Laboratoire Eau Environnement et Systèmes Urbains (Leesu)

List of theses submitted for the Habilitation to Direct Research

Julien Le Roux — 2026-09-09T13:24:55Z

Liste des Habilitations à Diriger des Recherches (HDR) soutenues au Leesu

HDR de Julien Le Roux : Caractérisation de la diversité et du comportement des micropolluants dans les systèmes d'assainissement et en milieu urbain - soutenue le 9 juillet 2026.

HDR de Rachid Dris : Microplastics in continental environments : building a holistic approach through a decade of research - soutenue le 28 mai 2026.

HDR de Clarisse Balland : Contribution de la biogéochimie appliquée à la géologie urbaine - soutenue le 23 mars 2026.

HDR de My Dung Jusselme : Écologie microbienne de l'environnement : diversité, fonctionnement, services écosystémiques et interactions avec les micropolluants - soutenue le 20 janvier 2026.

HDR de Adèle bressy : Micropolluants dans les eaux urbaines : sources d'émission et solutions de réduction à différentes échelles - soutenue le 1^er juin 2023.

HDR de Céline Bonhomme : La modélisation de la qualité des eaux de ruissellement urbaines face à ses défis, enjeux et contradictions - soutenue le 16 juin 2017.

HDR de Johnny Gasperi : Contaminants organiques en milieu urbain et dans les hydrosystèmes anthropisés - soutenue le 8 juillet 2013.

HDR de Marie-Christine Gromaire : Contribution à l'étude des sources et flux de contaminants dans les eaux pluviales urbaines - soutenue le 28 novembre 2012.

HDR de Gilles Varrault : Les contaminants dans les milieux récepteurs sous forte pression urbaine - soutenue le 24 novembre 2011.

HDR de Régis Moilleron : Hydrocarbures et métaux en milieu ubain - soutenue le 13 décembre 2004.

HDR de Ghassan Chebbo

AI uses

bvl, Julien Le Roux — 2026-08-30T12:24:44Z

For several years now, LEESU's research has required the use of advanced digital tools for environmental phenomenon modeling and for processing chemical and biological analysis data and for field high-frequency timeseries. The development of new tools based on artificial intelligence algorithms is currently experiencing rapid growth.

- Expertise and disciplines

General directory of Leesu staff

Administrateur, Daniel Thevenot, Valentine Court — 2026-02-24T18:00:00Z

Detailed pages of some Leesu members are available by clicking on their name in the table below, or from the detailed directory.

Contact details of former members of Leesu can be found here.

Please report any missing or wrong information to the webmaster.

Abbreviations

Fonctions :

chercheur : researcher & research engineer
enseignant : teacher/researcher
post-doc : post-doctoral fellow

Various affiliations of Leesu staff :

ENPC: École nationale des ponts et chaussées
UPEC: Université Paris-Est Créteil (Previously Université Paris 12 Val de Marne)
ENGREF: École nationale du génie rural des eaux et des forêts, AgroParisTech
CNAM: Conservatoire national des arts et métiers
CSTB: Centre scientifique et technique du bâtiment
CRECEP: Centre de recherche d'expertise et de contrôle des eaux de Paris

