The Center for Environmental Microbiology of the Postgraduate Program in Environmental Technology at UNAERP conducts multidisciplinary basic and applied research in microbiology aimed at developing One Health, including humans, animals and the environment individually or jointly.
The center can count on the infrastructure of the Laboratory of Bacteriology and Molecular Biology (LABAC), located in Block J of UNAERP, Ribeirão Preto Campus, which was equipped with financial support from the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and the institution itself. LABAC possesses a range of equipment that enables experiments in basic and applied microbiology and molecular biology.
The projects conducted at the center are diversified and involve the isolation, identification and characterization of bacteria obtained from different environments, including water, air, soil and waste, as well as clinical samples. The main areas are bacterial resistance to antimicrobials, bacterial pathogenicity, molecular typing and epidemiology of bacteria, bioremediation, and genomics.
The overall mission of the Center for Environmental Microbiology at UNAERP is to generate scientific knowledge for the development of scientific solutions under the One Health approach through microbiological studies that provide new scientific insights and benefits to society as a whole, to public health, and to the environment. For this purpose, our research group has national and international collaborations that permit to recycle and gain new knowledge, as well as to improve useful methodologies.

The mission of the Center for Sustainable Materials and Environmental Process Optimization of the Postgraduate Program in Environmental Technology at UNAERP is the integration of multidisciplinary skills in exact, natural, and engineering sciences. The center aims to design, develop, apply, and optimize materials, as well as processes that can be used to promote the sustainable development of cities and agriculture, in addition to air and water pollution monitoring and control, with positive impacts and benefits for society.

Within this context, the objectives are the production and characterization of polymeric, ceramics and non-conventional materials on a macroscopic to nanometric scale, focusing on the sustainability of their processes and the use of renewable raw materials and biomaterials. The applications are diverse and range from the use of materials in agriculture for the control and transfer of beneficial active ingredients to the plant, such as fertilizers or agrochemicals, to the production of membranes that can be bio-based and biodegradable and can have antimicrobial properties, such as filter media designed to minimize pollution resulting from anthropogenic activities. Another application is the use of geopolymers and nanostructured ceramics formed by additive manufacturing as catalysts or enzymatic supports during the production of biofuels.

The center can count on the equipment and analysis infrastructure of the Laboratories of Chemical Engineering, located in Block D of UNAERP, Ribeirão Preto Campus, which allow to explore different properties of the investigated materials. In particular, the performance of porous materials in permeation and separation unit operations, such as filtration and adsorption of dissolved and particulate contaminants in liquid and gaseous streams, is evaluated in collaboration with dozens of research institutions in Brazil and abroad.

Brazil is one of the largest countries, with a population that exceeded the 200 million mark. However, the coverage of sanitation services is limited and it is estimated that the population that does not have access to sewage services is more than three times that of the entire continent of Oceania. Although a large proportion of the Brazilian population has access to public water supply, the same is not observed for sewage services (collection and treatment). The scenario of sanitation in Brazil becomes even more worrisome when the losses in water distribution systems are considered, with more than one-third of the treated volume being lost.

The Center for Water Resources (NPRH) of the Postgraduate Program in Environmental Technology at UNAERP studies drinking water matrices, surface water, and sanitary and industrial effluents. The NPRH can count on the infrastructure of the Laboratory of Water Resources, Ribeirão Preto Campus, which is equipped with an atomic absorption spectrophotometer, gas chromatographs, UV/visible spectrophotometers, and various analytical tools used for water resources research in engineering laboratories. This infrastructure permits to conduct diversified studies that involve the development, selection, and optimization of treatment technologies for the removal of macro- and microcontaminants in drinking water, quality assessment and environmental monitoring of surface water, and investigation of the technical feasibility of water reuse and treatment of industrial and sanitary effluents.

The research conducted is aimed at developing and optimizing technologies in order to respond to the needs of society, public health and the environment, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations and the demand for sanitation universalization.

The Center for Sustainability and Solid Waste Management of the Postgraduate Program in Environmental Technology at UNAERP is based on the principles of sustainable development and a circular economy with a focus on the management, characterization, and valorization of solid waste.

The center can count on the infrastructure of the Laboratories of Chemical Engineering, located in Block D of UNAERP, Ribeirão Preto Campus, which possess different types of equipment that can be applied in the areas of sustainability and solid waste valorization.

The Center for Sustainability and Solid Waste Management strongly adheres to the Sustainable Development line of research with a focus on meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set forward by the United Nations General Assembly. In addition, the studies conducted at the center can contribute to pollution monitoring and control, including the development and use of sustainable materials in environmental remediation processes, effluent treatment and emission control, as well as material and energy valorization of solid waste.

The overall mission of the Center for Sustainability and Solid Waste Management at UNAERP is to generate scientific knowledge for the development of new solid waste management and valorization technologies through scientific and practical studies that bring benefits to society as a whole and to the environment. For this purpose, our research group has national and international collaborations that permit to recycle and gain new knowledge, as well as to improve useful methodologies.