green technology – The KGP Chronicle

The Home called Alma Mater – The Class of KGPian Millennials

Homecoming 2022 of the 10th, 15th & 20th Graduates of IIT KGP

Every happiness of yesterday is a memory for tomorrow. Sometimes you never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory. This feeling was revived by our class of KGPian Millennials who revisited the home that nourished and shaped them…to make them what they are today. From 17th to 20th August 2022, along the lines of IIT Kharagpur’s 72nd Foundation Day, the institute welcomed the classes of 2000, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2010 & 2012 batches who held nothing but gratitude and affection for their Alma Mater. Their eyes sparkled with joy, that they shared with the Campus, the Professors, the Staffs and the entire IIT KGP community that welcomed them with the plethora of belongingness they had bid farewell to. With lots of transitions that encountered them at their first glace to the institute, the essence of the institute with the starry night and the dancing trees stood ecstatic.

IIT Kharagpur’s Homecoming is an annual quest of memorabilia that happens every year. Since 2018, batches who have completed 20, 15 and 10 years of association with the Institute from the date of joining the institute, assemble to rejoice the coming together of Alums celebrating the institute’s birthday on 18 August with their overwhelming presence in the campus. The air inside the campus breathes differently when its Homecoming, a Celebration of the Wishful Bonds, together with students, faculty members and campus residents. This year, the campus honoured the Young Alumni Achievers for the year 2022 for their technological developments, innovative researches, service towards the community, service towards the nation, leadership and entrepreneurial skills, governance and administration, social impact and social welfare, contributions towards nation building and other professional accomplishments. IIT Kharagpur is proud to recognize its outstanding, notable and accomplished young alumni, who have made distinguished and outstanding contributions in their respective domains and areas.

Prof. Debashish Chakravarty, Associate Dean, Alumni Affairs & Branding announced the names of the awardees who were conferred the Alumni Endowed Student Scholarship. He stated that, “These awards are instituted by none other than the Alumni themselves. Under the eligibility of certain criterion and depending on the number of applicants, the winners have been recognized. I congratulate all the awardees and thank all the Alums who connected with us in this Homecoming 2022.”

So much has changed since the last time I came herein 2010, I literally was unable to locate Cheddi while entering IIT KGP says Mr. Swapnil Tembe [2009/B.Tech/ME/RP]. The Deputy Commissioner of West Garo Hills District in Meghalaya left Deloitte in 2011 to become an IAS officer reminisces his long journey. Upon asking how he would like to get connected with his Alma Mater he said, “On the grounds of social entrepreneurship, policy reforms, with the new disciplines coming in the amalgamation of technology and public policy, how technology can assist public services, how we can collaborate with technology to brush up public services etc. He further suggested in identifying the problems, with a proforma of questions on the respective fields where things can be executed and the solutions or comprehending researches can give the solutions accordingly. He added , ” The IIT KGP is a huge community out there, even in my state there are officers from IIT Kharagpur, therefore the local meet-ups is necessary that will keep the continuity and strengthen associations with the Alma Mater. Many of the batch mates are spread across different regions, so if we could have regional conclaves for North-East zone and other zones as well, to get more participation and collaborations eventually. He stressed on Career Counselling saying that you should do things that you love otherwise it is just a job. It feels really great to be recognized by your own Alma Mater.”

Walked past those memory lanes Mr. Abhishek Kumar Yadav [2006/B.Tech/CH/AZ] Founder Chairman & Academic Director at Griffins International School remarked, “Even after getting so many awards from all over the world, there is nothing like getting recognized by your Alma Mater. I think all the IITians love the atmosphere here. After working for a period of time, I thought of starting something of my own but Entrepreneurship was something that excited me, so I came back to India and set a factory in Kharagpur. Interestingly IIT Kharagpur did not use the Green Technology up until then so I met the professors and convinced them that we should go for Green Technology because now the competition is not among states or countries, it is at a global level.

A wave of emotions filled up as he made his way to visit his classrooms, Mr. Saroj Kumar Thakur [2006/DD/EC/AZ], District Superintendent of Police, Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu (IPS) said, “It is a totally different feeling to receive the Young Alumni Achieve’s Award. I have been here 5 years from 2001 to 2006, so all those things are coming back to me. The campus is much more greener and beautiful than it was before and the Azad Hall where I was, has also changed quite a lot which is a very pleasant surprise for me. I believe in the fact that if an IITian of Kharagpur cannot do something, nobody in the world can do it, not even god (laughs). He advised everyone to take up civil services says,”Everybody should prepare for UPSC because while studying for UPSC, I came to know the entire history, geography and the whole constitution of India. These studies help you to understand your country better, from inside out. Frankly speaking, I have not given back anything to my Alma Mater till now but I am ready to oblige to any of the requests that my Institution asks from me. He smirks and adds that now its upon my Alma Mater, anything that I can contribute personally, any help that is needed from my department as well I will happily comply. With immense pride I say this sitting here that whatever I am today is because of my Alma Mater.”

