Our vision is to become the premiere organization to provide nanotechnology-based water treatment solutions and services for South Africa through ground breaking water research and training programmes.
In the first five years of our research programme, we will focus on synthesis, characterization and development of nanotechnology-based membrane materials, adsorbents and nanomaterials designed for water sustainability applications, lab-scale performance testing, mechanistic modeling and benchmarking. All of these basic research activities will be designed to facilitate rapid optimization, scale-up and commercialization potential of IP developed through the Unit’s strategic funding. In the next five to ten years, the research programmes will move beyond lab-scale synthesis, characterization and testing into prototype fabrication and field-testing of the most commercially promising innovations working with appropriate manufacturing partners, industrial and municipal end users.
The strategic value of the vision for the Institute for Nanotechnology and Water Sustainability is distinct in that it:
Our mission is to become a hub of applied sciences and engineering research activities at the emerging interfaces of nanotechnology and water purification, focusing on the production and application of advanced materials. We strive to solve some of the long standing and fundamentally important problems of water purification using cutting edge tools. The ultimate goal is to develop sustainable solutions that are commercialisable and to train and educate post-graduate students to become the next generation experts in the field of nanotechnology and water treatment. This will be achieved through the contribution of experienced academic researchers within the unit, our strong collaborations with experts locally and internationally, and through established partnerships with industry experts.
Last modified: 2023/08/07