ISAH's main partner is the School of Environment at Tsinghua University in Beijing. The Tsinghua University is the leading technical university in China and also ranks among the top universities worldwide.

Contacts with the School of Environment exist since 2004 and have been successively expanded. In 2017, the joint "Platform for United Water Science and Technology Innovations" (PLUS) was founded. The focus of PLUS is on water and environmental research (www.plus-up.de).

Under the umbrella of PLUS, academic and scientific cooperation with the Chinese elite institution will be further promoted. PLUS addresses research questions of global relevance. Our research is conducted under the motto "Global Problems - Joint Solutions".

Examples of current joint project implementations are the following R&D projects:

SIGN: www.water-sign.de

KEYS: www.client-keys.de

Since 2006, ISAH has been working closely with the Environmental Sciences & Engineering Department of CLRI (Central Leather Research Institute) in Chennai, which is currently ISAH's main Indian research partner. CLRI is one of the leading national research institutes of the CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) and has worldwide recognized expertise in leather and art leather research. "Environmental Sciences & Engineering Department" is a key pillar for research, development and education in the field of sustainability, environmental protection and in particular for the treatment and disposal of solid and liquid waste, which also includes the municipal and industrial environment.

Currently, two research projects (PYRASOL & RESERVES) funded by the Indo German Science and Technology Center (IGSTC) - an institution of the Federal Ministry of Research and Development in India (DST) and Germany (BMBF) - are being carried out jointly in Chennai, India.

This type of project funding and development is based on industrial importance, which is made feasible by the "2+2 partnership form", i.e. the participation of at least one research/academic partner and one industrial partner from both countries. Industrial partners from India in both projects are Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd from Hyderabad and the German industrial partners are Lehmann-UMT GmbH, Pöhl and Biomacon GmbH, Rehburg.

Research cooperation and project development

IIT – Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur

Main research activities and publications:

• Waste analysis and characterisation
• Use of substitute fuels
• Microplastic in compost and digestate
• Innovative value-added chains in the circular economy

Current cooperations with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)
Several Master students have successfully completed their thesis at ISAH within the framework of the DAAD's India IIT Master Sandwich Programme.

IIT Kharagpur and IIT Indore

Preparation of biopolymers from waste water using microbial mixed cultures

IIT Delhi

Quantification and characterization of microplastics in wastewater treatment plants

IIT Roorkee

Investigation of granulated activated sludge for the treatment of municipal waste water

Further cooperations...

• Anna University, Chennai
• Electronics City Industrial Township Authority - ELCITA, Bangalore
• Indo-German Centre for Sustainability -IGCS, Chennai
• Infosys Limited, Bangalore
• National Institute for Interdisciplinary Science & Technology - NIIST, Trivandrum
• Tamil Nadu Agricultural University – TNAU, Coimbatore
• The Forward Foundation - TFF, Bangalore
• Velankani Sustainability, Bangalore
• Vellore Institute of Technology - VIT, Vellore

Since 2003 there is a research cooperation of ISAH with the Institute of Organic Chemistry IOCH of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

The main focus of the joint research work and publications are:

• Electrochemical oxidation of trace substances and pharmaceutical residues in waste water
• Landfill leachate treatment
• Activated carbon adsorption for the elimination of organic waste water components and heavy metals

Currently, the working group of Prof. Dr. habil. M. Vedenjapina is investigating new materials for activated carbon adsorption from the recyclate of organic residues. Here, the focus is on fundamental research regarding the coupled adsorption of organic waste water constituents and heavy metals.