Research Projects

The mechanization of farming practices, increased arable land use, and the use of agrochemicals have led to an increase in agricultural production and waste in many countries. In developing countries like India, the large-scale cultivation of crops like rice and wheat has generated large quantities of crop residue, which is not able to be managed effectively. This has led to air pollution and deterioration of air quality. A project was undertaken to develop novel green nanocatalysts using waste biomass, which were successfully used for waste water detoxification and plastic waste treatment. A lab scale prototype was developed to examine the practicality of the proposed system. However, the project faced challenges in industrial implementation, such as small catalyst production, limited water treatment rate, and easy recoverability. To overcome these obstacles, strategies for upscaling the proof of concept will be developed. Bulk production of the synthesized nanocatalysts will be done by increasing precursors, introducing activated carbon and biochar from floral waste, and improving magnetic recoverability. Cobalt ferrite and hard ferrites such as strontium ferrite will be encrusted in the floral waste derived nanocomposites, providing almost 100 magnetic retrievability and boosting catalytic performance. The effectiveness of the synthesized nanocatalysts will be tested at lab scale, with real water samples collected from various regions of Haryana, Punjab, and Himachal. A pilot model will be prepared at the large scale to explore the industrial applicability of the proposed work. The main goal is to upgrade the batch mode to continuous treatment of waste water, allowing for the application of the proposed model on an industrial level.