Walking along the green stretches of the campus, Mr. Abhinav Kumar [2008/B.Tech/CH/LLR], Divisional Forest Officer, Hapoli Forest Division, Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh (IFS) remarked, ” It is good to be back after 8 years. Interestingly, while I was here, I did not get any medals but I must really add that getting into IIT Kharagpur is an achievement itself and something to be proud of yourself as well as for your family. It feels ecstatic when your Alma mater calls you up to honour you with an award, it is an happiness that cannot be defined in words. In the outside world, IIT Kharagpur is a brand and I feel this huge gratitude, it is really a great honour. Today we need good people in the government services as you have to be the change you want to see in the world around you. I think with the young generation coming in the civil services, we can indulge in a greater vision for the country. I would love to indulge people in providing meaningful direction and my Alma Mater is the best place to start with it.”

Ankit Jain [2013/B.Tech/MT/PH], Co-Founder, GDi Partners says, ” The institute has produced many Alumni to do wonderful things in life making us confident to seek ambition and do great things which was very evident when I started working after college. I would like to apologize to the institute for not being connected to the Institute from the last few years. After sharing our thoughts with Directors and other professors I would like to be associated more with the Institute with the immediate support that is required.”

Prof. Jayanta Mukhopadhyay, Dean Outreach & Alumni Affairs said, “From the corporate world to sports to entrepreneurs to civil servants, we find KGPians in every sphere of our society. All of our Alums are striving for excellence in their respective fields bearing proud signature of IIT Kharagpur every year. With my short association with the Alumni Affairs as Dean, I had innumerable happy interactions with our Alums who are so very passionate towards their Alma Mater. Literally, IIT KGP Fraternity is the epitome of age old mantra of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. During the last two and a half years of the pandemic, we received tremendous help and support in various forms, from our Alumni not only for our faculty, staff and students but also, to reaching out to our greater community whom we consider inseparable in our ecosystem. We would be celebrating Platinum Jubilee function of IIT Kharagpur which would mark 75 years of the Institute’s foundation, from 18 August 2025 to 17 August 2026, and have various programmes to be celebrated year long, not only here but in different cities and places where our Alums have a strong presence. We look forward to your active and passionate participation in the celebration.”

86 years old Mr. Saripalle Satyamurthy, an Alumnus from the second batch of IIT Kharagpur after its formation in 1951 inspired everybody with his presence & was awarded the Distinguished Alumnus Award 2020, unable to collect due to the pandemic. He said, ” Its after 66 years that I actually came to my campus. Embarking on a poignant memory again, he added, “All of my contemporaries are gone now, I wanted to visit the campus with them. It was thrilling and exciting when Prime Minister announce my name for the Distinguished Alumnus Award 2020, all my family and friends were really excited. With my Alma Mater, I wanted to be connected with the new things that they are developing especially for the rural community in regard to Rural Development Organization, any machinery or technology that will be beneficial to them and that should be made efficient using modern technology. Consideration should be made for the people for whom the technology is being made. With the reasonable income that I have, I wanted to contribute something to the hostels for renovations and I want to participate in the redevelopment of rooms.”

Campus tour, engagement programmes, department visit and strategic meetings, the Office of Alumni Affairs welcomed the Homecomers of 2022 in a pursuit of endearing fondness and helped them to revisit their Alma Mater in a more profound way. Discussions, meetings, brainstorming, cultural inhibitions, concrete ideations and entertaining all the fads of the Alumni, their endeavors has helped the institution to raise many endowments for institutional development. Ms. Swagata Nimaiyar(2002/BTech/AG/SN/IG) has pledged for an endowment of three lakh rupees during Homecoming 2022. IIT Kharagpur is grateful to the Alumni fraternity for their continuous support and guidance.