Nom	Prénom	Fonction	Courriel	Téléphone
Abbad Andalloussi	Samir	enseignant-chercheur	abbad(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 65 61
Alphonse	Vanessa	technicienne	vanessa.alphonse(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 65 63
Barhdadi	Rachid	enseignant-chercheur	barhdadi(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 65 61
Belleau	Rémi	doctorant	remi.belleau(AT)u-pec.fr
Bernier-Turpin	Gauthier	doctorant	gauthier.bernier-turpin(AT)u-pec.fr - gauthier.bernier-turpin(AT)upmc.fr
Balland	Clarisse	enseignant-chercheur	clarisse.balland(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 16 59
Baroudi	Malek	doctorante	malek.baroudi(AT)enpc.fr
Bonzon	Nacera	adjointe technique	nacera.bonzon(AT)u-pec.fr
Boudahmane	Lila	technicienne	lila.boudahmane(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 92
Bousserrhine	Noureddine	enseignant-chercheur	bousserrhine(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 16 59
Bressy	Adèle	chercheur	adele.bressy(AT)enpc.fr	01 82 39 20 81
Brun	Florent	doctorant	florent.brun(AT)enpc.fr
Calabro Souza	Guilherme	doctorant	guilherme.calabro-souza(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 45
Cartier	Yoann	doctorant	yoann.cartier(AT)enpc.fr
Caupos	Émilie	ingénieur de recherche	emilie.caupos(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 21 25
Chebbi	Lina	doctorante	lina.chebbi(AT)u-pec.fr
Chebbo	Ghassan	chercheur, Directeur du Leesu	chebbo(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 41
Chebbo	Samih	doctorant	samih.chebbo(AT)enpc.fr
Darcy	Emilien	Ingénieur d'études	emilien.darcy(AT)enpc.fr
Dechaseaux	Loïc	Ingénieur d'études	loic.dechaseaux(AT)enpc.fr
De Godoy Leski	Charles	chercheur	charles.de-godoy-leski(AT)enpc.fr
Deroubaix	José-Frédéric	chercheur	j.deroubaix(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 31
Dejvongsa-Laquarnoy	Soulanya	administratif	soulanya.dejvongsa-laquarnoy(AT)enpc.fr
Diop	Khadija-Yacine		khadija.diop(AT)enpc.fr
Dris	Rachid	enseignant-chercheur	rachid.dris(AT)enpc.fr
Dubois	Philippe	Ingénieur d'études	philippe.dubois(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 37 63
Eschenbrenner	Corentin	post-doctorant	corentin.eschenbrenner(AT)u-pec.fr
Esculier	Fabien	chercheur	fabien.esculier(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 37 66
Faixo	Sylvain	post-doctorant	sylvain.faixo(AT)u-pec.fr
Fernandez	Nicolas	doctorant	nicolas.fernandez1(AT)u-pec.fr
Friceau	Lucas	doctorant	lucas.friceau(AT)enpc.fr	06 72 17 10 74
Garrigue-Antar	Laure	enseignant-chercheur	laure.garrigue-antar(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 90
Grimault	Luna	doctorante	luna.grimault(AT)u-pec.fr
Gromaire	Marie-Christine	chercheur	gromaire(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 37 60
Gobert	Julie	chercheur, Directrice adjointe du Leesu	julie.gobert(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 63
Goffin	Angélique	enseignant-chercheur	angelique.goffin(AT)u-pec.fr
Guillot Legoff	Arthur	doctorant	arthur.guillot-legoff(AT)enpc.fr
Guzel	Birsu	doctorante	birsu.guzel(AT)u-pec.fr
Habouchi	Khamsa	Secrétaire générale	khamsa.habouchi(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 98
Huang	Tinghao	doctorant	tinghao.huang(AT)enpc.fr
Jawed	Sumaiya	doctorante	sumaiya.jawed(AT)enpc.fr
Joveniaux	Aurélie	post-doctorante	aurelie.joveniaux(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 39 13
Jusselme	My-Dung	enseignant-chercheur	thi-my-dung.jusselme(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 16 60
Le Roux	Julien	enseignant-chercheur	julien.le-roux(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 80
Legrand	Marine	chargée de recherche	marine.legrand(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 36
Li	Yao Sophia	posdoctorante	yao.li(AT)enpc.fr
Livet	Alexandre	assistant-ingénieur	livet(AT)u-pec.fr	01 45 17 65 63
Louison	Claudia	administratif	claudia.louison(AT)u-pec.fr
Lucas	Françoise	enseignant-chercheur	lucas(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 84
Marquet	Alice	doctorante	alice.marquet(AT)enpc.fr
Martinache	Pierre	postdoctorant	pierre.martinache(AT)enpc.fr
Mesnil	Camille	postdoctorante	camille.mesnil(AT)enpc.fr
Moilleron	Régis	enseignant-chercheur	moilleron(AT)u-pec.fr regis.moilleron(AT)enpc.fr	UPEC : 01 45 17 16 22 - ENPC : 01 64 15 36 35
Moussallem	Elie	doctorant	elie.moussallem(AT)enpc.fr
Poirier	Armand	doctorant	armand.poirier(AT)u-pec.fr
Qiu	Yang zi	chercheur	yangzi.qiu(AT)enpc.fr
Raguet	Louise	chargée de valorisation	louise.raguet(AT)enpc.fr
Ravaozafindrasoa	Ravo	doctorant	ravo.ravaozafindrasoa(AT)u-pec.fr	06 92 38 06 69
Raoult	Antoine	doctorant	antoine.raoult(AT)u-pec.fr
Rehman	Naeem Ur	doctorant	naeem-ur.rehman(AT)enpc.fr
Roux	Julia	postdoctorante	julia.roux(AT)enpc.fr
Saad	Mohamed	ingénieur de recherche	mohamed.saad(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 37 57
Saad	Rim	doctorante	rim.saad(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 39 13
Seidl	Martin	ingénieur de recherche	seidl(AT)leesu.enpc.fr	01 64 15 39 75
Simons	Alexis	enseignant-chercheur	alexis.simons(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 83
Sipan	Océane	post-doctorante	oceane.sipan(AT)enpc.fr
Smyth	Kelsey	post-doctorante	kelsey.smyth(AT)enpc.fr
Srikanthasamy	Tharaniya	enseignante-chercheuse	tharaniya.tambosco(AT)iutsf.org
Ta	Van-Bao	postdoctorant	van-bao.ta(AT)enpc.fr
Tassin	Bruno	chercheur	bruno.tassin(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 40
Therial	Claire	ingenieur d'études	claire.therial(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 93
Thévenot	Daniel	enseignant-chercheur émérite	daniel.thevenot(AT)enpc.fr	06 51 64 23 29 & 01 64 15 36 30
Tramoy	Romain	enseignant-chercheur	romain.tramoy(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 95
Tourret	Antoine	doctorant	antoine.tourret(AT)u-pec.fr
Vadaine	Clément	doctorant	clement.vadaine(AT)u-pec.fr
Varrault	Gilles	enseignant-chercheur, Directeur adjoint du Leesu	gilles.varrault(AT)u-pec.fr	01 82 39 20 78
Vinçon-Leite	Brigitte	chercheur	bvl(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 36 42
Zime Yerima	Hayath	doctorante	hayath.zime-yerima(AT)enpc.fr	01 64 15 39 13

