Jim, Pani, and Anke present at the ACS national meeting in Boston

Pani writes: “Anke and Pani presented at the 256th ACS National Meeting in Boston, MA held on August 19-23, 2018 in the division of environmental chemistry. Both presentations covered applications of clay minerals on removing organic contaminants and antibiotic resistance genes in different types of water, where interesting questions and comments were raised relative to the oxidative potential of clay minerals. We enjoyed real science on a variety of conventional and novel technologies in terms of transforming and removing contaminants and pathogens focused on different types of water as well as networking opportunities where we had the chance to interact with scientists from all over the world. Both conference sections and a bit of Boston exploration made the ACS National Meeting an exciting experience!”

Jim says: “This summer I visited the USA for a second time to attend the ACS National Meeting in Boston, MA, after being fortunate enough to be awarded a Student Travel Grant by the Geochemistry Division. At the meeting, I presented my work on Fe-reduced clay minerals, and their impact on degradation of chlorinated solvents which are one of the most widely occurring classes of groundwater pollutants. Whilst at the meeting, I gained an appreciation for other research on aqueous-mineral interactions and their impact on groundwater contamination such as encapsulation of heavy metals within precipitates, as well as emerging contaminants of concern such as PFAS and PFOA and the challenges they present to providing clean groundwater. As well as the conference, Pani and myself spent a day touring around some sites of Boston, including the Museum of Fine Art, MIT and Harvard campuses. Overall, the trip was thoroughly worthwhile and enjoyable, and I finally got to try lobster for the first time.”

Anke also enjoyed the conference and felt especially honored to present in the Symposium by the RSC Environmental Science Journals Showcasing Emerging Investigators. In addition to enjoying great science, this also allowed for meeting old and new friends, and I even managed to meet up with a friend and colleague from Iowa (who just finished her PhD at MIT) and a walk through the city.