Events & Courses

Nanogeoscience: a new frontier in science and technology for Earth and environmental systems

This free one-day conference is the second in the Geological Society's series of Frontiers Meetings, following a highly successful inaugural event in 2011. These meetings seek to address new and emerging areas of geoscience, particularly those which require interdisciplinary thinking and working across the boundaries of traditional geoscience specialisms. Early career researchers are encouraged to participate, and to use the Frontiers Meetings as a springboard to develop new research communities and networks.

Over recent decades, there have been dramatic developments in techniques for studying nanometre-sized particulate materials that occur naturally, or that can be synthesised in the laboratory or on an industrial scale. Nanomaterials have properties which are distinct from their larger sized compositional equivalents and which are, in some cases, of practical value in fields ranging from technology to medicine. Nanotechnology presents both opportunities and threats, the latter because of the limited knowledge of how industrial nanomaterials behave when released into the natural environment. Nano-particles also play a key role in the natural geochemical cycling of the elements, not least because they have large surface area for the uptake of toxic materials ranging from radioactive species to organic pollutants and inorganic pollutants such as arsenic.

Registration

The conference is free to attend but registration is required. Please follow the link on the right to register online. 

Convenors

Vicky Coker (University of Manchester)
Eva Valsami-Jones (University of Birmingham)
David Vaughan (University of Manchester)