Rate My Professor Kavitha Ramadass

Dr. Kavitha Ramadass serves as a Research Fellow and senior researcher in Professor Ajayan Vinu’s group at the Global Innovative Centre for Advanced Nanomaterials (GICAN), University of Newcastle, Australia. She is also a Casual Academic in the School of Science within the College of Engineering, Science and Environment. Originally from Tamil Nadu, South India, she obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Sciences from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, in 2002, and her Master’s degree in Environmental Sciences from the same university in 2004. Ramadass earned her PhD in 2011 from the Centre for Environmental Risk Assessment and Remediation at the University of South Australia, where her research focused on the ecotoxicology and bioremediation of total petroleum hydrocarbons, funded by the International Postgraduate Research Scholarship. Prior to her current role, she worked as a postdoctoral research associate at the Future Industries Institute, University of South Australia, contributing to bioremediation projects of hydrocarbon-contaminated soils supported by BHP Billiton Iron Ore and the Co-operative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment. She received the Research Encouragement Award at the International Union of Materials Research Societies - International Conference on Advanced Materials (IUMRS-ICAM) in Kyoto, Japan, in 2017.

Dr. Ramadass’s research specializes in the design, synthesis, and application of multifunctional nanoporous materials, including carbon nitrides and activated carbons, for energy storage, CO2 capture and conversion, adsorption of environmental toxins, and development of sustainable nanofertilizers. Her work also extends to environmental remediation, soil health, and innovative soil amendments. Notable publications include “Morphologically tunable nanoarchitectonics of mixed kaolinhalloysite derived nitrogen-doped activated nanoporous carbons for supercapacitor and CO2 capture applications” (Carbon, 2022), “Unresolved complex mixtures of petroleum hydrocarbons in the environment: An overview of ecological effects and remediation approaches” (Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 2021), “Bioavailability of weathered hydrocarbons in engine oil-contaminated soil: Impact of bioaugmentation mediated by Pseudomonas spp. on bioremediation” (Science of the Total Environment, 2018), and “Ecological implications of motor oil pollution: Earthworm survival and soil health” (Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 2015). As a key investigator on research grants exceeding $9 million, she co-supervises PhD students on topics such as biocarbon fertilizers and functionalized nanomaterials for carbon capture, significantly impacting advancements in sustainable materials for environmental and energy challenges.