Be part of the conversation
The Kansas State University’s Center for Hazardous Substance Research and Kansas Water Institute are are hosting a two-day event on September 22-23, 2026 at the Kansas State University Student Union in Manhattan, KS. The event is focused on advancing science, practice, and collaboration around emerging contaminants and will bring together researchers, practitioners, industry, and community partners to explore the impacts of emerging contaminants on water, soil, food systems, and public health. The intent of the symposium is to identify actionable opportunities for collaboration across Kansas and the nation.
Purpose
This convening is intentionally designed to move beyond information-sharing toward relationship-building and coordinated action. Day 1 will focus on community/societal needs, current science/technology solutions, and the state of research to address unmet needs. An evening reception will also showcase posters on this focus area. Day 2 will emphasize synthesis, gap identification, and next steps.
9:00 am: Registration 10:00: Welcome and Introductions 10:30: Emerging Contaminants: What are they and why are they such a big concern? 11:00: Emerging contaminants in reclaimed wastewater used for crop irrigation: Wastewater variability, plant uptake, and chemical transformations 11:30: Shared Water, Shared Solutions for Improving Water Quality in the Little Arkansas Watershed 12:00 pm: Lunch ~12:20: Luncheon Presentation, DOE National Laboratories Tackling Legacy Waste and Emerging Contaminants 1:00: Quantifying the Bioaccumulation and Fate of PFAS in Cyanobacterial Blooms: Implications for Reservoir Management and Drinking Water Protection 1:30: Leveraging Knowledge Graphs for PFAS Monitoring and Decision-Making 2:00: Atomically Thin Two-Dimensional Nanomaterials for Designing Phosphate Sensors 2:30: Confined Animal Feeding and Nutrient Control 3:15: Break 3:30: Identification and Quantification of Microplastics in Muscle Tissue Using FTIR Microspectroscopy and Chemometrics 4:00: Hybrid Nanomaterial-based Electrochemical Sensor for Cosmetics: Unmasking the Beast Behind Beauty 4:30: Facilitated Reflection, Discussion and Day 1 Wrap-up 5:00: Day 1 Concludes 5:30 – 7:00: Evening Reception at the Carl R. Ice, College of Engineering Building, Ground Floor Atrium 7:30 am: Continental style breakfast 8:00: Aquifer Water Quality Assessment Program 8:10: Advanced Analysis of PFAS, Pesticides, Herbicides, and Emerging Contaminants 8:20: PFAS Transformation in Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactors Treating Livestock Wastewater 8:30: Short Break 8:40: Regeneration of PFAS-Laden GAC Using Non-thermal Plasma 8:50: Valorization of the yellow mealworm frass in Water Cleaning 9:00: Understanding Controls on Nitrate Concentration in Groundwater: An Evolutionar Algorithm Approach 9:10:Short Break 9:15: Instructions on Facilitation portion of the morning 9:30: Break 9:45: Facilitation sessions (Discussion will take place regarding: Assets, Gaps, and Opportunities) 11:00: Break 11:15: Conclusions and next steps (Cottonwood room) 12:00 pm: Symposium concludes Sanjeev Billa Department of Chemistry, Kansas State University Pilot-Scale Fabrication of Activated Carbon Electrodes for Capacitive Deionization of Nitrate-contaminated Ground Water Aarthi Kannan Kansas State University / SASTRA University Hybrid Nanomaterial-based Electrochemical Sensor for Cosmetics: Unmasking the Beast Behind Beauty Sarah Hardisty CTCLUSI Heavy Metal Testing in First Foods: ICP-MS and XRF Method Comparison in Clams Umut Yucel & Utku Uysal School of Health Sciences, Kansas State University Identification and quantification of microplastics in muscle tissue using FTIR micro spectroscopy and chemometrics Yinglun Zhang Kansas State University Leveraging Knowledge Graphs for PFAS Monitoring and Decision-Making Placidus Amama Chemical Engineering Photocatalysis and Advanced Oxidation for Agricultural Wastewater Recycling Reshma Antony Kansas State University Microplastics as a vector for cadmium uptake into maize grain and effect on grain quality Colleen Campbell Protect Kansas Data Centers in Topeka: A Community Response Shreyansh Mishra Kansas State University NiO/Ni2O3 based Top Gated Junctionless Field-Effect Device for Selective Cr(VI) Ion Detection in Water
Placidus Amama, KSU Chemical Engineering
Sara Nason, CT Agricultural Experiment Station
Ron Graber, KSU Extension and Logan Walker, City of Wichita
Christian Johnson, Senior Development Engineer and RemPlex Operations Director, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Lochan Pandeya, KU Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering
Yinglun Zhang, KSU
Suprem Das, KSU Industrial, Manufacturing & Systems Engineering
Casey Guccione, KDHE
Umut Yucel, KSU School of Health Sciences
Aarthi Kannan, KSU
Join us for hors d'oeuvres, sponsorship recognition and research poster presentations.
Nicholas Schneider, Kansas Geological Survey
Kushan Kompalage and Madhubhashini B. Galkaduwa, Water Quality Laboratory, Kansas Water Institute, KSU
Prathap Parameswaran, KSU Civil Engineering
Manisha Choudhary, KSU
Christos Athanassiou, Insect Farming Initiative, Kansas State University
Shreya Chatterjee, KU
Rooms: Cottonwood, 203, 204, and 205
Registration
The Symposium will take place in the Cottonwood Room at the Kansas State University Student Union. Participation in the Symposium is free and open to all stakeholders. Online registration is required.