Inputs from : Office of the Alumni, IIT Kharagpur
Email : anamika.das@adm.iitkgp.ac.in

Interviewed by : Rituparna Chakraborty, Office of the Alumni, IIT Kharagpur
Email : rituani07@gmail.com

Edited by : Poulami Mondal, Digital & Creative Media Executive (Creative Writer)
Email: poulami.mondal@iitkgp.ac.in, media@iitkgp.ac.in, Ph. No.: +91-3222-282007

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Turning Steel Slug Dump to Greenery Hub, IIT Kharagpur’s Transformative Work at Odisha

IIT Kharagpur Researchers Transform Steel Plant Slag Dumps in Odisha into Greenbelt Using Traditional Indian Organic Components and Japanese Afforestation Techniques

A drive through Angul, near the Dhenkanal region of Odisha will give you vast stretches of green canopy and vegetation on what was once industrial dumpsites. The transformation to a green belt is not a natural reclamation but the Midas touch of the Post Mining Mine Site Restoration group of the Department of Mining Engineering of IIT Kharagpur through a project supported by Tata Steel BSL. The researchers afforested over 32000 square feet in the region following a rapid forest regeneration technique by a unique mix of the traditional resource of Panchagavya with the Miyawaki plantation technique of ecologist Prof. Akira Miyawaki from Japan.

The dumping of blast furnace slag by steel plants has been a perennial challenge in India and even in some of the developed countries in the world. These steel slag dumps contribute to the generation of airborne particles causing air pollution and also to groundwater and surface-water contamination through different pathways. The slag-covered land is unsuitable for vegetation growth and associated problems lead to the ruination of vegetation and health hazards for both humans and animals. Researchers at IIT Kharagpur have devised a bioremediation method to reduce the concentration of these polluting slags to an innocuous state.

A research team led by Prof. Khanindra Pathak from the Dept. of Mining Engineering at IIT Kharagpur, has turned this slag suitable for plant growth by mixing it with topsoil, cow dung and other organic enhancers. Plants carefully chosen for the Miyawaki technique and 22 native species were grown on the mix with a 30cm layer of topsoil over it administering them with Panchagavya.

“Periodic administration of Panchagavya checked the problem of nutrient scarcity while mulching helped retention of water and nutrients. In a span of one year, we witnessed the growth of a self-sustaining mini-forest, dominated by plants belonging to the family Fabaceae and Sesbania grandiflora. The plants with long root systems could utilize the steel slag with their roots penetrating up to a depth of 2 m from the ground surface, thus reducing the effects of groundwater contamination and surface runoff of water in the monsoons,” remarked Prof. Pathak.

“Vetiver grass was used as a boundary for the plantation to check migration of nutrients. This grass if grown over the slopes of the slag dumps will further check the fugitive emissions and thereby reducing air pollution and erosion of slag onto adjacent habitations,” he added.

The process led an unsupportive steel slag dump to a self-sustaining primary succession over it.

The success of the present project has helped the industry to not only comply with the mandate of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Govt. of India, but will protect the neighboring villages from airborne dust to a certain degree in addition to the usefulness of the vegetation developed to the villagers. Prof. Pathak earlier demonstrated stabilization of dump slope and prevention of erosion at the Joda Mines in the Barbil region, which witnessed regeneration of thick vegetation cover. In another demonstration, a horticulture field was developed at Sonepur Bazari waste dump under a CSR project.

The approach established if implemented across such sites in the country would benefit millions of people leaving around the mining region. The damage caused to nature by anthropogenic activities can be repaired permanently following nature’s own way to heal. Restoration of the post-mining mine site is now mandatory, the approaches demonstrated contributions to the rural economy as well as to the regeneration of natural resources for the benefit of a large number of people of present and future generations.

The demonstrated methodology also has the possibility to eliminate the need for expensive geotextiles developed in the country using imported technology, opined Prof. Pathak. He further added about the replication of the process for municipality waste dumps.

“Development of a vetiver grass field could be beneficial for urban wastewater management as well as municipality solid waste dump sites. We had also demonstrated hydroponic vetiver for the containment of oil in refinery wastewater through an IIT Kharagpur and IOCL collaborative project at the Bongaigaon refinery,” he remarked.

