Honorary Professor Zhiguo Yuan
Honorary Professor

Zhiguo Yuan

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Background

Prof Yuan received his PhD degree in aeronautical engineering in 1992 from Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, China. He changed research direction to wastewater management in 1994, when he took up a postdoctoral research fellow position at Ghent University, Belgium. He joined the Advanced Water Management Centre (AWMC), renamed as the Australian Centre for Water and Environmental Biotechnology in July 2021, at The University of Queensland in 1998. He served as the AWMC Deputy Director 2001-2014, and then the AWMC/ACWEB Director in 2015 to July 2022. His research focuses on development of innovative solutions for urban water management and environmental biotechnology through effective integration of fundamental science and applied engineering. He won over $50M in government, industry and university research funding including many ARC Discovery, Linkage and Fellowship grants, mostly as the lead Chief Investigator. Prof Yuan was one of the founding members of the $117m Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cities. He has published intensively both in specialised journals such as Water Research and Environmental Science and Technology, and multidisciplinary journals including Nature and Science. He is the founder of three biotechnology businesses namely SeweX, Cloevis and Lodomat, and his research has delivered documented savings of hundreds of millions of dollars to the Australian water industry. His research achievements and leadership have been recognized through major national and international awards including the 2015 ATSE Clunies Ross Award and the International Water Association (IWA) 2014 Global Project Innovation Award (Applied Research Category). Prof Yuan was named as one of Engineers Australia’s Top 100 Most Influential Engineers for 2015. He is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE), an IWA Distinguished Fellow, and was awarded the highly prestigious ARC Australian Laureate Fellowship in 2017. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia in January 2019.

Availability

Honorary Professor Zhiguo Yuan is:
Not available for supervision
Media expert

Fields of research

Environmental biotechnology Environmental engineering

Qualifications

  • Bachelor of Engineering, Beijing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics
  • Doctor of Philosophy, Beijing University of Aeronautics & Astronautics

Research interests

  • Integrated Urban Water Management

    A whole-of-system approach to managing multiple water resources in an urban water cycle and multiple elements in an urban water system.

  • Digital water

    Descriptive, diagnostic, predictive and prescriptive data analytics for proactive urban water management

  • Sustainable carbon bioeconomy

    Gas fermentation to convert organic wastes to carbon commodities

  • Corrosion and odour management in sewers systems

    Effective control of H2S production in sewer systems and minimise its effect on sewer corrosion and odour generation

  • Sludge management in wastewater treatment systems

    Innovative technologies for enhancing bioenergy recovery from wastewater and reducing sludge production

  • Greenhouse gas emissions from water and wastewater systems

    Fugitive greenhouse gas emissions from wastewater systems including CH4 emission in sewers, N2O emission from wastewater treatment processes and CH4 and N2O emissions from estuaries, dams and bays

  • Biological nutrient removal and recovery

    Innovative technologies and fundamental science for biological nitrogen and phosphorus removal and recovery from wastewater

Research impacts

  • His research in sewer management has fundamentally changed practice of many Australian water utilities in corrosion and odour management in sewers. The documented savings to date for the water industry amounts to approximately $400 million, based on the testimonial letters provided by industry partners.
  • He has collaborated with almost all major water utilities in Australia through many ARC Industry Linkage projects as well as a large number of collaborative research projects.
  • He was a founding and Executive Committee member of the $117 million Cooperative Research Centre for Water Sensitive Cites, with over 80 industry partners, and led the Future Technologies Program Leader.
  • Established SeweX, a consulting company under UniQuest Pty Ltd, in 2008. SeweX has undertaken over $3 million consulting work since 2009. Clients included both Australian water utilities and companies from overseas. SeweX has been recently licensed to Envirosuite, an ASX listed technology company.
  • Established Cloevis Pty Ltd, a spin-off company from my sewer research. The company has licenced its patented technology on biofilm removal from sewer pipes to USP Technologies (US).
  • His research on sludge treatment using free nitrous acid has led to the development of the patented Lodomat technology that substantially increases biogas production from wastewater sludge. The technology has recently attracted >$5M (+ >$4M in-kind) industry and government funding for pilot plant demonstrations.
  • His research has frequently attracted media attention, with many articles published in newspapers such as The Australian and The Courier Mail, the News Agency Websites (e.g. ABC, Xinhua Agency), and industry magazines, newsletters and websites. Five of his papers have Altmetric Attention Scores that are in the top 5% of the 6.4 million research outputs tracked.
  • He is an Editor of Water Research, a top journal in water science and technology.
  • He published over 500 papers in internationally leading journals (the full list and citation record: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=1IPdGqkAAAAJ&hl=en)

