Prof. Rong WANG

“Novel membranes for various processes and their benefits for water applications”

Prof. Rong Wang is a Full Professor and Chair in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), Nanyang Technological University (NTU), Singapore since 2014. She has also been leading Singapore Membrane Technology Centre (SMTC) for 10 years.

Prof. Wang is an expert in Membrane Science and Technology, with focuses on research, innovation and technology translation. In particular, she specializes in developing novel membranes such as osmosis membrane, aquaporin-based biomimetic membrane and low-pressure nanofiltration membrane, etc. for water, energy and environments.

Prof. Wang has over 250 peer-reviewed SCI journal publications (citation: >11,000; H-index: 59 @ Web of Science). She is the inventor of 25 patents/technical disclosures for novel membrane fabrication. Two NTU’s spin-off companies and two industrial licensing resulted from her inventions. She is an Editor of the Journal of Membrane Science, and sits in the Editorial Board of Desalination. She is the founding President of Membrane Society in Singapore (MEMSIS), and a member of the Steering Committee, World Association of Membrane Societies.

 Prof. Wang received a prestigious “Alternative Water Prize” from Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW) of Saudi Arabia in 2016, and was featured among the top 25 leading water researchers globally by Lux Research in 2013.  She also received Singapore Minister for National Development R&D Award in 2013 and Nanyang Research Award in 2018.

Dr  Abdoulaye DOUCOURE

“Technological success stories in 21st Century Africa: How to make the dream come true for membranes?”

Abdoulaye (Ablo) Doucouré holds a PhD in Materials Chemistry from the University of Montpellier, France (Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie – 1995). He has spent over 20 years of his career conducting industrial research in the field of materials science and engineering to design advanced non-woven filtration and membrane products. 

He is Global Technology Manager at Hollingsworth & Vose (Virginia, USA), a world supplier of filtration and energy storage materials, which he joined in 2011. A. Doucouré previously worked for 12 years at Pall Corporation (Port Washington, NY) where he developed new membranes for water, microelectronic and biopharmaceutical applications. He is co-founder and president of the African Membrane Society (AMSIC) and has chaired or co-organized several international scientific venues in Mali, Morocco, South Africa and Tunisia, since 2000. A. Doucouré is also engaged in and research and teaching activities at the  University of Bamako (Faculté des Sciences & Techniques du Mali) and the Ecole Nationale d’Ingénieurs du Mali.  He is the inventor of 5 patents associated with trademarked filter products and has written more than 30 publications.

Distinctions: Hollingsworth & Vose Presidential Award in Technology, (2014), Visiting lecturer fellowships (6) from TOKTEN-UNDP and TWAS, (2004-2017), Marcel Bleuntein-Blanchet -“Fondation pour la Vocation’’ science prize, (1995).

Prof. Amy CHILDRESS

“Integrating Systems of Water Reuse and Desalination: Water/Energy or Regulations/Footprint?”

Dr. Amy Childress is Professor and Director of Environmental Engineering in the Sonny Astani Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. For the past 20 years, Dr. Childress’ research and scholarly interests have been in the area of membrane processes for water treatment, wastewater reclamation, and desalination. Her research team investigates innovative solutions to contaminant and energy challenges; pressure-driven membrane processes as industry standards for desalination and water reuse; membrane bioreactor technology; and colloidal and interfacial aspects of membrane processes.

Dr. Childress has directed research funded by federal, state, and private agencies with projects currently funded by the Department of Defense Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program, National Science Foundation, California Department of Water Resources, and the Electric Power Research Institute.

She has received awards for publications, research innovation, and technology education, including two national publication awards and an NSF CAREER Award.

Dr. Childress is a past president of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors and is currently a member of US EPA’s Science Advisory Board Drinking Water Committee, The Water Research Foundation’s Academic Council, and Environmental Engineering and Science Foundation’s Board of Directors.

Dr. Childress chairs National Water Research Institute panels on potable reuse and seawater desalination projects in California and serves on the external advisory panel for Singapore Public Utilities Board. Dr. Childress is also co-editor of Desalination.