Contact:

Project: Prof. Khanindra Pathak, E: khanindra@mining.iitkgp.ac.in; Sourav Mandal, E: souravm.iitkgp@gmail.com

Media: Shreyoshi Ghosh, E: shreyoshi@adm.iitkgp.ac.in

Connect on social media: Facebook: @IITKgp Twitter: @IITKgp Instagram: @iit.kgp; Or write to media@iitkgp.ac.in

More information: Dept. of Mining Engineering: http://www.iitkgp.ac.in/department/MI

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Green Innovation by IITKGP Students Stands Second at NEC Hackathon

Students from IIT Kharagpur have secured 1st Runners-up position at the NEC Hackathon: Environment for developing environment-friendly and revenue-maximizing business applications for the farming community to manage crop residue. Vaishnav Katiyar, Pranav Agarwal, Paras Chaudhary and Shivam Tiwari, final year students from the Dept. of Architecture & Regional Planning have achieved this feat at the PAN India competition organized by NEC Japan and HackerEarth. The event witnessed participation from 1149 teams from all over the country of which 18 teams reached the finale.

The hackathon enabled participants to identify the challenges, a factor of problems, analyze them and develop a solution using technologies such as FIWARE and other open-source platforms. The participants were encouraged to think of a solution on the platform that can solve the current environmental challenges in India. This year’s themes were air pollution and water pollution.

The IIT Kharagpur team which participated under the name ‘BioNet’ proposed a revolutionary platform for the benefit of farmers and to increase the overall production of Biopellets with better supply chain management. They developed an application which will provide a single platform to the farmers and biofuel plant operators to sell agricultural waste (biomass) and to buy biopellets. The user interface was designed in local languages for ease of use. The proposal also took into consideration in-app bidding process for biopellets buyers to ensure maximum revenue generation and profit maximisation for the farmers. The platform could also be used for selling local agricultural products directly to the customers in the near future.

Explaining the concept team member Shivam Tiwari said, “Air pollution in India is caused by fuelwood and biomass burning, burning of crop residue in agriculture fields on a large scale, emission from vehicles and traffic congestion etc. We have built an android application which provides a single platform to the farmers to sell their crop residue directly to bio-pellet plant operators (Govt./ Pvt.) and further the bio-pellets are sold in the open market using in-app bidding process. This will solve the issue of crop residue burning, thus tackling air pollution and building a healthier living environment in India.”

The final round was held online on March 28-29 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The shortlisted participants were invited to submit their prototype on the hackathon website and present their prototypes to NEC through a video conference. The toppers were announced too online video announcements.

NEC is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics company, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. NEC has conducted various hackathons aiming at resolving social challenges in India through technology and in continuation to that they conducted this hackathon focussed on ‘Environment’. The event partner was HackerEarth which has been professionally managing hackathons and programming challenges and coding competitions for developers and companies.

IDBI Trusteeship CSR Funding for IIT KGP’s Electric Vehicle

IIT Kharagpur gets CSR Funding from IDBI Trusteeship for Developing Light-Weight Parts for Indigenous Three-Wheeler Electric Vehicles

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IDBI Trusteeship Services Ltd. has given a fillip to IIT Kharagpur’s Deshla electric vehicle project through its Corporate Social Responsibility programme. This funding will be used towards the design and development of aerodynamic body panels and light-weight structures for next-generation electric three-wheelers.

Electric vehicles need to match internal combustion (petrol/diesel/CNG/LPG) engine counterparts in initial cost, performance, reliability, etc. and better them in lower running costs and ease of use if they are to replace conventional vehicles. Revolutionary design changes, such as a drastic reduction in vehicle weight, aerodynamic body panels and indigenous development of relevant technologies e.g. motors, battery management systems, motor controller, battery pack design, etc. are essential to this end.

“Using the CSR contribution of IDBI Trusteeship, our key focus would be on aerodynamic body panel design for three-wheeler vehicles with peak speeds around50 kmph vehicle. We will also experiment on new materials and chassis designs to develop lightweight structures. The combination of these should make the vehicle much more efficient and provide a higher range from the battery pack with better pick-up and peak speeds. We have outlined a two-year proposal for this of which we have received funding for the first phase” said Prof. Vikranth Racherla, project leader and faculty at the Dept. of Mechanical Engineering at IIT Kharagpur.

“We try to cover the geography of the country strategically for green projects to support India’s goals in reducing its carbon footprint among other CSR projects,” said Swapan Kumar Bagchi, MD & CEO, IDBI Trusteeship Services Ltd. who is also an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur. Bagchi had visited IIT Kharagpur in February 2020 to finalize the phase I funding for the project.

The project is expected to involve a large number of students from various departments of the Institute and also interns from other colleges working on various subsystems of electric vehicles. The innovations are expected to be ready in around two years. Participating students over a period of time would develop expertise in various subsystems of electric vehicles. These students are expected to lead electric vehicle development work in industries or become entrepreneurs in this segment once they graduate.