Search Professor Zhiguo Yuan’s works on UQ eSpace

805 works between 1992 and 2025
All (805) Journal Article (623) Book Chapter (9) Conference Publication (169) Book (1) Other Outputs (3)

701 - 720 of 805 works

2006

Journal Article

Effect of free ammonia and free nitrous acid concentration on the anabolic and catabolic processes of an enriched Nitrosomonas culture

Vadivelu, V. M., Keller, J. and Yuan, Z. (2006). Effect of free ammonia and free nitrous acid concentration on the anabolic and catabolic processes of an enriched Nitrosomonas culture. Biotechnology And Bioengineering, 95 (5), 830-839. doi: 10.1002/bit.21018

Effect of free ammonia and free nitrous acid concentration on the anabolic and catabolic processes of an enriched Nitrosomonas culture

2006

Journal Article

Modelling biological processes under anaerobic conditions through integrating titrimetric and off-gas measurements - applied to EBPR systems

Yuan, Z., Pratt, S., Zeng, R. J. and Keller, J. (2006). Modelling biological processes under anaerobic conditions through integrating titrimetric and off-gas measurements - applied to EBPR systems. Water Science And Technology, 53 (1), 179-189. doi: 10.2166/wst.2006.020

Modelling biological processes under anaerobic conditions through integrating titrimetric and off-gas measurements - applied to EBPR systems

2006

Conference Publication

Spatial variation in anaerobic biofilm structure and activity along a rising main in sewer systems

Mohanakrishnan, J., Sharma, K. R., Gutierrez, O., Meyer, R. L., Hamilton, G., Keller, J. and Yuan, Z. (2006). Spatial variation in anaerobic biofilm structure and activity along a rising main in sewer systems. International Water Association Conference on Biofilm Systems VI, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 24-27 September 2006.

Spatial variation in anaerobic biofilm structure and activity along a rising main in sewer systems

2006

Journal Article

Feasibility of controlling nitrification in predenitrification plants using DO, pH and ORP sensors

Ma, Y, Peng, Y, Yuan, Z, Wang, S and Wu, X (2006). Feasibility of controlling nitrification in predenitrification plants using DO, pH and ORP sensors. Water Science and Technology, 53 (4-5), 235-243. doi: 10.2166/wst.2006.128

Feasibility of controlling nitrification in predenitrification plants using DO, pH and ORP sensors

2006

Conference Publication

Free Ammonia and Free Nitrous Acid Inhibitionon the Anabolic and Catabolic Processes of Ammonia- and Nitrite-Oxidising Bacteria

Vadivelu, V. M., Keller, J and Yuan, Z (2006). Free Ammonia and Free Nitrous Acid Inhibitionon the Anabolic and Catabolic Processes of Ammonia- and Nitrite-Oxidising Bacteria. 3rd Biennial International Young Researchers Conference, Singapore, 24-26 May 2006. UK: IWA Publishing.

Free Ammonia and Free Nitrous Acid Inhibitionon the Anabolic and Catabolic Processes of Ammonia- and Nitrite-Oxidising Bacteria

2006

Conference Publication

Preservation and simultaneous analysis of relevant soluble sulfur species in sewage samples

Keller-Lehmann, B, Corrie, S, Ravn, R, Yuan, Z and Keller, J (2006). Preservation and simultaneous analysis of relevant soluble sulfur species in sewage samples. Sewer Operation and Maintenance SOM 06, Vienna, Austria, 26-28 October 2006. Austria: BOKU-SIG.

Preservation and simultaneous analysis of relevant soluble sulfur species in sewage samples

2006

Conference Publication

Obtaining highly enriched cultures of Candidatus accumulibacter phosphatis through alternating carbon sources

Lu, H., Oehmen, A., Virdis, B., Keller, J. and Yuan, Z. (2006). Obtaining highly enriched cultures of Candidatus accumulibacter phosphatis through alternating carbon sources. IWA World Water Congress and Exhibition, Beijing, China, 10-14 September, 2006.

