Yadira Bajon Fernandez

Dr. Yadira Bajón Fernández is a Senior Lecturer in Bioresources Science and Engineering at Cranfield University, part of the Cranfield Water Science Institute. She holds a PhD in Applied Sciences from Cranfield University and specializes in water science and engineering, particularly focusing on bioresources treatment and wastewater management. Her research emphasizes anaerobic digestion of waste materials, including municipal sludge, energy crops, and municipal solid waste, alongside thermal and biological pre-treatment technologies.

Current research activities include optimizing anaerobic digestion processes, studying gas-to-liquid mass transfer in wastewater treatment, and developing low-energy treatment methods for rural areas. She leads the UK Wastewater Network, a collaborative initiative involving 11 water utilities and 3 universities. Dr. Fernández’s work spans interdisciplinary topics such as microbial chemotaxis in xenobiotic degradation, artificial neural networks for corrosion prediction in wastewater infrastructure, and UAV-based monitoring of greenhouse gas emissions.

Her publications highlight advancements in biogas production optimization, phosphorus removal technologies, and wastewater-based epidemiology. She advises students like Nasreen Nasar and contributes to projects like intelligent flood response strategies and constructed wetland innovations. Collaborative efforts include the MiDAS 5 study on anaerobic digester microbiota diversity.