Prof. Emile CORNELISSEN

“Membranes under Pressure : Membranes in Drinking Water Treatment”

Prof. Dr. Ir. Emile Cornelissen is a Senior Scientific Researcher at KWR Watercycle Research Institute in the Netherlands and part-time Professor at the Particle and Interfacial Technology Group at the University of Ghent in Belgium (since 2017). He works also as a Visiting Scientist at the Singapore Membrane Technology Centre (SMTC) at the NTU in Singapore (since 2014).

He obtained his Chemical Engineering MSc degree (1992) and his Chemical Engineering PhD degree (1997) at the University of Twente (the Netherlands). From 1997-2002 he worked as a Process Engineer at Seghers better technology for Water in Belgium and worked on membrane filtration in waste water treatment.

Since 2003 he is a Senior Scientific Researcher at KWR Watercycle Research Institute and his research topics include membrane fouling and cleaning, rejection of emerging contaminants by pressure driven membranes and developing innovative processes:

 (i) use of air/water to control spiral wound membrane fouling, (ii) fluidized ion exchange, (iii) osmotic membrane processes (forward osmosis on activated sludge and waste water) and (iv) salinity driven membrane processes for water and energy production (reverse electro dialysis and pressure retarded osmosis).

He published more than 86 papers in well-respected scientific journals (h-factor of 31), co-filed 4 patents and written three book chapters. He received several innovation awards in the field water treatment and membrane filtration.

Prof. Roger BEN AIM, chem. Eng. ,Dr es sciences  

“Water and circular economy : the new frontier for membranes”

Dr. Roger Ben Aim, France obtained his engineering degree and Doctor es Sciences from the Ecole National Superieure des Industries Chimiques, Nancy, France, in 1961 and 1970, respectively.

In 1972, he participated in creation of a water science and engineering department and of a research laboratory on chemical engineering applied to water and wastewater treatment at the University of Montpellier. He was head of this laboratory until 1980. From 1981 to 1990, he joined the National Polytechnic Institute of Toulouse as a Professor at the school of chemical engineering.

During this period he also established two research centers in Agen, France: Institute de la Filtration et des Techniques Separatives (IFTS) and Institute du Genie des Procedes Agro-Alimentaires (IGEPA, AgroFood engineering). He was director of IFTS from 1981 to 1985 and director of IGEPA from 1986 to 1990. From 1986 he was one of the leaders of the research project associating 4 CNRS labs to Lyonnaise des Eaux and resulting in the production of the first hollow fiber modules designed for drinking water production. These modules were put in operation for the first time in the world in the water treatment plant of Amoncourt (France) in 1988.

In 1990, he was recruited by the University of Technology of Compiegne as the head of the department of Chemical Engineering and Director of the laboratory of Chemical Engineering that got the CNRS label during this period.

During the 80’s-90’s  he was Secretary of the European membrane Society ( under the chair of John Howell and Marianne Nystrom. With John Howell and Tony Fane he was a member of the trio that launched the series of conferences “Engineering with membranes “that was initiated at Il Ciocco in Italy in 1994.

From 1996 to 2008 he was successively Professor of Chemical and environmental Engineering at INSA Toulouse (National Institute for Applied Science) and then Emeritus Professor in the department of environmental Engineering that he chaired during 2 years. From 2009, he joined again IFTS with the position of scientific advisor and chair of the Scientific Committee (till 2018).

Roger Ben Aim Test Center (CERBA) in IFTS was inaugurated on November 6, 2018.

He used to have a strong involvement with IWA in the specialized groups particle separation (from the 70’s) and membrane technology as in the Strategic Committee: he is IWA Distinguished Fellow.

He has published widely in the field of solid-liquid separation techniques in water and wastewater treatment (focusing progressively on membrane Technology) and presented numerous lectures at national and international meetings at universities and research centers: during the last years he was invited for plenary lectures for World filtration congress 2016 at Taipei and FILTECH 2018 at Koln in Germany.