3D printing of photocatalytic nanomaterials for water purification

3D printing of photocatalytic nanomaterials for water purification

Micropollutants, substances such as active pharmaceutical ingredients, drugs, caffeine and hormones, found in ppm and ppb concentration in wastewater, slowly accumulate in the environment and eventually find their way in the human food chain, with serious adverse health effects.
The low concentration of these substances in domestic wastewater, though, makes their removal extremely challenging with current technology used by water companies.

Current water treatment technology is ineffective at removing micro-pollutants at a cost and energy consumption acceptable to society.

In this PhD project we will use 3D printing methods to fabricate photocatalytic nanostructured materials capable of simultaneously filter and degrade micropollutants in water under visible and UV light illumination. The result will be a cost-effective and energy efficient method to purify water.

This PhD project is part of a 5-year, £5.5M multi-university award on designing a novel generation of highly durable membranes for a range of applications, from water treatment to gas separations.

The successful applicant will be housed in the Environmental Nanotechnology Laboratory (www.bath.ac.uk/nanotech), and join a dynamic and growing research group focussed on addressing global environmental challenges through the use of nanotechnology.

If you are interested in the project, please contact Dr Davide Mattia ([Email Address Removed]) with a brief cover letter (specifying how you meet the (1) citizenship, (2) degree and (3) English language eligibility requirements) and a CV.