David Ikumi obtained his bachelor’s degree and PhD at the University of Cape Town, in South Africa. He came to Université Laval to work with Prof. Vanrolleghem for an internship during 6 months.

His project was titled "Plant-Wide Integrated Biological, Chemical and Physical  Bioprocess Modelling in Three-Phases (aqueous-gas-solid)". State and dynamic mathematical models for the anaerobic and aerobic digestion of sludge; including waste activated sludge (WAS) produced by biological excess phosphorus removal (BEPR) plants, are developed within a plant-wide setting. These models are to aid in finding the most cost effective methods for the design and operation of wastewater treatment plants.

To promote widespread utilization of these models in a reproducible way, the work was done on their calibration, using standard procedures. Moreover, prospective work involves exploring modifications required for use of the models in prediction of full-scale system behavior.