Dr Akshat Tanksale

Dr Akshat Tanksale of the Department of Chemical Engineering was recently invited to attend the 2012 Theo Murphy High Flyers Think Tank, held by the Australian Academy of Science in Adelaide.

The Academy’s annual High Flyers Think Tank aims to bring together researchers from a vast array of disciplines, to engage in thinking about cutting edge applications of existing science and technology.

This year’s theme was about shaping a vision for the future of Australia’s population. The 60 participants worked in four groups of about 15 members, each of which addressed relevant questions. One of the groups explored what the population of Australia could look like in the future, another talked about the distribution of the population, and how resources could be shared, while a third group focused on exploring possible futures and how habitats could change over time.

The final group outlined possible changes to the workforce, consumption patterns and technology that could be implemented to ensure a sustainable future.

Dr Akshat Tanksale was one of the 15 members in this final group.

Dr Tanksale was invited to speak about his interdisciplinary research, in the field of nanomaterials to reduce human resilience on conventional fossil fuels, for example petroleum, which are diminishing in amount and are said to be responsible for climate change through carbon dioxide pollution.

“This research is very challenging. There is no easy route to achieve a long term sustainable renewable energy source. It involves a multi-disciplinary approach to find a solution. Apart from the fundamental chemical engineering principles, my research involves breakthrough science in the fields of nanomaterials and applied chemistry. This research is hugely important in the current socio-economic environment where renewable energy has become one of the top priorities of the very existence of human-kind. If a long term solution to the energy crisis and climate change problem is not solved then in the near term we face global economic slowdown and in the long term the rise in global temperatures threatens to extinguish many life forms, including us,” explains Dr Tanksale.

Dr Tanksale joined the Department of Chemical Engineering at Monash in 2011 as a Lecturer after completing a Bachelor of Engineering in the field of Chemical Engineering at the National Institute of Technology in India, and his Masters in Chemical Engineering and PhD in Chemical Engineering at the University of Queensland.

The Faculty of Engineering would like to congratulate Dr Tanksale on this prestigious honour.