This Special Issue focuses on recent advances in electrochemistry applied to environmental engineering, including water treatment, resource recovery processes, and sustainable energy production. Submit your manuscript by August 1, 2025.

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Significant advancements in the use of electrochemical technology for water purification, resource recovery, and sustainable energy production have recently been made. Against a backdrop of increasing global water scarcity and pollution challenges, electrochemical methods are promising solutions. Examples of electrochemical applications include the electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate, electrochemical oxidation/reduction of persistent contaminants, development of novel electrodes for water purification, electro-sorption and capacitive deionization (CDI) technologies, electrochemical sensors, carbon dioxide reduction and separation, and electrochemical technologies that promote the circular economy. These diverse research areas underscore the breadth and depth of electrochemistry's applications in environmental engineering and sustainable energy solutions.

The focus of this new joint Special Issue in ACS ES&T Engineering and ACS Electrochemistry is to identify novel electrochemistry applications in environmental engineering, materials science, and sustainable energy solutions towards water purification and resource recovery and circularity. The Special Issue will provide a platform for researchers to share their latest findings, discuss technological challenges, and outline future directions in this critical area of environmental engineering and sustainable energy solutions.

Topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Electrocatalytic reduction of nitrate to value-added compounds
  • Electrochemical oxidation/reduction of persistent contaminants
  • The development of novel electrodes, including porous electrodes and selective electrocatalysts
  • Advances in electro-sorption and capacitive deionization technologies
  • Electrochemical generation of chemicals for water treatment and environmental remediation
  • Bio-electrochemical technologies for water treatment and electro-disinfection
  • Electrode fabrication techniques
  • Electrochemical separation technologies, e.g. electrodialysis
  • Electrode reaction kinetics and mechanisms
  • Electrochemical sensors for environmental applications
  • Electrochemical surface science and properties of electrified interfaces for environmental applications
  • Electrochemical processes for the circular economy
The deadline for submissions is August 1, 2025.

Organizing Editors

Professor Brian Chaplin, Topic Editor, ACS ES&T Engineering
University of Illinois at Chicago, United States

Professor Patrick Unwin, Editor-in-Chief, ACS Electrochemistry
University of Warwick, United Kingdom

Professor Guohua Chen, Guest Editor
City University of Hong Kong, China

Professor Kangwoo Cho, Guest Editor
Pohang University of Science and Technology, Korea

Professor Marta Hatzell, Guest Editor
Georgia Institute of Technology, United States

Professor Julie MacPherson, Guest Editor
University of Warwick, United Kingdom

Professor Carlos Alberto Martínez-Huitle, Guest Editor
Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil

Professor Guido Mul, Guest Editor
Twente University, The Netherlands

Professor Gaston Adrian Crespo Paravano, Guest Editor
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden

Professor Garcia Segura, Guest Editor
Arizona State University, United States

Professor William A. Tarpeh, Guest Editor
Stanford University, United States

Submission Information

We welcome submissions for this Special Issue through August 1, 2025. For more information on submission requirements, please visit the Author Guidelines pages for ACS ES&T Engineering or ACS Electrochemistry.

All manuscript types available in the journals may be considered for this Special Issue. Papers accepted for publication for this Special Issue will be available ASAP (as soon as publishable) online. After all submissions have been published, they will then be compiled online on a dedicated landing page to form the Special Issue. Manuscripts submitted for consideration will undergo the full rigorous peer review process expected from ACS journals.

Open Access: There are diverse open access options for publications in American Chemical Society journals. Please visit our Open Science Resource Center for more information.

How to Submit

  • Log in to the ACS Publishing Center.
  • Select the "Journals" tab.
  • Choose either ACS ES&T Engineering or ACS Electrochemistry.
  • Click "Submit."
  • Select your manuscript type, and, under "Special Issue Selection," choose “Fundamental and Applied Advances in Electrochemical Technologies for Sustainable Water Treatment and Resource Recovery."

If you have any general questions regarding submission to this Special Issue, please email managing.editor@estengg.acs.org.

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