Sustainable Environmental Technologies—2nd Edition

Dear Colleagues,

Human health and quality of life are today seriously threatened by the pollution of the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the soil that produces our food. This widespread pollution is primarily caused by various human activities such as rapid industrialization, urbanization, population growth, and extensive agricultural practices and improper waste managements. In addition, resource depletion has become a central concern in terms of addressing the sustainability of our natural resources and environment. Addressing these issues requires the development of sustainable environmental technologies, which has emerged as an indisputable priority since the beginning of the twenty-first century as efforts are made to pursue sustainablity and ensure the existence of a healthier planet. These technologies not only focus on innovation, but also offer cost-effiective technological solutions through sustainable processes for tackling the most pressing environmental issues facing our society, including soil and water pollution, air quality deterioration, waste generation, climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource depletion. Currently, several studies are being conducted by the scientific community to advance the topic of “sustainable environmental technologies” and to assist environmental policy makers and regulators in ensuring the protection of the environment. While the evolution of these technologies and their use in various fields has advanced in recent decades, there is still limited knowledge regarding their full potential and their ability to address environmental problems effectively.

Considering the above, this Topic Project “Sustainable Environmental Technologies—2nd Edition” will present the latest multi-disciplinary and comprehensive research findings and innovative research models with the aim of understanding current progress and future goals in this area in terms of both theory and practice. The topics of particular interest to this project include, but are not limited to, the following areas, with strict requirements on the quality of the research, methodological rigor, practical innovation, and the novelty the research:

i. Low-cost sustainable remediation strategies for removal of toxic chemicals from water and soil;
ii. Fate, transport, and remediation of CECs (contaminants of emerging concern) in the environment, including but not limited to PFAS;
iii. Bioremediation and phytoremediation of organic and inorganic pollutants from environmental media;
iv. Clean energy and waste-to-energy technology to mitigate environmental problems;
v. Development of eco-friendly and sustainable materials for industrial, agriculture, and green building purpose;
vi. Sustainable solutions for natural resource depletion and prevention;
vii. Renewable energy technologies for tackling air pollution and climate change;
viii. Restoration and remediation technology to improve ecosystem restoration;
ix. Current developments in the production methods of biochar and its use in water purification, crop productivity, soil salinity reduction, and metal immobilization;
x. Green technologies to minimize climate change including drought, heat stress, etc.;
xi. The use of vermicomposting, green manure, and bio fertilizer for sustainable agriculture;
xii. Converting waste into bio-CNG and bio-ethanol and biomass plants;
xiii. Sustainable recycling and solid waste management for reducing environmental pollution;
xiv. Role of organic farming in sustainable development of agriculture;
xv. Recovery of metals and other beneficial products from fly ash, wastewater, and other wastes;
xvi. Role of AI and ML in driving susitanable development and resource management;
xvii. Environmental policy and framework development for natural resource management.

You are invited to submit manuscripts for consideration that are relevant to this topic, which covers, but is not limited to, the above-stated topics (the editors also welcome articles on other related topics which are closely related to these themes).

Prof. Dr. Dibyendu Sarkar
Prof. Dr. Rupali Datta
Dr. Prafulla Kumar Sahoo
Dr. Mohammad Mahmudur Rahman
Topic Editors