Main Activities
Research activities in the area of (waste)plastics and microplastics
Our activities cover the treatment of waste plastics (including mixed plastics) present in the terrestrial and the marine environment. Our work covers monitoring, fragmentation, biodegradation and pre-treatment for recycling of waste plastics.
- Monitoring of the fragmentation of plastic films to microplastics in coastal environment
- Monitoring of the fragmentation of plastic films to microplastics in agricultural soils
- Monitoring of the biodegradation of mesoplastics and microplastics in the natural environment (water column & sediments) and under simulated conditions in laboratory mesocosms and microcosms.
- Monitoring of the fragmentation of microplastics in all compartments
- Bioclean-up as a pretreatment to mechanical recycling of weathered plastics
- Bioclean-up and separation/degradation of mixed plastic waste to enable recycling of at least one of the components.
Relevant patent
Syranidou E., N. Kalogerakis, “Biotreatment of plastic debris prior to mechanical recycling”, #1010041, 2021, Hellenic Industrial Property Organization (OBI).
Micro- and Nano-Plastics in AGRIcultural Soils
MINAGRIS aims to assess the impact of plastic debris in agricultural soils on biodiversity, plant productivity and ecosystem services and their transport and degradation in the environment. MINAGRIS will also provide tools and recommendations for sustainable use of plastic in agriculture at the farm and the field.
CHQ Technologies PC is a partner of MINAGRIS and responsible for the Case Study Site in Southwestern Crete.
New system-driven bioremediation of polluted habitats and environment
NYMPHE aims to develop bioremediation/revitalization strategies based on the assembly of systems of available and new biologics (enzymes, microorganisms, bivalves and earthworms, plants and their holobiont) developed and applied on matrices from different EU contaminated sites: groundwater, sediments (hyporheic zone), wastewater as well as industrial, and agricultural soils. NYMPHE targets at least 90% removal of the pollutants occurring at the sites, e.g. plastics and pesticides in the agricultural soil, and chlorinated solvents/total petroleum hydrocarbon in groundwater and sediments of the industrial site.
CHQ Technologies PC is a partner of NYMPHE and responsible for the Field Site in Western Crete (tackling plastics and pesticides in agricultural soils).
Research activities in the area of phytoremediation
Our activities focus on exploiting plant and their associated bacteria (rhizosphere and endophytic ones) for organics and heavy metal removal from different matrices (soil, water, WWTP)
- Using helophytes in constructed wetlands for emerging contaminants (e. antibiotics), metals and antibiotic resistant bacteria removal
- Increasing the efficiency of the plant through bioaugmentation (i.e. inoculation of most promising rhizospheric and/or endophytic bacteria)
- Remediating/Phytomining heavy metal polluted soil in arid aeras using halophytes
Research activities in the area of hydrocarbons bioremediation:
Our activities focus on bioremediation technologies for the restoration of hydrocarbon contaminated sites; protection and restoration of the marine environment from oil spills (surface and deeps sea) – with the use of biological means biostimulation and or bioaugmentation (nutrients, hydrocarbon degrading bacteria, biosurfactants)
Relevant patents
Antoniou, E.; Kalogerakis, N.; Technological Institute of Kavala; Technical university of Crete; “Novel Production method of high purity bio-surfactants using hydrocarbon degrading marine bacterial isolates and heavy oil residue as ‘smart’ carbon source“, #1009585, 2017, Hellenic Industrial Property Organization (OBI).
Kalogerakis, N.; Fodelianakis, S.; Antoniou, E.; Korkakaki, E.; “Production and application of a novel Bioaugmentation Pad for marine oil spills“, #1008475, 2015, Hellenic Industrial Property Organization (OBI).
- Hydrocarbon degrading consortia and isolates
- Biosurfactant producing isolates – biosurfactant production
- Bioremediation of hydrocarbon polluted soils
- Bioremediation of hydrocarbon releases in Deep Sea
- Bioremediation using bacterial biofilms for bioaugmentation
- Multifunctional bioremediation agents for sea surface oil spills
- Multifunctional bioremediation agents for deep sea oil releases
- Dispersant efficiency in deep sea applications
- Emulating deep sea conditions for bioremediation of hydrocarbons monitoring
- In Situ Oil Burning Impact on the Marine Shallow Waters
What our customer say about us
Who we are
CHQ Technologies P.C. is a start-up company of the Technical University of Crete (TU-Crete), established in December 2019. The key scientists and partners are Prof. Nicolas Kalogerakis, Dr. Evdokia Syranidou and Dr. Eleftheria Antoniou, all from the Biochemical Engineering and Environmental Biotechnology Laboratory of the School of Environmental Engineering at TU-Crete. The leading team has long research experience on all aspects of bioremediation and phytoremediation, wastewater treatment, combating pollution in the marine and terrestrial environment including agricultural soils. The focus is on biotechnological means to mitigate environmental pollution and to develop processes that address user’s needs following the guidelines for a circular economy.
The work team is comprised of the above three scientists and partners of CHQ that have complementary expertise and young scientists that work for a specific project. There is a large pool of finishing graduate students at TU-Crete which makes hiring of additional members for the work team very easy.