The Integrated Sustainable Materials and Process Engineering (ISMP) Lab focuses on developing advanced materials and catalytic processes that enable sustainable energy production and environmental protection. The lab integrates innovative materials design with chemical process engineering to create scalable technologies for clean fuels, renewable hydrogen, and pollution mitigation. Our research explores how multifunctional catalytic materials can efficiently convert renewable resources, solar energy, and biomass-derived feedstocks into valuable fuels and chemicals.

The group aims to bridge fundamental catalysis with practical engineering solutions to address pressing global challenges in sustainable energy and environmental technologies. Particular emphasis is placed on understanding the structure–activity relationships of catalytic materials and translating these insights into efficient and scalable catalytic processes.

Research Focus Areas

• Design and development of advanced catalytic materials including perovskites, hybrid nanomaterials, and carbon-based systems.
• Catalytic processes for green hydrogen production from renewable and biomass-derived feedstocks.
• Solar-driven chemical transformations using photocatalytic and photoelectrochemical systems.
• Catalytic technologies for NOx emission control and air pollution mitigation, including development of stable catalysts for nitrogen oxide reduction in industrial and vehicular emissions.
• Environmental catalysis for degradation of emerging pollutants such as pharmaceutical contaminants in water.
• Advanced oxidation and photocatalytic processes for sustainable wastewater treatment.
• Integration of materials innovation with catalytic reactor and process engineering.

Opportunities in the Lab

Students and researchers joining the ISMP Lab gain experience in:

• Advanced materials synthesis and catalyst design
• Photocatalytic and catalytic reaction systems
• Catalytic reactor design and performance evaluation
• Modern materials characterization techniques
• Sustainable energy and environmental technologies

The ISMP Lab welcomes motivated undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students interested in contributing to innovative research in catalysis, clean energy, and environmental sustainability.

All Publications

Mechanistic Insights into Simultaneous Oxygen-Doped and Defect-Engineered Carbon Nitride as a Multifunctional Photocatalyst for Tetracycline Degradation, N2 Fixation, and H2O2 Production by Balakrishnan A., Kunnel E.S., Trivedi S., Sasidharan R., Kumar A., Chinthala M. Industrial and Engineering Chemistry Research 63 18975-18988 (2024)
AN OVERVIEW ON THE USE OF SPINEL-BASED CATALYSTS TO REDUCE CO AND HC EMISSIONS FROM DIESEL ENGINES by Trivedi S. Emerging Trends in Green Chemical Technologies: Navigating Challenges and Exploring Opportunities 1-84 (2025)
Phosphorylated g-C3N4/sulfur self-doped g-C3N4 homojunction carboxymethyl cellulose beads: An efficient photocatalyst for H2O2 production by Balakrishnan A., Vijaya Suryaa K., Tripathy H., Trivedi S., Kumar A., Chinthala M. Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 663 1087-1098 (2024)
Nonlinear static and dynamic response of a metastructure exhibiting quasi-zero-stiffness characteristics for vibration control: an experimental validation by Dalela S., Balaji P.S., Leblouba M., Trivedi S., Kalam A. Scientific Reports 14 - (2024)
Recent advances on graphitic carbon nitride-based homojunction as effective photocatalysts for energy and environmental remediation by Trivedi S. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 98 1020-1033 (2025)
Tunable quantum dots-modified metal organic frameworks for photocatalytic conversion of CO2 to fuels and chemicals: a review by Trivedi S., Selvaraj B.P., Ochonma P., Gadikota G. Environmental Science and Pollution Research 32 27335-27350 (2025)
Recent advances on graphitic carbon nitride-based homojunction as effective photocatalysts for energy and environmental remediation by Balakrishnan A., Chinthala M., Kumar A., Dayanandan N., Trivedi S. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy 98 1020-1033 (2025)
Improved tetracycline degradation via integrated peroxymonosulfate activation and photocatalytic self-Fenton using hybrid Type-II/Z-scheme Se/g-C3N4/Bi2WO6carboxymethyl cellulose hydrogels by Kunnel E.S., Manker S.A., Kumar A., Balakrishnan A., Pati Tripathi C.S., Dubey B.K., Trivedi S. Journal of Materials Chemistry A 13 40850-40862 (2025)
g-C3N5-based photocatalysts for energy and environmental applications: insights into properties, structural modifications, challenges, and future directions by Balakrishnan A., Mathew F.P., Sebastian Kunnel E., Varghese M.M., Trivedi S., Binoy M., Chinthala M., Rajamohan N., Weng B. Nanoscale 17 18534-18559 (2025)
Enhanced Visible Light Photocatalytic Performance of CeO2@Acidified g-C3N4 Nanoheterostructures for RhB Degradation by Kumar A., Arya V., Pathak A., Trivedi S., Guin D., Tripathi C.S.P. Langmuir 41 14765-14777 (2025)

Completed Projects

Principal Investigator

Development of PGM-Free Catalytic System for Emission Control in CNG vehicles Sponsored Research and Industrial Consultancy (SRIC)
Development of Stable Catalysts and Pretreatment Strategies for Hydrogen production via Aqueous Phase Reforming of Hydrothermal Biomass Feedstocks Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF)
Technical vetting of hydraulic and process design of 5MLD WTP in Dimond Harbour G.B. CONSTRUCTION

Alumni members