Theme 3: Functioning and Territorial Management of Receiving Environments

2024-12-20T14:22:00Z

Description

The impact of anthropogenic pressures on receiving environments and the governance of these impacts are central to the research conducted at Leesu under this theme. The studied receiving environments include rivers, water bodies, and urban and peri-urban soils.

Particular attention is given to the evolution of the sanitary and environmental quality of these ecosystems. A unique aspect of the approaches taken is the combined consideration of the physical, biogeochemical, and ecological functioning of the ecosystems studied. In the face of these anthropogenic pressures, the resilience of urban receiving environments becomes a critical question. How will these ecosystems evolve under climate change and increasing anthropogenic pressure? How can they be better preserved? What solutions, and at what scales, can make them resilient? How can research findings be more effectively integrated into ecosystem restoration projects undertaken by operational actors (municipalities, companies, etc.)? What issues of territorial justice are raised by the transformation of these environments?

The objectives of this theme are to:

evaluate the impact of anthropogenic pressures on receiving environments in metropolitan territories: soils, rivers, and water bodies;
analyze the evolution of pollutant concentrations and fluxes (organic micropollutants, trace metals, plastics), sanitary quality, and ecosystem functioning;
develop an integrated approach that considers the hydrodynamic, biogeochemical, ecological, and socio-political functioning of the ecosystems studied.