Obtaining highly enriched cultures of Candidatus accumulibacter phosphatis through alternating carbon sources

2006

Conference Publication

Microscale structure of the microbial community within simultaneous nitrification denitrification and phsphorus removal (SNDPR) granules

Crocetti, G., Lemaire, R. L., Yuan, Z and Blackall, L L (2006). Microscale structure of the microbial community within simultaneous nitrification denitrification and phsphorus removal (SNDPR) granules. 11th International Symposium on Microbial Ecology, Vienna, Austria, 20-25 August 2006. Switzerland: Kenes International.

Microscale structure of the microbial community within simultaneous nitrification denitrification and phsphorus removal (SNDPR) granules

2006

Journal Article

Identifying causes for N2O accumulation in a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor performing simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal

Lemaire, R, Meyer, R, Taske, A, Crocetti, GR, Keller, J and Yuan, ZG (2006). Identifying causes for N2O accumulation in a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor performing simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal. Journal of Biotechnology, 122 (1), 62-72. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2005.08.024

Identifying causes for N2O accumulation in a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor performing simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal

2006

Journal Article

Stoichiometric and kinetic characterisation of Nitrobacter in mixed culture by decoupling the growth and energy generation processes

Vadivelu, Vel M., Yuan, Zhiguo, Fux, Christian and Keller, Jurg (2006). Stoichiometric and kinetic characterisation of Nitrobacter in mixed culture by decoupling the growth and energy generation processes. Biotechnology And Bioengineering, 94 (6), 1176-1188. doi: 10.1002/bit.20956

Stoichiometric and kinetic characterisation of Nitrobacter in mixed culture by decoupling the growth and energy generation processes

2006

Journal Article

Effects of solids concentration, pH and carbon addition on the production rate and composition of volatile fatty acids in prefermenters using primary sewage sludge

Zeng, R. J., Yuan, Z. and Keller, J. (2006). Effects of solids concentration, pH and carbon addition on the production rate and composition of volatile fatty acids in prefermenters using primary sewage sludge. Water Science and Technology, 53 (8), 263-269. doi: 10.2166/wat.2006.257

Effects of solids concentration, pH and carbon addition on the production rate and composition of volatile fatty acids in prefermenters using primary sewage sludge

2006

Conference Publication

Effectiveness of oxygen injection in controlling sulfide production in a laboratory scale sewer system

Gutierrez, O. G., Mohanakrishnan, J., Sharma, K. R., Yuan, Z. and Keller, J. (2006). Effectiveness of oxygen injection in controlling sulfide production in a laboratory scale sewer system. Sewer Operation and Maintenance SOM 06, Vienna, Austria, 26-28 October 2006. Austria: BOKU-SIG.

Effectiveness of oxygen injection in controlling sulfide production in a laboratory scale sewer system

2006

Journal Article

Competition between polyphosphate and glycogen accumulating organisms in enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems with acetate and propionate as carbon sources

Oehmen, Adrian, Saunders, Aaron M., Vives, M. Teresa, Yuan, Zhiguo and Keller, Jurg (2006). Competition between polyphosphate and glycogen accumulating organisms in enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems with acetate and propionate as carbon sources. Journal Of Biotechnology, 123 (1), 22-32. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiotic.2005.10.009

Competition between polyphosphate and glycogen accumulating organisms in enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems with acetate and propionate as carbon sources

2006

Journal Article

Stoichiometric and kinetic characterisation of Nitrosomonas sp in mixed culture by decoupling the growth and energy generation processes

Vadivelu, V. M., Keller, J. and Yuan, Z. G. (2006). Stoichiometric and kinetic characterisation of Nitrosomonas sp in mixed culture by decoupling the growth and energy generation processes. Journal of Biotechnology, 126 (3), 342-356. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2006.04.017

Stoichiometric and kinetic characterisation of Nitrosomonas sp in mixed culture by decoupling the growth and energy generation processes

2006

Conference Publication

Biological nitrogen and phosphorus removal using granular sludge from anaerobically pre-treated abattoir wastewater

Yilmaz, G., Lemaire, R., Di Iaconi, C., Keller, J. and Yuan, Z. (2006). Biological nitrogen and phosphorus removal using granular sludge from anaerobically pre-treated abattoir wastewater. 2nd Aerobic Granular Sludge Workshop IWA, Delft Netherlands, 22-22 September, 2006. IWA Publishing.

