April 17 - 23, 2021
April 17 - 23, 2021 (Virtual)
2021 MRS Spring Meeting

Symposium SM13-Advances in Membrane and Water Treatment Materials for Sustainable Environmental Remediation

While the past century of water treatment and environmental remediation has been largely influenced by chemical treatments (e.g., chlorination, peroxide, persulfate, ozone), the future of water treatment will be defined by advanced materials innovations. From membrane technologies and adsorbent materials, to photo- and electrocatalysts, materials research is driving new functionalities that are redefining what is possible in treatment and remediation applications. Novel engineered materials are being explored for drinking water, wastewater, industrial process water, and groundwater treatments, to both enable more efficient treatments of conventional contaminants, and provide solutions to emerging contaminants (e.g., microplastics, perfluorinated compounds, algal toxins, pharmaceutical & personal care products). With water concerns closely tied to climate change, sustainability and green chemistry have been important considerations in development of the next generation of water treatment materials. This symposium aims to bring together research leaders for a discussion on the state-of-the-art of materials for water.

Topics will include:

  • Membrane science and technology
  • Adsorbent materials for aqueous contaminants
  • Photocatalysts for water contaminant treatment
  • Electrochemical catalysts and materials
  • Nanomaterials for water treatment
  • Reactive materials (e.g., zero valent iron) for remediation applications
  • Biomaterials and biosourced materials for water treatment
  • Sustainable or “green” materials for water and environmental clean-up
  • Materials development directed at emerging contaminants

Invited Speakers:

  • Rose Amal (University of New South Wales, Australia)
  • Jaie Wei Chew (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore)
  • Tai-shung Chung (National Singapore University, Singapore)
  • Carlos Martinez Huitle (Instituto de Química, Brazil)
  • David Jassby (University of California, Los Angeles, USA)
  • Gregory Lowry (Carnegie Mellon University, USA)
  • Meagan Mauter (Carnegie Mellon University, USA)
  • Baoxia Mi (University of California, Berkeley, USA)
  • Francois Perreault (Arizona State University, USA)
  • Thijs Vlugt (Delft University of Technology, Netherlands)
  • Paul Westerhoff (Arizona State University, USA)
  • Dongyuan Zhao (Fudan University, China)
  • Julie Zimmerman (Yale University, USA)
  • Pedro Zlvarez (Rice University, USA)

Symposium Organizers

Frank Gu
University of Toronto
Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry
Canada

Susanne Lackner
Technische Universität Darmstadt
Institut IWAR
Germany

Rob Simm
Stantec
USA

Topics

absorbent adhesion adhesive adsorption catalytic ion-exchange material nanoscale reactivity Sustainability water