Industrial Chemistry and Water Treatment

Biography

Dr. Alvarez Cuenca is a Professor of Chemical Engineering and Director of the Water Technologies Laboratory at Ryerson University (Toronto, Canada). He holds a B.Eng (Chemical Engineering) from the Universidad Polytechnic de Madrid, and an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. in Physics and Chemical Engineering respectively from the University of Western Ontario (Canada). Manuel adds to his curriculum over 15 years of industrial experience with multinational corporations in the areas of fluidized bed reactors, bioreactor design, water treatment and clean power generation. In 2002, he founded Ecotechnos Inc., a company devoted to the design and construction of advanced bioreactors for the treatment of industrial wastewater including nitrogen and phosphorous removal. He is an active consultant for both, governments and the private sector in Canada, Spain and Iberoamerica in the areas of water treatment, and energy. His academic record spans over three decades with universities in Europe, Canada, and South America, including Ryerson University, U. of Western Ontario, U of Waterloo, U. of Guelph, U of Windsor, U.Politécnica de Madrid ( Spain), Universidad National de Colombia (Colombia), U de Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), Corporacion Universitaria de la Costa (Colombia). He holds five patents on the design of compact bioreactors, over fifty papers, one book on Pressurized Fluid Beds Combustion, and has chaired and participated in the organization of numerous international conferences and congresses. Dr. Cuenca has taught numerous courses and seminars on water/wastewater Treatment, Solid Waste Management, Design of Wastewater Treatment Plants and has won several awards as Academic Adviser in Plant Design Competitions with the Water Environment Federation (USA), and Water Environment Association of Ontario. Currently, he is involved in the design, construction and operation of a vertical bioreactor of 20,000L/day capacity in Pickering, ON, Canada. As of 2017, this vertical bioreactor is being installed and tested in Canada, Europe and South America.

Research Interest

Wastewater Treatment (ECOTECHNOS INC.), Energy Transformation, Liquid and Solid Fuels (ESSO); coal combustion and environmental pollution (ONTARIO HYDRO); pressurised fluid bed combustion,technology transfer and evaluation with major energy corporationscombustion,technology transfer and evaluation with major energy corporations