Juan M. Lema

Emeritus Professor of Chemical Engineering

Scientific Profiles

• Portal da Investigación (USC)
• Orcid
• Research Gate
• Scopus

Juan M. Lema is an Emeritus Professor of Chemical Engineering and Scientific Coordinator of the Cross-disciplinary Research on Environmental Technology Center (CRETUS) at the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain). President of the Galician Royal Academy of Sciences. Distinguished IWA Fellow.
He has supervised 62 PhD Theses. Author of more than 450 papers and book chapters (H index: 80 Scopus and FWCI 1,51. More than 22,000 citations. Author or co-author of 20 patents (9 European or International). Editor of the book: "Innovative Wastewater Treatment & Resource Recovery Technologies," published by IWA (2017). He is ranked, as well as 7 of his former PhD students, among the top 2% of impact researchers worldwide according to the "Stanford List."
His former PhD students are currently Professors (12) (in Spain, Mexico, Chile, and Colombia), Associate Professors (16) (in Spain, Mexico, Chile, The Netherlands, United Arab Emirates, and Colombia), researchers in Universities and Technological Centres (Anfaco, Aimen, Ainia, Feuga, Beta, CetAQUA, Medrar), or responsible for R&D in several companies (Repsol, Abiasa, Bialactis, Biena, Inditex).
He has focused his research interests on Environmental Biotechnology, developing technology and processes to treat and recover resources from waste and wastewater, including the removal of micropollutants using microbial and enzymatic methods. He has coordinated or participated in 71 research projects founded by the European Union (24), the Spanish Commission of Science and Technology (34), and the Galician Regional Government (13). He has been the Coordinator of the COST Action "Conceiving Wastewater Treatment in 2020" (Water 2020) and the Coordinator of the Spanish project Novedar_Consolider, with 12 research groups from Spain and The Netherlands. Sixteen relevant research projects with companies treating industrial and municipal wastewater. Expert of UNIDO (United Nations for Industrial Development Organisation), Vienna, in the "Treatment of Industrial Effluents." In total, more than 17 MM€ raised for research.
He has held several leadership positions in academia, including the Head of the Departments of Chemical Engineering at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) from 1981-83 and Santiago de Compostela (USC) from 1991-2000. He was also the First Director of the Technological Transfer Centre at USC from 1999-2000. Additionally, he was the First Dean of the School of Engineering at USC from 2003-2010 and the First Head of the Spanish Conference of Chemical Engineering Deans (CODDIQ) from 2008-2012.
He has received multiple honours, including being awarded Dr Honoris causa by Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain (2023), Universidad de Valladolid, Spain (2021), Politecnico de Milano, Italy (2021), and Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Chile (2015). He is also an Honorary Professor at The University of Queensland, Australia (2018) and Beijing University of Chemical Technology (2024). He is a Fellow (2014) and Distinguished Fellow (2022) of the International Water Association, IWA.
He is the recipient of several awards, such as the Golden Insignia of the University of Santiago de Compostela (2013), the Martinez Moreno Award of Innovation (2011), the Golden Medal of Chemical Engineering University of Valladolid (2010), the Babcock Innovation Award (2004), and the European Prize of Industrial Enzymes. Barcelona (1993); Ingeniero Comerma Award (Ferrol, 1989).

Education

• Ph.D. in Industrial Chemistry. University of Santiago de Compostela, 1975
• Graduation in Industrial Chemistry University of Santiago de Compostela, 1971

Positions

• Full Professor, Univ.Santiago de Compostela (USC) 1985-
• Dean of Environmental Engineering USC (2001-)
• Head of Department of Chemical Engineering USC (1991-2001)
• Full Professor, Univ. Autonoma de Barcelona (UAB) (1983-85)
• Associate Professor UAB (1976-83)
• Assistant Professor USC (1971-1975)

Teaching Activities

• Fundamentals of Chemical Engineering. (Chemical Engineering Degree, 1st year
• Bioprocesses (Master in Chemical Engineering and Bioprocesses)
• Research Projects (Master in Chemical Engineering and Bioprocesses)

Research Activities

• Biotransformation of organic micropollutants in wastewater
• Tertiary treatment of micropollutants in enzymatic reactors with nanoparticles
• Selective production of VFA by anaerobic fermentation
• Development of innovative Wastewater Treatment Plants
• Microbial dynamics in anaerobic reactors
• Bioplastics production from lignocellulosic wastes