Sullied Sediments

Contact Us

For information about the Sullied Sediments project, contact:

Project Lead
Professor Jeanette Rotchell
University of Hull
J.Rotchell@hull.ac.uk 
(+44)1482 465333 


Project Coordinator
Annabel Hanson
East & North Yorkshire Waterways Partnership
annabel.hanson@eastriding.gov.uk
(+44)1482 391678

Sullied Sediments' innovative pollen and spore research gets international exposure

27 August 2019 - Published by Annabel Hanson
Researchers at the University of Hull are piloting novel and green approaches to water treatment using pollen and spores

University of Hull PhD student Aimilia Meichanetzoglou has presented her research for the Sullied Sediments project at the prestigious American Chemical Society’s Fall 2019 National Meeting and Exposition in San Diego (ACS). On Monday, 26 August, 2019, Aimilia gave a presentation entitled "Pollen solutions: Novel and green approach to water treatment" in which she talked about how researchers from the University of Hull (UK) are seeking new ways to use stripped-down pollen grains to remove contaminants, some of which are common drugs and household products, from water. This research is being carried with input from the University of Leeds, Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water, who are helping the project to test the 'real-world' applicability of this innnovative clean-up process.

Ahead of her talk, Aimilia took part in a ACS press conference where she gave an overview of her research and fielded questions. To watch this press conference, please click the link below and select the video called "Cleaning pollutants from water with pollen and spores — without the ‘achoo!’":

https://bit.ly/acs2019sandiego

The ACS has also produced a fantastic video that explains in more detail how the pollen grains are prepared for and utilised in water clean-up process and how this is benefitting the Sullied Sediments project.

In addition, if you would like to read an abstract of Aimilia's talk, please visit the ACS website:

https://plan.core-apps.com/acs_sd2019/abstract/0998db65-e9d4-414c-a70a-d693beead4d5

Founded in 1876 and chartered by the U.S. Congress, the ACS is the world’s largest scientific society. Its vision is "to improve people’s lives through the transforming power of chemistry". Over five days, this Fall 2019 National Meeting will attract over 15,000 chemical professionals and over 12,800 papers and posters will be featured. This year’s focus is on “chemistry and water”, making it an ideal setting for Aimilia's research.

In addition to the ACS, this ground-breaking research has been covered by science writer Natalie Parletta in Forbes:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalieparletta/2019/08/26/pollen-and-spores-offer-a-safe-way-to-clean-pollutants-from-water/#41ce538674ed

For more information about the Sullied Sediments project, please contact Annabel Hanson, Project Coordinator, at sullied.sediments@eastriding.gov.uk.