EFTCL Overview
About Us
We are a research group in the Environmental Engineering section of the Department of Civil Engineering at IIT (BHU) Varanasi. We focus on studying the fate and transport chemistry of various pollutants of concern across different environmental components. We integrate concepts like chemical analysis and reactive transport modelling to predict the mobilization of pollutants in surface water, subsurface environments, and various anthropogenic environments, including sewage and sewage sludge. We also elucidate the chemical speciation of various pollutants of interest under relevant conditions, using aqueous and surface complexation modelling. Moreover, we study the effects of various physicochemical parameters, presence of ligands and redox potential on contaminants’ fate and transport.
Vision and Mission
Our goal is to enhance understanding and prediction of environmental systems by studying the fate, speciation, and transport of pollutants in both natural and engineered environments. Our research supports science‑based solutions to protect water quality, ecosystems, and public health. We focus on combining advanced chemical analysis, solid‑phase characterization, and reactive transport modelling to explore how pollutants are mobilized and transformed in surface water, subsurface, and human-made settings such as sewage and sludge systems. Our approach involves systematically examining how physicochemical conditions, ligands, and redox dynamics influence contaminant behaviour, while developing knowledge and tools for sustainable environmental management, regulation, and decision‑making.
The Team
Dr. Anshuman Satpathy
Dr. Anshuman Satpathy
Dr. Anshuman Satpathy
Assistant Professor
Civil Engineering Department, IIT (BHU)
Team Lead
Sarthak Dubey
Dr. Anshuman Satpathy
Dr. Anshuman Satpathy
Ph.D. Scholar
Tushar Patel
Dr. Anshuman Satpathy
Tushar Patel
Ph.D. Scholar
Rishi Kumar
Aman Kumar Yadav
Tushar Patel
M.Tech Student
Aman Kumar Yadav
Aman Kumar Yadav
Aman Kumar Yadav
M.Tech Student
Ankit Sinha
Aman Kumar Yadav
Aman Kumar Yadav
M. Tech Student
Team
Team Lead
The research group is led by Dr. Anshuman Satpathy, Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering Department, IIT (BHU). He got his PhD. in Energy, Environmental and Chemical Engineering from Washington University in St. Louis (USA). His expertise includes the geochemistry of uranium in nuclear waste repositories and other subsurface environments; interface chemistry of clay sorbents; per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in wastewater and domestic and industrial sludges; surface complexation and dissolution-precipitation modelling; sorption techniques; and chemical extraction techniques.
Dr. Satpathy received interdisciplinary training in both Environmental Engineering and Environmental Earth Sciences during his PhD. He comes from a mining-heavy region of India, East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand, and has been concerned by the impacts of heavy metal pollution on surface water bodies and groundwater resources. He got his Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering from IIEST Shibpur and M. Tech. in Environmental Engineering and Management in Civil Engineering Department at IIT Kanpur. Dr. Satpathy has mentored many PhD. and Masters students during his postdoc training in Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey, USA and in the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, USA. leader in scientific innovation.
Ph.D. Scholar
Sarthak Dubey, a PhD. Scholar in the group (Civil Engineering Department, IIT BHU). He is from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. He has a B.Tech in Civil Engineering and an M.Tech in Environmental Engineering. His research focuses on PFAS detection, analysis, and remediation in environmental matrices, especially wastewater and sewage sludge. His publications include an IWWA ICWSD 24 conference paper, a JETIR paper, and a RHAR 25 conference poster. His projects include a B.Tech project on an MBBR-based WWTP for an educational institution and an M.Tech project on low-cost filtration for greywater disposal directly into natural water bodies/sewerage networks. Sarthak has been providing teaching assistance (TA) in various Environmental Engineering core courses at IIT (BHU), including the UG lab course. He has mentored various UG and PG students in their respective projects. His hobbies include designing, music, singing, photography, sketching, painting, and writing.
Ph.D. Scholar
Tushar Patel, a PhD. scholar in the group (Civil Engineering Department, IIT BHU). He is from Shahjahanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He has a B.Tech in Civil Engineering and an M.Tech in Structural Design. His research focuses on uranium contamination in groundwater, using hydrogeochemical analysis, surface complexation modelling, and low-cost remediation methods to ensure safe drinking water. He has presented at an international conference at NIT Meghalaya (August 2–4, 2025) and has completed projects during his B. Tech and M.Tech courses. Tushar has been teaching assistant (TA) in various Environmental Engineering core courses at IIT (BHU) including PG lab course. He has mentored various UG and PG students in their respective projects. His hobbies include teaching and playing chess.
M. Tech Student
Rishi Kumar is a graduated M.Tech student from Madhubani, Bihar, with a B.Tech in Civil Engineering. He is working on synthesis of organo-clay from clay found in porters workshop or farmland. Although Montmorillonite is preferred for this process, it is more expensive, so he uses porters clay, which is abundant and among the cheapest materials available. This organo-clay serves as a substitute for activated carbon to remove organic, inorganic, and non-polar organic molecules from water and soil.
M. Tech Student
Aman Kumar Yadav is an M.Tech student from Ghazipur, Uttar Pradesh, with a B.Tech in Civil Engineering. His research involves fractionation and speciation of chromium in sewage sludge and bioremediation of heavy metals. He aims to determine the environmental toxicity and biological availability of chromium fractions using UV-Vis spectrophotometry to develop sustainable recovery techniques that address public health and resource recovery. He attended the' Water Treatment, Reuse, and Resource Recovery" symposium (Dec 2025) at IIT(BHU) Varanasi and a workshop on SDGs (Feb 2026) organised by the SDG Centre at IIT (BHU). His projects include a comparative study on soil stabilization using crumb rubber and fly ash. His hobbies include speech and paper presentations, playing table tennis, and storytelling.
M. Tech Student
Ankit Sinha is an M.Tech student from Ambikapur, Chhattisgarh, with a B.Tech in Civil Engineering. His research focuses on green synthesis of magnetically recoverable iron oxide nanoparticles using bioactive plant extracts for sustainable remediation of Hexavalent Chromium [Cr(VI)] from industrial sludge. By using phytogenic capping agents, he aims to improve surface reactivity for adsorption and reduction, emphasising easy magnetic separation to prevent secondary pollution. This offers a cost-effective, circular-economy solution for detoxifying complex wastewater without hazardous chemicals. He attended a symposium on "Water Treatment, Reuse, and Resource Recovery" (Dec 11-12, 2025) at IIT(BHU) Varanasi and a workshop on SDGs (Feb 5, 2026), organised by the Virtual SDG Centre at IIT BHU. His projects include a study on concrete mix design for ultra-thin white topping. His hobbies include leadership, management, badminton, podcasts, and space science.
Gallery
Dr. Satpathy delivering his research talk at IWTRRR 25
Dr Satpathy recieving Honour from Prof. Ashok Kumar Gupta (IIT Kharagpur)
Dr Satpathy getting felicitated by Dr. Shreyansh Jain (IIT BHU) in esteemed presence of Prof. Vinod Tare (Founder: c-Ganga) and Prof. P.K. Singh (IIT BHU)