The theme is composed of several sub-themes:

Functioning of Urban Aquatic Environments
Functioning of Urban Soil
Functioning and Preservation of Built Environment Ecosystems
Territorial Management of Receiving Environments

Research theme moderators

Research programs associated to this theme

actions in MeSeine Innovation
MIAM
Lakes and reservoirs in metropolitan territories

Theme 2: Sources and Fate of Contaminants and Nutrients in Urban and Peri-Urban Environments

2024-12-20T13:23:53Z

Description

This research theme, historically significant at Leesu, primarily focuses on the measurement and modeling of chemical and microbiological contaminants, as well as nutrients and their fluxes in urban areas.

The goal is to enhance understanding of the sources and fluxes of contaminants to ensure or develop specific anthropogenic uses of aquatic environments (e.g., swimming) and to protect ecosystems from inputs of organic matter (OM) and micropollutants. The methodologies are now mature, with notable examples including:

the creation of operational tools for high-frequency monitoring of OM to optimize treatment processes in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs),
the development of non-targeted screening methods for micropollutants, coupled with ecotoxicological approaches to assess the impact of urban discharges on receiving environments,
the establishment of micropollutant observatories at the scale of the Paris metropolitan area (e.g., the City Observatory, prefigured by Leesu under the OPUR program and implemented by SIAAP).

New research will focus on studying different methods to reduce the transfer of micropollutants into the environment, particularly through reducing domestic usage of chemical substances (practice changes). The evaluation of the efficiency and adaptability of centralized treatment facilities will continue, especially in light of the revision of the Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD), which will require better characterization of quaternary treatments for micropollutant removal.

Efforts to optimize wastewater and drinking water treatment processes, including the deployment of high-frequency OM characterization, will also persist. Research into degradation products and ecotoxicology will continue, employing, for example, multi-model approaches to estimate the toxicity of urban wastewater and accounting for antibiotic resistance (via identifying responsible genes) that could arise from new disinfection processes.

Additional studies will focus on macroplastics, precursors to microplastics, at the city scale, along with the additives used in the composition of microplastics.

Research theme moderators

Research programs associated to this theme

Theme 1: Towards more resilient urban water management Models

2024-12-20T10:58:52Z

Description

In the context of global changes, it is essential to explore potential pathways for evolving sanitation systems to address the challenges of the 21st century. New approaches to managing water, nutrient flows, and pollutants are being developed. These approaches aim to consider the recovery of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus resources currently found in wastewater and stormwater, leveraging their potential for climate change adaptation, while promoting alternative water resources to potable water, reducing energy consumption, and minimizing the environmental impact of urban systems.

This theme focuses on the analysis of emerging socio-technical systems related to water and material management, along with their associated processes. It aims to evaluate their performance through an interdisciplinary approach, optimize their operation, and support their deployment. The new management models under study range from incremental to transformative shifts compared to dominant practices. They require changes in the practices of urban stakeholders (managers, developers, residents, associations, etc.), including: implementing source separation of urine and fecal matter for agricultural reuse; using or recycling non-conventional water resources at the parcel or neighborhood scale; and promoting source-based stormwater management.

The theme is composed of several sub-themes:

Integrated Stormwater Management
Source Separation and Management of Urban Excreta
Alternative Water Resources and Reuse

Research theme moderators

Research programs associated to this theme

FreezePee - presentation

Julien Le Roux — 2024-12-18T08:13:58Z

Years : 2024 - 2027

Name of the project : FreezePee : Evaluation of an innovative cryoconcentration process: development, analysis and demonstration of a new urine-based fertilizer.

Funding: APR GRAINE de l'ADEME.

