Emerging contaminants (ECs) generally refer to chemicals and materials recently detected in the environment, and which may have potential or real threat to human health or the environment. The challenge of ECs intersects several industries including the pharmaceutical and personal care products industries, producers of nano-sized materials, as well as entities that treat wastewater and drinking water. A planning meeting will be held to investigate the proposed establishment of a multi-university Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Emerging Contaminants. The lead location of the proposed center will be at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, with a second site at Villanova University. The mission of the proposed center is to address sensing and remediation of emerging contaminants (EC).
The proposed center will pursue research projects of importance to a broad range of U.S. companies seeking to avoid becoming a major contributor to pollution. The center and its research activity will involve faculty researchers, graduate and undergraduate students working together with industrial representatives. The center will further enhance the ongoing efforts at both institutions of integrating research in classroom teaching.
