Separations

Crushing one ton of sugarcane results in about 40 kg of filter press mud and about 250 kg of sugarcane bagasse (SCB). The filter press mud is usually discarded or used as compost while bagasse is used for its fuel value.

Both Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations will be performed in this proposed study using open source software packages MCCCS Towhee and GROMACS respectively as well as in-house codes, for post-processing of output data.

Computer-aided molecular design of new, non-traditional solvents is also part of the overall computational scheme.

Although earth is covered with 70% of water, only 2% of it is available as fresh drinkable water. Access to this fresh water is scarce in many parts of the country. The groundwater contamination due to industrial pollution and geological minerals leads to many health issues, especially in childrens and women. Conversion of sea-water to fresh water is an expensive and energy-intensive process. The aim of this project is to find organic and inorganic porous materials for water purification.

Natural gas meets around 20-25% of world energy demands. Overall the world has around 200 trillion cubic meters of natural gas reserves and new reservoirs are being found. Methane gas constitutes around 80-90% of natural gas, and for economical utilization of methane as fuel, efficient separation technology is required. The aim of this project is to design new nanoporous materials for methane separation and storage from natural gas.