The participation of VUT chemistry research group in the NanoAfrica 2012 conference that took place at the University of Free State, Bloemfontein gave rise to awarding of South African Nanotechnology Initiative (SANI) committee to VUT as the host of the next and 5th international conference in Africa in the year 2014. The conference had good attendance from scientists who gave presentations on nanotechnology from all over the world. VUT had six participants, two staff members (M.J Moloto and T. Xaba) and four MTech students (T.Thema, S.B Sibokoza, D.S More and M.H Chiloane) under Prof. Moloto’s leadership, who gave a talk on some of the research outcomes from his projects in nanotechnology.

Two students gave presentations on their work which was well received. Some of the highlights of the conference include plenaries of highly established scientists from Germany, USA, India, Brazil as well local ones from University of Stellenbosch in which the use of the technique electrospinning in water treatment was discussed. The outcomes gave what was referred to tea-bags made from polymer fibres used for removal of microorganisms and chemical pollutants as filter from contaminated water. The technique of making fibres is one of the newly acquired by the department of chemistry to make fibres with nanoparticles embedded to give an additional function of the polymer filter in inhibition and killing bacteria and fungi.

Prof. MJ Moloto making the announcement during the conference. 

The conference has been taking place since 2004 at US and followed by 2006 at UCT, 2009 at the CSIR (Pretoria) and 2012 at UFS (Bloemfontein). This being a bi-annual event has attracted some of the internationally renowned pioneers of nanotechnology and nanoscience such as Prof. Rao, Prof. O’Brien, Prof. Mathur, Prof. Kroto (nobel prize winner – 1996) just to mention but a few. We are hoping to continue and attract and bring world renowned researchers to VUT and South Africa. The conference will be hosted by the department of chemistry under leadership of Prof. MJ Moloto and the local organizing committee will be constituted by the researchers and enthusiastic personnel in the department.

Prof. M.J Moloto
Department of Chemistry
Tel: (016) 950 9207