Chemical Engineer/PhD Candidate
MY PROJECTS
Treating Acid Mine Drainage
Clean Water Production and Waste Reduction | PhD Topic Creating a Circular Economy
According to the UN, Acid Mine Drainage is the second biggest problem that the Earth faces. My PhD was based on solving this problem by creating a circular economy in the mining industry - reducing waste materials, producing valuable products and treating water to country or mine specific standards. This involved designing, testing, building, monitoring and optimizing a system that was deployed at a coal mine tailings site in Mpumalang, South Africa.
A list of my published articles on this topic.
Using Waste BOF Slag as Road Ballast or Cement Aggregate
Reuse of Waste Materials | Co-Supervisor of Honours Project
Due to our growing dependence on steel and steel products, Basic Oxygen Furnace Slag (a waste material in the steel manufacturing process) is produced in massive quantities around the world.
This research aimed to reduce this waste by re-using it as aggregate in other construction industries - as cement, concrete or road ballast additives.
Acids2Sugars
Hydrolysis of Carbon for Ethanol Production | Honours Topic Producing Bio-ethanol
Production of bio-ethanol for fuel purposes is a contentious issue in many countries due to food scarcity problems. Using Highveld grass cuttings as a carbon source and Acid Mine Drainage as hydrolysis medium, the impact and cost of this process is reduced, with the added benefit of partially treating Acid Mine Drainage.
Wits MicroBrewery Team 2019
Microbrewery Team Member | Brewing and Festivals 2018-2019
The Wits Microbrewery team is involved with academic and small scale brews, providing a teaching and learning platform to students with the aim of introducing beer culture and optimizing small scale brewing. New flavours, ingredients and techniques are frequently tested.
Assessment of BOF Slag for Neutralization Purposes
Dissolution of Alkaline Wastes for Acid Neutralization | Co-Supervisor of Honours Project
Alternate alkaline materials can be used to offset the cost of treatment of acid wastes or to provide an avenue for waste reuse in multiple industries. This research was aimed at determining the dissolution characteristics of BOF Slag, where the resulting solution (high in alkalinity) could be used to neutralize
Models of Data Sharing in Transboundary Waters
Transboundary Waters: The Importance of Data Exchange | Research Consultant
The project took a global perspective, assessing data exchange in shared watercourses with established institutional mechanisms in all regions with transboundary waters. Focused attention was placed on successful approaches of data exchange to understand factors that contributed to success and potential for replication.