Biological nitrogen and phosphorus removal using granular sludge from anaerobically pre-treated abattoir wastewater

2006

Conference Publication

Elucidation of glycogen-accumulating organisms by in vivo nuclear magnetic resonance

Lemos, C., Dai, Y., Yuan, Z., Santos, H., Keller, J. and Reis, M. A. M. (2006). Elucidation of glycogen-accumulating organisms by in vivo nuclear magnetic resonance. 11th International Symposium on Microbial Ecology - ISME 11, Vienna, Austria, 20-25 August 2006. Switzerland: Kenes International.

Elucidation of glycogen-accumulating organisms by in vivo nuclear magnetic resonance

2005

Conference Publication

Sludge population optimisation in biological wastewater treatment systems through on-line process control: What can we achieve?

Yuan, Z., Peng, Y., Oehmen, A. M., Lu, H., Fux, C. and Keller, J. (2005). Sludge population optimisation in biological wastewater treatment systems through on-line process control: What can we achieve?. The 2nd IWA Conference on Instrumentation, Control and Automa, Busan, Korea, 29 May - 2 June 2005. Korea: IWA.

Sludge population optimisation in biological wastewater treatment systems through on-line process control: What can we achieve?

2005

Journal Article

Optimisation of poly-b-hydroxyalkanoate analysis using gas chromatography for enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems

Oehmen, A, Keller-Lehmann, B, Zeng, RJ, Yuan, ZG and Keller, E (2005). Optimisation of poly-b-hydroxyalkanoate analysis using gas chromatography for enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems. Journal of Chromatography A, 1070 (1-2), 131-136. doi: 10.1016/j.chroma.2005.02.020

Optimisation of poly-b-hydroxyalkanoate analysis using gas chromatography for enhanced biological phosphorus removal systems

2005

Conference Publication

The microbial community dynamics in a simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal bioreactor using different carbon sources

Lemaire, R. L., Meyer, R. L., Crocetti, G., Zeng, R. J., Yuan, Z., Blackall, L. L. and Keller, J. (2005). The microbial community dynamics in a simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal bioreactor using different carbon sources. 4th IWA Activated Sludge Population Dynamics Specialist Conference - Microbial Population Dynamics in Biological Wastewater Treatment (ASPD4), Gold Coast, 17-20 July 2005. Brisbane: AWMC.

The microbial community dynamics in a simultaneous nitrification, denitrification and phosphorus removal bioreactor using different carbon sources

2005

Book

Instrumentation, Control and Automation in Wastewater Systems

Olsson, G, Nielsen, M.K, Yuan, Z., Lynggaard-Jensen, A and Steyer, J (2005). Instrumentation, Control and Automation in Wastewater Systems. 1 ed. London: IWA Publishing.

Instrumentation, Control and Automation in Wastewater Systems

Availability

Honorary Professor Zhiguo Yuan is:
Not available for supervision

Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Airflow and temperature modelling for sewers

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Jiuling Li

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Understanding of Ventilation-Based Drying for Sewer Corrosion Control

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Jiuling Li, Dr Zhetai Hu

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Data quality assurance in digitalisation of urban water management

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Helen Huang, Dr Jiuling Li, Dr Ruihong Qiu

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Extracellular Electron Transfer-Facilitated Microbial Conversion of Methanol by Eubacterium limosum

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Xueqin Zhang, Dr Bernardino Virdis

  • Doctor Philosophy

    The Understanding of Condensation-induced Concrete Corrsoion in the Sewer Crown Region

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Damien Batstone, Dr Jiuling Li

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Integrated use of magnesium and iron chemicals in urban wastewater systems

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Zhetai Hu

  • Doctor Philosophy

    In-depth understanding of bioprocess and microbial community in a novel methane-based membrane biofilm reactor

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Jianhua Guo

Completed supervision

Enquiries

Contact Honorary Professor Zhiguo Yuan directly for media enquiries about:

  • Corrosion - sewers
  • Odour - sewers
  • Sewers
  • Wastewater management
  • Wastewater treatment
  • Water treatment

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