant of a certain level of disturbances. However, according to a study conducted in the canton of Valais, frequent flushing of water intakes leads to a dramatic decline in populations of macroinvertebrates, such as insects or worms.

February 19, 2019The larvae of black soldier flies feed on organic waste matter. This has the potential not only to alleviate the waste problem in many countries, but also cut greenhouse gas emissions from waste disposal by around half.

January 31, 2019In collaboration with Nagra and Bern University, Eawag scientists have studied the gas dynamics in an experimental tunnel simulating the disposal of radioactive waste. While some of the findings are surprising, the overall safety assessment is positive.

January 10, 2019On 10 January 2019, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) will award the renowned Swiss "Watt d'Or" energy prize for the twelfth time. Among the five winners is the NEST research and innovation building by Empa and Eawag. In its decision, the jury put a particular emphasis on the "Solar Fitness & Wellness" unit.

October 11, 2018Mountain rivers swollen by heavy rainfall deposit large amounts of sediment in reservoirs. To prevent the loss of storage capacity, some reservoirs are equipped with bypass tunnels which convey sediment-laden waters to downstream reaches. The fact that such tunnels offer ecological benefits as well as economic advantages was shown, for example, by a study carried out on the Solis reservoir in Graubünden.