1. Context and proposal

In the current wastewater management model ("everything down the drain"), most urban effluents are collected and directed to treatment plants where they are processed. This approach is predominantly linear, with nitrogen primarily denitrified and released into the atmosphere, and with only 4% being recycled in the Île-de-France region, even though the excretions of its residents could cover the region's fertilizer needs. Urine has the advantage of containing most of the excreted nutrients. Moreover, it is generally low in pathogenic and metal contamination, although the question of pharmaceutical contaminants remains. Various treatments can be applied to urine to produce different urine-based fertilizers.

The Agrocapi project (APR Graine 2018) demonstrated the strong potential of urine-based fertilizers to increase agricultural resilience and reduce its environmental footprint. Building on Agrocapi's findings, the FreezePee project aims to establish a new inventory of existing and emerging urine valorization pathways in agriculture and evaluate them.

Ultimately, in alignment with the OCAPI research-action program, this project seeks to support the emergence of the most relevant human urine valorization pathways tailored to different territorial contexts. Positioned at the intersection of multiple disciplines (agronomy, environmental science, process engineering, etc.), this project brings together multidisciplinary and complementary research teams along with non-scientific partners.

2. Objectives

A comprehensive literature review compiling current knowledge will be conducted and supplemented by an evaluation of emerging pathways. Particular attention will be given to the three major challenges highlighted in the Agrocapi project: achieving low-energy urine concentration, minimizing nitrogen volatilization, and improving understanding of the fate of organic micropollutants.

Experiments will be conducted on recent advancements in nutrient concentration through freezing, new nitrogen stabilization methods (acidification, passive nitrification), and the fate of micropollutants. The anticipated new urine-based fertilizers include acidified granulated urine ("granurin") and fertilizers derived from freezing processes (some of which will be produced ad hoc following passive nitrification). These products will be characterized (nutrient concentrations, composition, pharmaceutical residues), particularly through field trials (agronomic interest, ammoniacal nitrogen volatilization). Their production chains will also be analyzed (energy and water consumption, avoided pollution, etc.).

Finally, the project aims to promote the dissemination of alternative solutions by showcasing its results through the creation of a pedagogical demonstrator, highlighting the challenges and solutions available and presenting the pathways studied within this project.

Partners

Contacts: Julien Le Roux, Corentin Eschenbrenner, Fabien Esculier

ChemBiodiv - presentation

Julien Le Roux — 2024-12-17T12:18:39Z

Years : 2024 - 2027

Name of the project : ChemBiodiv: Linking Chemical Pressure to Its Effects on Biodiversity in Urban Waters.

1. Context and proposal

The quality of aquatic environments and water resources can be assessed through their chemical contamination, particularly by emerging contaminants, or through the biodiversity they support. The presence of contaminants (e.g., pesticides, biocides, pharmaceuticals, industrial or household products, etc.) negatively affects ecosystem health, causing harm to aquatic organisms, biodiversity loss, and human health issues, such as degraded water quality for drinking water production and increased risks of antibiotic resistance.

To characterize chemical contamination in aquatic environments, non-targeted analysis methods using high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) have been developed to capture chemical fingerprints of organic contaminants in samples. At Leesu, two doctoral theses have explored this topic: the first (Nina Huynh) focused on developing the analytical method and applying it to analyze pollutants in various urban waters, particularly within wastewater treatment processes. The second thesis (Julien Sade), initiated as part of the MeSeine Innovation program, aimed to develop advanced computational tools for data processing, using numerical and statistical approaches to link detected chemical signals to the measured toxicity of Seine River water samples impacted by urban discharges.

In parallel, the study of environmental DNA (eDNA) — capturing signals from macro- and microorganisms in the environment through water samples — has become increasingly used for monitoring biodiversity. At Leesu, such metagenomic analysis methods were applied in the thesis of Sadia Bagagnan, enabling precise characterization of bacterial communities in the Seine. These studies revealed the dynamics of these communities under various anthropogenic pressures (e.g., urban discharges, wastewater disinfection treatments) and seasonal or climatic variations.

