The Green Construction Research & Training Center (GCRTC) Seminar Series presents:
A smart vision for a sustainable future: SMaRT technologies and MICROfactories™ creating sustainable materials and products from waste resources, presented by:
Veena Sahajwalla, FAA, FTSE, HonFIEAust, CPEng
- Scientia Professor, Centre for Sustainable Materials Research & Technology, SMaRT@UNSW, UNSW SYDNEY
- Date: Mon. Feb 3, 2025
- Time: 2:00-3:30 PM (PST)
- Location: EME 4218, School of Engineering, UBC, Okanagan, Kelowna BC
- Join on Zoom
Abstract
The rapid surge in complex waste streams such as e-waste, end-of-life vehicles (EVs), plastics, and batteries poses significant environmental threats. In response, the SMaRT Centre has developed innovative cutting-edge technologies and MICROfactories™ to transform these notorious wastes into valuable sustainable materials, enhancing circular economy. By utilising the state-of-the-art microrecycling concepts, diverse waste streams are converted into value added products like Green Ceramics™ for the built environment and nano materials for energy storage applications, including Li-ion and Na-ion batteries. Key breakthrough includes using waste-derived feedstock to produce hydrogen for greener steelmaking, reducing dependency on carbon-intensive inputs such coke and coal. MICROfactories™ scale the innovative transformation of waste into valuable sustainable materials, demonstrating industrial viability. These cutting-edge technologies and state-of-the-art concepts not only tackle global waste management challenges but also promote responsible production, industry innovation, job creation, and environmental sustainability, supporting the development of a resource-efficient circular economy.
About Veena Sahajwalla
Professor Veena Sahajwalla is an internationally recognised materials scientist, engineer, and inventor revolutionising recycling science. She is renowned for pioneering the high temperature transformation of waste in the production of a new generation of ‘green materials’ at the UNSW Sustainable Materials Research and Technology (SMaRT) Centre, where she is Founding Director.
Professor Veena is the inventor of polymer injection technology, known as green steel, an eco-friendly process for using recycled tyres in steel production. In 2018, Veena launched the world’s first e-waste MICROfactorieTM and in 2019 she launched her plastics and Green Ceramics MICROfactoriesTM, a recycling technology breakthrough. Professor Veena is the director of the ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub for ‘microrecycling’, a leading national research centre that works in collaboration with industry to ensure new recycling science is translated into real world environmental and economic benefits. Professor Veena has also been appointed hub leader of the national NESP Sustainable Communities and Waste Hub. In 2021, Professor Veena featured in the ABC’s Australian Story and she was named the 2022 NSW Australian of the Year in recognition of her work.
Professor Veena was named the 2022 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes winner for the Celestino Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Science and was also awarded the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE) Clunies Ross Innovation Award. In 2023, Professor Veena was awarded the Engineering Australia Chemical College Chemical Engineer Achievement Award and the Good Design 2023 Women in Design Award.
About the Green Construction Research and Training Center
The Green Construction Research & Training Center (GCRTC) is multi-disciplinary research and training hub, which is the results of collaboration between the University of British Columbia (UBC) and Okanagan College (OC). The center enables a multitude of disciplines to work in a symbiotic manner to enrich and broaden all disciplines’ capabilities towards greener construction. Learn more at https://gcrtc.ubc.ca/.