Outline

RECWET booklet
(Jul 2025 edition)

Since the establishment in 2000, we have been conducting research and development of cutting-edge water environment control technologies using diverse approaches based on the integration and collaboration of basic sciences such as microbial ecology and practical studies such as water treatment engineering in order to meet the social challenges and expectations of realizing a sustainable water environment.
In 2019, the center was reorganized into three divisions. We are currently promoting research and education in collaboration with water-related researchers in a wider range of fields within the university, including Chemistry and biotechnology, Civil engineering and Material engineering. Additionally, Laboratory of International Wastewater-based Epidemiology, which was established in March 2024, is working to implement technologies developed through industry-academia collaboration in society. Furthermore, in October 2024, Shinshu University/The University of Tokyo Collaboration Branch Office was established, aiming to integrate advanced research in the water field by collaborating with Shinshu University.
Moreover, our activities in the water fields, including international cooperation, human resource development, and hosting international conferences, mainly conducted in Asia, are gaining international recognition. We will continue to promote research and education activities with the aim of becoming an international research hub for water environmental engineering. We would appreciate your continued support for the activities of the center.

News & TopicsArchive＞

2025/10/22
[Notice] RECWET Annual report has been issued

The two-year annual report which summarizes RECWET'S activities and research results for FY2023-2024 has been issued.

● The 2023-2024 report (PDF, 4.8MB)
● The list of the past reports (Japanese)
2025/10/10
[Activities] Activities at International Ultraviolet Association, IUVA (Prof. Oguma)

As of Sep. 9, 2025, Prof. Kumiko Oguma (International Water Environment) has been elected as the IUVA President-Elect (Incoming President). She is honored, especially as the first person from outside North America and Europe to take on this role.
List of IUVA Board Members　Image：IUVA LinkedIn

She also served as the Program Committee Chair for the 2025 IUVA Asian Pacific Regional Symposium, held at the National University of Singapore on July 7-8, and contributed a review to UVSolutions, the official publication of the International Ultraviolet Society.
● Kumiko Oguma (2025) Reviewing the 2025 IUVA Asian Pacific Regional Symposium, UVSolutions, Quarter 3, 46-47.

2025/10/09
[Publication] Joint research paper with the Japanese Red Cross Society (Prof. Oguma)

Prof. Kumiko Oguma (International Water Environment) and Japanese Red Cross Society investigated the quality of platelets after storage following irradiation with ultraviolet C (UVC) light-emitting diodes (LED), and the paper was published online by Transfus. Med.
UVC-LEDs have attracted considerable attention as potential solutions to transfusion-related infections.

● Tomoya Hayashi, Yoshihiko Sakurai, Yoshihiro Fujimura, Kumiko Oguma, Yuichi Mishima, Fumiya Hirayama, Yoshihiko Tani, Yoshihiro Takihara, Takafumi Kimura (2025) Quality of platelet concentrates after three-day storage following 265 nm ultraviolet C-light-emitting diode irradiation, Transfusion Medicine, Early View, 1-8.
https://doi.org/10.1111/tme.70025
2025/10/08
[Award] World's Top 2% Scientists List (Prof. Kato ＆ Project Prof. Kitajima)

The latest edition (2025/Vol.8) of the "Updated Science-Wide Author Databases of Standardized Citation Indicators", a list of top-cited scientists created by Stanford University and Elsevier, was released on Sep 19, 2025. Among the current members of RECWET, Prof. Emeritus Takashi Kato (the Branch office) and Project Prof. Masaaki Kitajima (International Wastewater-based Epidemiology) were selected for both the "career-long" and "single recent year" categories *.

● Prof. Emeritus Kato (Chemistry - Polymers, General Chemistry field)
　Consecutive selection for both Career and Single year since 2019/Vol.1
● Project Prof. Kitajima (Biomedical Research - Environmental Sciences, Microbiology field)
　Career: 2024, 2025
　Single year: 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025

This list covers scientists worldwide who have published at least five papers in 22 scientific fields and 174 sub-fields. The top 2% of scientists in each subfield were selected based on information from Scopus, an abstract and citation database provided by Elsevier.

* Based on citation received during calendar year 2024
2025/10/02
[Presentation] Oral presentaions at IWA-ASPIRE (Assoc. Profs. Hashimoto & Kasuga)

At the Asia-Pacific Regional Conference IWA-ASPIRE (September 30th - October 2nd, New Zealand), a Doctoral student supervised by Assoc. Prof. Takashi Hashimoto (Water Quality Control Technologies and Materials Development), his collaborator, Project Asst. Prof. Cecilia Burzio (RECWET Collaborative Member), and a project researcher led by Project Assoc. Prof. Ikuro Kasuga (International Wastewater-based Epidemiology) gave oral presentations as follows.

● Cecilia Burzio, Michael Welle, Yoshihiko Kawaguchi, Koji Kosaka, Kazuhiro Komatsu, Takashi Hashimoto (2025) DETECTION OF RIVER WATER CONTAMINATION USING EXCITATION-EMISSION MATRIX FLUORESCENCE SPECTROSCOPY AND MACHINE LEARNING TOOLS.
● Yan Tung Lo, Takashi Hashimoto, Satoshi Takizawa (2025) ROLE OF FUNCTIONALIZATION IN CARBON-BASED NANOSHEETS FOR ENHANCED REJECTION OF POLLUTANTS IN THIN-FILM NANOCOMPOSITE MEMBRANES.
● Thi My Hanh VU, Futoshi KURISU, Futoshi HASEBE, Masato SUZUKI, Ikuro KASUGA (2025) WASTEWATER SURVEILLANCE OF ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE GENES BY HIGH-THROUGHPUT QUANTITATIVE PCR IN FIVE CITIES IN VIETNAM.
　　10th IWA-ASPIRE Conference and Water New Zealand Conference & Expo, 29 Sep - 3 Oct, Christchurch.