ASCE has honored Arup K. SenGupta, Ph.D., P.E., F.ASCE, with the 2025 Simon W. Freese Environmental Engineering Award and Lecture for advancing and expanding the field of ion exchange science and technology, and for applying it to the development of sustainable technologies and new materials.
SenGupta is internationally recognized for the above-mentioned work. He has authored well over 100 peer-reviewed journal papers and is the recipient of 12 U.S. patents. He is the inventor of the first reusable, arsenic-selective hybrid anion exchanger nanomaterial (HAIX-Nano). Over 2 million people around the globe currently drink arsenic-safe water through use of HAIX-Nano. In 2014, SenGupta was inducted as a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) for “having demonstrated a highly prolific spirit of innovation in creating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development and the welfare of society.” Two of his patents were recognized as Patents for Humanity by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for their global impact in benefiting marginalized communities around the world.
For his research and scholarly contributions, SenGupta has received many national and international awards and accolades, including the 2004 International Ion Exchange Award at the university of Cambridge, England; 2007 Grainger Challenge Silver Award (2007) from the National Academy of Engineering (NAE); 2009 Lawrence K. Cecil Environmental Award from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE); and 2012 Intel Environmental Award for “technology benefiting humanity.”
The Simon W. Freese Environmental Engineering Award and Lecture is awarded to a distinguished environmental engineer whom the ASCE Executive Director will invite to deliver a lecture at a given meeting of the Society.
