PhD candidate Matthew Bentley was recently recognized as the top student presenter at the Emerging Contaminants Summit 2020.听
In addition, Bentley was awarded an honorable mention for the Figueroa Family Fellowship, which recognizes students who demonstrate a commitment to the achievement of a diverse student body.
鈥淚t is an honor to receive these awards recognizing my contribution to a diverse engineering student body, my service in low-and middle-income countries, and my research focused on low-cost solutions to global chemical contamination of water sources,鈥� Bentley said. 鈥淚t has been a joy to involve students from diverse backgrounds in my research, which is having a direct impact improving public health in Southeast Asia, and I hope that more individuals from underrepresented populations will consider a career in engineering to make our world a better place.鈥�
Bentley is a fifth-year PhD student in environmental engineering working with Professor R. Scott Summers, with an intended graduation date of August 2020. He received his bachelor鈥檚 degree in engineering from Union University in 2015 and his master鈥檚 in engineering for developing communities from CU 麻豆影院 in 2018. He also earned a graduate certificate in engineering for developing communities.
Bentley鈥檚 dissertation is titled 鈥�Enhancing biochar sorption of organic micropollutants: Understanding the impacts of low-cost improvement methods in various water treatment scenarios.鈥�
鈥淢y research at CU focuses on low-cost methods for improving biochar to remove chemical contaminants from water,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 have developed a novel 鈥榓sh pretreatment鈥� method relevant for resource-limited communities due to their low-cost, decentralized nature, and use of locally available materials.鈥