Research Interests: Wastewater Treatment, Advanced Oxidation Process, Electrochemical and Biological Methods, Biofilms, Science behind Indian Knowledge Systems
Ramya Srinivasan received her PhD in Environmental Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras in 2021. Her research expertise is in advanced treatment strategies for wastewater treatment, specifically for the removal of emerging and persistent organic contaminants. She has explored combinations of biological and electrochemical methods for uncovering novel mechanisms and reaction pathways for sustainable and improved efficiency of treatment. Ramya was a recipient of the Institute Research Award at IIT Madras, conferred for exemplary research. She has also received the Research Scholar Innovative Project funding during her PhD. She has worked with a start-up on waste water treatment in Boston, associated with MIT.
Ramya investigated the abatement of conventional and emerging persistent organic contaminants by an electrochemical advanced oxidation process, namely, electro-peroxone. A novel 3D-Graphene-coated Nickel Foam (Gr-NF) electrode was used to achieve a comprehensive treatment of pharmaceutical compounds and mechanisms behind enhanced reactive oxygen species generation were elucidated. She also designed the first-ever electrically bound biofilm reactor (EBBR) for enhancing biofilm formation. She has studied enhancement of biofilm growth and its application for removing emerging contaminants in water by bio-electrochemical methods. She has also researched treatment of textile dyes and textile wastewater treatment using Fenton and electro-peroxone systems. In another research, she explored hybrid electrochemical advanced oxidation for wastewater treatment in which a novel hybrid bi-functional rotating dual drum electrode system capable of simultaneous photo-electrocatalysis and electro-Fenton processes was developed. An electro-catalyst (Graphene-ferrocene) and photo-catalyst (MoS2 − TiO2) were synthesised for the efficient removal of persistent organic pollutants. This system achieved a complete and rapid removal of ciprofloxacin, an antibiotic drug within a reaction time of 30 minutes.
Research Publications
Book Chapters
Professor Srinivasan will teach courses related to wastewater treatment, environmental engineering, and biotechnology.