The organizing committee is happy to announce a special symposium on Nanotechnologies Applied to Biosystems Engineering and the Environment to be held during the XVII^th World Congress of CIGR in Québec City, Canada next June 13-17, 2010.  The symposium will focus on three major themes: (I) Agricultural Nanotechnologies; (II) Nanotechnologies for the Food Industry; (III) Nanotechnologies for Environmental Applications in Agri-Food Systems

Examples of agricultural nanotechnologies include: nanomodification of seeds and fertilizers/pesticides; new tools for the molecular treatment of plant diseases; nanomaterials for enhancing the ability of plants to absorb nutrients; smart nanosensors and delivery systems for agricultural applications.  For the food industry, examples include:  nanostructured catalysts dedicated to food modification; ‘smart’ packaging and food tracking; nanoscale food- and biomass- based materials for controlled release applications; relevant nanomaterials in food processing; nanotechnology in food safety and quality; nanotechnology in food ingredients/food additives; nanotechnology in food engineering/molecular food manufacturing. The number of potential applications in environmental systems applied is also very wide: water and wastewater treatment and purification; air treatment and purification; nanostructured adsorbents and catalysts to reduce pollution; environmental sensing; greener nanoproducts and accelerated CO₂ capture and storage.

The symposium is under the scientific leadership of Professor Khaled Belkacemi at Université Laval (Canada), with the assistance of vice-chairs Professors Safia Hamoudi and Faïçal Larachi (Canada).  Selected high-quality papers treating aspects of chemical, food and process engineering will be considered for publication in a Special Issue of the Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering according to the journal’s editorial criteria. The scientific committee will select papers that report on a substantial body of information for this special issue.

Visit the website at www.cigr2010.ca for more information. Abstracts can be downloaded on the web site or emailed according to instructions. The deadline for submitting abstracts is November 20, 2009.

Nano BioEng 2010 Committee