Water is one of the most abundant materials on the earth, possessing exceptional properties when compared with other materials. It exhibits a large number of anomalies that decisively shape our planet and life as we know it. In this talk, Professor Irina Smirnova and her colleague, Razan Altarabeen, will look at water from the perspective of chemical engineering, answering questions like - Can we apply water instead of organic solvents in material production to make it more sustainable? Can we change the raw materials properties by the targeted interactions with water? Can water enable us to produce novel materials from renewable sources? They will draw from current research on the fractionation of different biomasses with water at different process conditions as an alternative to organic solvents, processing agricultural and food waste into new materials for thermal insulation, food structuring and active ingredient carriers while leveraging materials which significantly change their properties when in contact with water, thus enabling a new generation of switchable devices for energy harvesting and optical applications.
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Speaker
Professor Irina Smirnova
Executive Co-Director
UNU Hub at Hamburg University of Technology
