From Waste to Resource | Pascal Saikaly’s Lab at KAUST

MAPTech Lab

Bridging Science & Technology to turn waste into sustainable resources

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MAPTech Success Collage

From Waste to Resource:
MAPTech’s success story

At MAPTech Lab, we're dedicated to pioneering sustainable solutions for global water scarcity, waste management, and resource recovery. Explore below how we integrate interdisciplinary science with bioprocess engineering to advance wastewater treatment, recover energy, valorize waste, and engineer bio-derived catalysts:

Advanced wastewater treatment

(Aerobic Granular Sludge - Gravity Driven Membrane | AGS-GDM): High-efficiency removal of contaminants and pathogens with minimal energy usage and decentralized solutions for off-grid communities, generating high-quality water for non-potable reuse.

Advanced Wastewater Treatment pilot

Wastewater treatment with energy recovery

(Microbial electrochemical systems): Treating wastewater while recovering energy and clean water for non-potable reuse & generating valuable chemical products.

Energy Recovery pilot

Waste valorization through microbial innovation

Turning organic waste into valuable nutrients and chemicals via novel microbes and advanced fermentation & microbial chain-elongation processes.

Waste Valorization pilot

Bio-derived catalysts

Enhancing clean technologies through innovative microbial catalysts, converting CO₂ into valuable added products, and transforming biomass into biohybrid catalysts.

Bio-Derived Catalysts

🌍 How can we tackle the global waste & water crisis?

At MAPTech Lab

We transform wastewater into energy, clean water & valuable resources, driving a circular economy where waste is not discarded but reimagined.

Waste to Resource Globe

Waste treatment is critical to global sustainability.
Here are some key facts:

80% untreated
0 of wastewater globally is untreated
~50% domestic untreated
0 of domestic wastewater is not treated
55% demand
0 of water demand is projected to increase by 2050
300 billion
0 industrial wastewater produced annually
38 billion CO₂
0 tones of CO₂ emitted globally annually
33% food waste
0 or 1/3 of the world’s food is lost to waste (1300 million tons)
Data source: UN Water

Discover our research areas

Microbial Electrochemical Systems
Microbial electrochemical systems
Harnessing bacteria for sustainable resource recovery. Our pilot‐scale anaerobic electrochemical fluidized membrane bioreactor achieves energy‐neutral wastewater treatment by producing H₂ & generating water for non‐potable reuse. In parallel, our microbial electrosynthesis platform converts industrial CO₂ into valuable chemicals (methane, acetate) with enhanced electron transfer.
AGS
Aerobic granular sludge technology
Enhancing wastewater treatment with energy‐efficient, compact, and high‐performing sludge systems. We have developed a first‐of‐its‐kind full‐scale decentralized wastewater treatment and recycle unit based on AGS‐GDM system that integrates Aerobic Granular Sludge with Gravity‐Driven Membrane filtration. This approach cuts energy use by over 50%, and enables direct water reuse on‐site.
Advanced Anammox Technologies
Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox)
Removing ammonium from wastewater via sustainable anaerobic oxidation. We discovered Electro‐Anammox, a process that converts NH₄⁺ directly to N₂ (no nitrite, nitrate, or N₂O formed), while capturing energy as H₂. Our marine anammox systems enable seawater use for non‐potable applications like toilet flushing.
Circular Waste Management
Waste valorization
Transforming organic and dairy waste into valuable chemicals (SCCAs, MCCAs), and protein‐rich products (casein) using advanced microbial chain elongation processes. This process is demonstrated by our waste‐to‐value unit and secured by Patent WO2022053983.
Bio-Based Materials & Catalysts
Bio-hybrid materials & catalysts
Harnessing microbes to create eco-friendly electro-catalysts for energy applications (water spliting/hydrogen production) and microbial electrosynthesis. Exoelectrogenic bacteria convert metal ions into nano-alloy catalysts for fuel cells, while bacterial reduction of graphene oxide produces conductive materials for advanced electrodes and membranes.

Real-world impact & industry implementation

Discover how MAPTech’s award-winning innovations are transforming industry - turning complex waste challenges into sustainable, profitable opportunities. Explore our pioneering deployments below.

Decentralized wastewater reuse unit

Key Highlight: AGS+GDM cuts costs by 40% & provides off-grid sanitation

Decentralized Wastewater Reuse Unit
i

Transforming wastewater into sustainable, cost-effective solutions.

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Next generation organic waste-to-value unit

Key Highlight: Converting dairy and juice waste directly into high-value MCCAs and casein.

500L Organic Waste-to-Value Pilot
i

Turning food & dairy waste into valuable, eco-friendly resources.

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Awards & Achievements

Decentralized wastewater treatment plant from Al Miyah

Revolutionary Wastewater Treatment

KAUST spinout Nurain proves a groundbreaking decentralized wastewater technology at Saudi NWC—opening the door to scalable, sustainable solutions worldwide.

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Best Discovery Award

Best Discovery Award

Honored by ISMET for our breakthroughs in microbial electrochemical technologies — recognizing Dario R Shaw and the KAUST team’s extraordinary achievements.

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National Geographic Feature

National Geographic Feature

Our waste-to-resource research was spotlighted in "Chasing Answers," showcasing how next-gen solutions reshape sustainability. (Minute 16:00)

Watch Clip
Nature Communications Feature

Nature Communications Spotlight

Recognized for Best Scientific Discovery, our groundbreaking paper was highlighted by Nature Communications for innovative advances in environmental biotechnology.

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International Honorary Member by AAEES

International Honorary Member by AAEES

Professor Pascal Saikaly joins the American Academy of Environmental Engineers and Scientists, reflecting exceptional leadership in the field.

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Best Innovation Award

Recognized by ISMET for pioneering a hybrid microbial fuel cell–membrane bioreactor, Dr Krishna Katuri and the MAPTech Lab are celebrated for their innovative work.

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TAQADAM Award

TAQADAM Awards

Our startup excelled in TAQADAM’s accelerator program, securing vital support for advanced wastewater treatment and resource recovery innovations.

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$600K Seed Funding for NuRain

$600K Seed Funding for NuRain

Prof. Saikaly’s spinout, backed by KAUST, secured $600K to accelerate sludge-to-resource solutions, fueling the circular economy.

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Global partners & collaborations

Our mission to transform waste into resources is powered by a worldwide network of institutions, companies, and research organizations. Explore our global reach and see how we collaborate across continents.

🌍 Contributing to global goals

Our innovations support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals—providing clean water (SDG 6), affordable clean energy (SDG 7), and climate action (SDG 13) through sustainable wastewater treatment and resource recovery.

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SDG 6 - Clean Water SDG 9 - Industry, Innovation, Infrastructure SDG 11 - Sustainable Cities SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption SDG 13 - Climate Action
SDG Wheel

MAPTech Lab