Message from the Co-chair
Welcome to the third edition of the Membrane Society of Australasia Newsletter. This is a particularly exciting edition, as it is the first since the official launch of the society (more details below). The society has continued it's strong growth, particularly in attracting corporate members. We welcome them, and look forward to engaging with them to provide an active and engaging society focussed on membranes and membrane technology in Australasia. As always, contributions to the newsletter are welcome. Please send them by email.
Bradley Ladewig - Co-chair of the Inaugural Board
Membrane Society of Australasia Official Launch
The MSA held its official launch on 5 May 2009 at Victoria University's Flinders Street Campus. This event was very well supported, with over 50 people attending. The evening featured an introduction to the society by the Inaugural Chair, Associate Professor Mikel Duke. The keynote presentation was given by Professor Tony Fane, highlighting the development of membrane science, engineering, and commercialisation in Australia over the past decades. The launch was generously sponsored by Siemens Water Technologies, and Bruce Biltoft and Dr Andrew Groth gave some brief presentations on behalf of the company. For further details: ABC Interview
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| Bruce Biltoft, Managing Director, Memcor Australia Pty Ltd, Siemens Water Technologies |
Dr Andrew Groth, Director - Chemistry and Membrane Development, Siemens Water Technologies |
Professor Tony Fane, Patron of the Membrane Society of Australasia |
Membrane Society of Australasia welcomes new Corporate Members
The MSA continues to grow strongly, and welcomed some more corporate members recently. These include Avista, Hatch, Steri-Flow, Millipore, CSIRO, CH2MHill and the UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology, in addition to the first corporate member, Siemens. An upcoming newsletter will feature the membrane activities of our corporate members in some more detail.
The society is still recruiting regular and student members, and we encourage you to circulate the membership form amongst your colleagues. Details of membership classes and the application form can be downloaded here.
National Centre of Excellence in Desalination
Murdoch University has been awarded $20 million by the Federal Government to host Australia's new National Centre of Excellence in Desalination. An additional $5 million will be provided by the Western Australian state government. The Centre of Excellence will be based at Murdoch's Rockingham campus and will bring together the country's leading desalination and water science research organisations. For further details: Murdoch University News Story | ABC News Online Article
Desalination and Water Treatment - New Journal
A new journal with particular relevance to the membrane field has recently been launched. Entitled Desalination and Water Treatment, it is dedicated to research and application of desalination technology, environment and energy considerations, integrated water management, water reuse, wastewater and related topics. The journal features an eminent list of editors, including Dr Pierre Le-Clech, from the UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology. Information for authors, subscription rates and other information can be found at the journal website.
MSA Welcomes New Zealand Board Member
The MSA recently welcomed Dr Darrell Patterson as a Board Member representing New Zealand. Darrell is a Senior Lecturer in Chemical and Materials Engineering at The University of Auckland. His research interests are in the areas of separation and reaction engineering, specialising in green (sustainable and environmental) process engineering. More details on Darrell and his work are available online.
Events
Advanced Membrane Technology 2009
7 – 12 June 2009
Trondheim, Norway.
NAMS 2009
19th Annual Meeting of the North American Membrane Society
20 - 24 June, 2009
Charleston, SC, USA.
Singapore International Water Week Water Convention 2009
23 - 25 June 2009, Singapore.
6th Leading Edge Conference on Water and Wastewater Technologies
23 - 25 June 2009.
This conference will be organized in Singapore as part of the Singapore International Water Week 2009.
Fifth Conference of the Aseanian Membrane Society (AMS-5)
12 - 14 July, 2009
Kobe, Japan
5th IWA Specialized Membrane Technology Conference for Water and Wastewater Treatment
1 - 3 September 2009
Beijing, China.
Euromembrane 2009
6 - 10 September, 2009
Montpellier, France.
7th IWA World Congress on Water Reclamation and Reuse
20 - 25 September 2009
Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, Brisbane, Australia.
Membranes: Materials & Processes
Gordon Research Conference
25 - 30 July, 2010
Colby-Sawyer College, New London, NH, USA.
Event Spotlight
The spotlight for this newsletter is on the upcoming Fifth Conference of Aseanian Membrane Society (AMS-5) meeting in Kobe, Japan from 12 - 14 July 2009. This is the key membrane science and engineering event for the Asia-Pacific region, and has attracted very strong support this year. In fact, the venue had to be changed to the Kobe Portopia Hotel to accommodate the larger than expected number of attendees. Abstract submission has already closed, however it is not too late to register to attend the conference.
Would you like your membrane related event in the spotlight? Send us the details and we'll feature your work in an upcoming edition of MSA E-News.