“The Deshla electric vehicle is one of the most successful and timely innovations from IIT Kharagpur, further it is totally based on indigenous technology. Last year the Govt. of India expanded the scope of CSR funding to IITs and other national institutions to promote industry-academia engagements in research and academics. The scope is immense and IIT Kharagpur is reaching out to several PSUs, MNCs and private corporations to support end-to-end research,” said Prof. Anandaroop Bhattacharya, Associate Dean, International Relations who is heading the CSR initiative at IIT Kharagpur.

The Institute through its R&D projects has reached out to large sections of population solving challenges related to malnutrition, health and sanitation, power generation, clean drinking water, environmental sustainability, education, rural development and livelihood, gender equality and women’s empowerment and even national heritage, arts and culture among the others. The Institute’s CSR oriented projects have been conferred national awards and honours as well.

Towards a Greener, Cleaner World

Sarve bhavantu sukhinaḥ; Sarve santu nirāmayāḥ

Sarve bhadrāṇi paśyantu; Mā kashchit duḥkha bhāgbhavet

‘May all be prosperous and happy, May all be free from illness,

May all see what is spiritually uplifting, May no one suffer.

A 16-YO global icon of climate activism, Ms Greta Thunberg took on national and international leaders with her speech at the United Nations Climate Summit on 23^rd September 2019.

Closer home, Vision Prabaho, a team of green evangelists of IIT Kharagpur, is making an effort in their little way to promote climate consciousness in and around the campus. The team, under the aegis of the Rekhi Centre of Excellence for the Science of Happiness, IIT Kharagpur, organised ‘Green Chintan’ – an environmental workshop on poster and model / prototype competition on 26^th September, for school students (classes V-VI and IX-XII). More than 60 students demonstrated models and posters on Rain Water Harvesting, Hydraulic Lifter, Biogas Production and River Cleaner.

Prof. Partha Pratim Chakrabarti, Chief Guest at the event, took to the microphone congratulating each participating team individually and assuring them all-round assistance in implementing their models on a larger scale. He requested Vision Prabaho members to help these children take their ideas forward to turn them into reality.

Prof. Saamdu Chhetri, Guest of Honour at the event, came up with one unique explanation. “What is ‘Bhagavān’”, he asked. “God”, rumbled a few students. The description that followed surprised not only students but also a few adults present at the S.N. Bose Auditorium.

He divided the word into individual letters. ‘Bh’ for Bhoomi – The Earth, ‘G’ for Gagan – the Sky, ‘A’ for Agni – Fire, ‘Va’ for Vayu – the Wind and ‘N’ for Neer – Water. “All living creatures on this planet are made up of these five elements. When we fail to value any one of these, we end up harming ourselves. We live in a symbiotic relationship with nature. Man can never live in isolation,” he said.

Prof. Anuradha Choudry addressed the topic of soul-cleansing. She explained that without a clean mind and clean soul, one can never strive to attain a clean society or the environment thereof on a larger scale.

On these lines, a mythological story was narrated by Prof. Jenia Mukherjee. The story traced the formation of the world’s largest delta – the Sunderbans, conveying a subtle hint on water conservation. Prof. Mukherjee stated that the contribution of rivers in our lives was a part of our cultural identity. She invited students to visit the wetlands in Kolkata and see how these wetlands function in relation to the 750 million litres wastewater generated daily by the city itself. The students listened with awe as she explained wastewater management procedures undertaken by the fishermen and farmers with their local skill and knowledge, leading to the production of more than 22 tonnes of fish and 40 tonnes of vegetables on a regular basis.

DAV Model School walked away with the trophy and a cash award for the Best School. Other prizes included Poster Competition and Model/Prototype Making.

Prof. Priyadarshi Patnaik wrapped up the session with his pearls of wisdom. He mentioned that the rapid depletion of natural resources is posing an ever-increasing global threat. It is high time people became more responsible towards the environment and strived to make it a better, safer place for our future generations.

Agenda for the future

Natural biopolymers made from silk, chitosan, collagen, gelan gum are now not only used to make scaffolds for tissue engineering, but they can also be used to create a “3D cell culture microenviroment” to investigate the proliferation and migration of cancer cells. The information was given to the audience by Dr Subhas C. Kundu of the University of Minho, Portugal at the International Conference on Advances in Polymer Science and Rubber Technology (APSRT) at IIT Kharagpur held from September 24-27. At another session at the same conference, Prof. Sanjib K. Patra of the Department of Chemistry of IIT Kharagpur explained how a new class of polymers developed by his department could be used to develop cheap and efficient chemical sensors for detecting explosives such as nitroaromatics (NACs).