Recent technological advances allow for the recording of chemical fingerprints using non-targeted approaches and the measurement of environmental DNA for biodiversity analysis, generating vast amounts of data. The challenge lies in developing multivariate analysis tools to facilitate the use of these datasets. Digital tools are increasingly being applied to process and interpret HRMS spectra of contaminants in water, as well as environmental DNA to extract biodiversity indicators or explain spatial and temporal variability.

Combining these two approaches offers a promising path to characterize complex chemical mixtures while simultaneously analyzing their effects and impacts on ecosystems.

2. Objectives

The overall objective of this project is to evaluate the feasibility of jointly interpreting HRMS chemical fingerprints of water contaminants with biodiversity data provided by eDNA or microbial biodiversity analyses, by developing and applying numerical methods.

More specifically, the aims are to:

Identify key tracers or indicators for each data type (HRMS and eDNA) based on scientific literature and automate their processing.
Develop data processing methods to integrate HRMS and eDNA datasets using advanced statistical tools or machine learning techniques.
Propose a relevant sampling strategy to collect both HRMS and eDNA data, enabling regular monitoring across different sampling points.
Track and interpret the spatio-temporal evolution of molecules/markers of interest identified earlier, with monitoring conducted at various frequencies (seasonal, weekly, daily) and along multiple sampling points in the Seine River.

3. Funding

EUR LIVE (Graduate School Life Trajectories & Health Vulnerability : Doctoral schlolarship of Ravo Ravaosafindrasoa
Ile-de-France region - PRPhD 2024 : Doctoral scholarship de Malek Baroudi
SIAAP (MeSeine Innovation program - action 2.2.3)

4. Partners

Contacts: Adèle Bressy, Julien Le Roux, My Dung Jusselme

Two locations

Administrateur, Daniel Thevenot — 2024-09-05T17:00:00Z

Contacts at the two locations of Leesu

École nationale des ponts et chaussées (Enpc)

6-8 avenue Blaise Pascal, Cité Descartes, Champs sur Marne, 77 455 Marne-La-Vallée Cedex 2

Enpc

Bâtiment Prony, second floor, door P.108

Catherine Charleux : catherine.charleux(AT)enpc.fr

Phone: 01 64 15 36 26

Fax: 01 64 15 37 64

How to come

Université Paris-Est Créteil (UPEC)

Faculté des Sciences et Technologie, 61 avenue du Général de Gaulle, 94010 Créteil Cedex

MSE, UPEC

Maison des Sciences de l'Environnement (MSE)

Claudia Louison : claudia.louison(AT)u-pec.fr

Phone : 01 82 39 21 20

How to come

PhD defence by Max BEAUREPAIRE - April 5th 2024

Daniel Thevenot — 2024-04-05T14:00:00Z

Dear friends and colleagues,

It is my pleasure to officially announce to you that I will be defending my thesis, entitled “Contributing to the assessment of the impact of urban activities on microplastic transport through air and runoff infiltration”, on Friday 5 April at 2pm.

The jury will be composed of the following:

Jeroen Sonke, directeur de recherche, CNRS, reviewer;
Jes Vollertsen, professor, Aalborg University, reviewer;
Liselotte Tinel, maîtresse de conférences, IMT Nord Europe, examiner;
Gislain Lipeme-Kouyi, professeur, INSA Lyon, examiner;
Claudia Campanale, assistant professor, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, examiner;
Bruno Tassin, directeur de recherche, LEESU-ENPC, PhD director;
Johnny Gasperi, directeur de recherche, GERS-LEE, PhD co-director;
Rachid Dris (whom I don't need to introduce)

The defence will take place at Ecole des Ponts ParisTech, at amphitheater Caquot 2, within Coriolis building, 12 Boulevard Copernic, 77420 Champs-sur-Marne.

Here is also a link to attend remotely.

See you very soon,

Max Beaurepaire