Inauguration of the International Conference on APSRT

From the use of polymers in life science, to the development of smart materials and composites, novel synthesis and modification process of elastomers to green and sustainable processes and technology for the rubber industry, everything was discussed under the sun at APSRT that saw 250+ delegates from 10 countries, 4 plenary lectures and a cumulative 130 lectures and presentations.

From conventional applications in the field of automobiles, construction, commodity materials and engineering, polymer and rubber materials are finding smart applications in different critical and strategic areas such as defence, microelectronics and the life sciences.

Keeping with the needs, researchers have been developing polymer based composite materials that have unique self-healing and shape-memory properties. But to explore new possibilities, new products and technology, collaboration between industry and research institutions is necessary. In keeping with this objective, APSRT brought together distinguished scientists, faculty members and technologists from the academia and industry the world over.

Prof. Tony McNally of WMG delivering his plenary lecture

“The main objective of this conference is to bring the scientists and technologists working in polymer science and rubber technology under one umbrella to discuss recent advances and innovative technologies…They will discuss the future trends towards 2030,” said Prof. Nikhil K. Singha, Head of the Rubber Technology Centre, which organized the conference.

Sustainability was a predominant issue at the conference, with the speakers not only emphasizing on sustainable technology but also the circular economy within which polymer science and the rubber industry had to root itself. The circular economy approach in fact was driving innovation within the broad sustainability framework, that is through waste prevention, re-use, repair, remanufacture and recycling. Attention was directed at the making of automotive tires from dandelion, the use of biobased products like wood scraps being as substitutes for rubber additive. Sufficient attention was also drawn to recycling technology of not only rubber but also PET bottles, and the use of polymeric materials as sustainable solutions for various applications like architectural coatings, protecting coatings, refrigerants and fire suppressing agents. Prof. Sadhan K. De, retired professor of IIT Kharagpur, who was the Guest of Honor at the inaugural session, stressed on the effective utilization, recycle and reuse of plastics.

An overwhelming number of lectures brought home the novel ways in which polymers are being used for biomedical applications. Attention was drawn to how niche products like fluoropolymers can be used to fabricate nanoengineered 3D printed anatomical models for surgical planning and clinical training, nanogels can be used to target and kill cancer cells preferentially, how hydrogels are already being used to produce polyurethane wound dressings capable of indicating infection, how resilin and silk-based hybrid biomaterials can be used to produce hydrogels for cartilage tissue engineering or how molecules are being developed for long term drug release by controlling hydrophilic-hydrophobic balance of the superstructure of molecules that are designed through urethane linkages and other myriad innovations.

The development of new and smart materials drew as much attention. Take the synthesis of PEEK (polyether ether ketone) polymer and its composites that are already being used in aircraft, Dielectric elastomers that can be used in actuators, sensors or artificial muscle, Nanocomposites with periodic arrangement of nanoparticles that can be used in photonic devices and sensors, or the composite polymer material that can immobilize and catalytically degrade nerve agents.

Novel polymerization techniques and the functionality of polymers were also discussed. Some like Dr Huiqi Zhang of Nankai University, China, suggested controlled radical precipitation polymerization. Others suggested the use of ultrasound or ultrasonic polymerization to synthesize polymer nanoparticles or new ways to do RAFT polymerization, design and synthesis of step-growth polymers, or electrospinning to engineer biomaterials for biomedical research. Prof. Anton Klok of EPFL (École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne), Switzerland, spoke about the bio-application of polymers.

Yoshikuni Teramoto from Kyoto University, Japan

“I am confident that the delegates participating in the Conference will make significant contributions for the development of science and technology and the deliberations by the peer in the field will enthuse the budding scientists to find new directions for further research culminating in sustainable development of rubber science and technology,” said Prof. Sriman Kumar Bhattacharyya, Director, IIT Kharagpur during his inaugural address.

The Chief Guest for the occasion was Prof. Tony McNally of WMG, who also delivered a plenary lecture at the conference. He mentioned that rubber and polymer composites have been one of the main focus of WMG and there are lots opportunity of collaboration in this field with IIT Kharagpur. The American Chemical Society has been associated with the conference and interacted with authors and young scientists on the last day of the conference.