Dr. Subramanian Ramanathan is a researcher in the field of materials chemistry and environmental remediation, currently working with the Molecular and Optical Physics Research Group at the Institute for Advanced Study in Technology (IAST), Ton Duc Thang University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. He obtained his B.Sc. in General Chemistry from Bishop Heber College, M.Sc. in General Chemistry with research on electrochemical sensing of dichlorophenol pesticides, and PhD in Materials Chemistry from Karunya Institute of Technology and Sciences, where his doctoral research focused on nanomaterials for energy applications, electrochemical sensing, and photocatalytic degradation of organic pollutants.

His research focuses on the development of sustainable functional carbon materials and nanomaterials from biomass, pharmaceutical waste, electronic waste, and other waste resources for environmental remediation and energy-related applications. His current research interests include photocatalysis, advanced oxidation processes, peroxymonosulfate (PMS) activation, sustainable wastewater treatment, emerging-contaminant degradation, and environmental safety assessment.

His research combines materials synthesis with advanced characterization techniques, including XRD, XPS, FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, SEM/TEM, BET surface analysis, HPLC, LC-MS, and EPR spectroscopy using DMPO/TEMP spin-trapping approaches. Biological safety and environmental effects are investigated using models including zebrafish, yeast, and plant-based assays.

His long-term research vision is to develop sustainable, circular, and scalable materials and catalytic technologies that convert waste resources into high-value functional materials for water purification, environmental protection, and clean-energy applications. He is also interested in integrating artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computational approaches with experimental materials science to establish structure–property–performance relationships and accelerate the development of high-performance environmental catalysts.

COMPLETED PROJECTS

1. Role: Project Assistant
Project title: "Eco-Friendly Synthesis of Reduced Graphene Oxide Composites for Energy Storage and Water Remediation Applications
Funding: Government of India (DST-Project)
Budget: ~50,00000 (INR)
Duration: 2015-2018

2. Role: Postdoctoral fellow
Project title: Collaborative research on sustainable materials/environmental applications
Funding: C2F / Thailand
Budget: ~1,50,00000 (INR)
Duration: 2022-2025

Outstanding publications

1. Ramanathan, S., Kasemchainan, J., Chuang, H.-C., Arumugam, M. K., Pandiyarajan, S., & Poompradub, S. (2024). Deciphering rhodamine B dye degradation via the non-radical (¹O₂) pathway: Toxicological assessment using Zebra fish (Danio rerio) and yeast cells (Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Journal of Water Process Engineering, 68, 106423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwpe.2024.106423
2. Ramanathan, S., Rashmitha, R. M., Chuang, H.-C., Kasemchainan, J., Arumugam, M. K., Lydia, I. S., Pandiyarajan, S., & Poompradub, S. (2024). Synergistic photocatalytic degradation of crystal violet dye using novel medical waste-derived carbon/ZnO composite: A study on toxicological assessment. Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 187, 145–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psep.2024.04.096
3. Ramanathan, S., Kasemchainan, J., Chuang, H.-C., Sobral, A. J. F. N., & Poompradub, S. (2023). Rhodamine B dye degradation using used face masks-derived carbon coupled with peroxymonosulfate. Environmental Pollution, 324, 121386. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121386
4. Ramanathan, S., Moorthy, S., Ramasundaram, S., Rajan, H. K., Vishwanath, S., Selvinsimpson, S. P., Durairaj, A., Kim, B., & Vasanthkumar, S. (2021). Grape seed extract assisted synthesis of dual-functional anatase TiO₂ decorated reduced graphene oxide composite for supercapacitor electrode material and visible light photocatalytic degradation of bromophenol blue dye. ACS Omega, 6(23), 14734–14747. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.0c02325
5. Ramanathan, S., Radhika, N., Padmanabhan, D., Durairaj, A., Selvin, S. P., Lydia, S., Subbiah, K., & Vasanthkumar, S. (2020). Eco-friendly synthesis of CRGO and CRGO/SnO₂ nanocomposite for photocatalytic degradation of methylene green dye. ACS Omega, 5(1), 158–169. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsomega.9b02281

Books / Book chapters / Edited proceedings

• Kokulnathan, T., Balasubramanian, S., Pandiyarajan, S., Ramanathan, S., & Sakthi Priya, T. (2022). Introduction to biowaste-derived materials. In A. Pandikumar, P. Rameshkumar, & P. Veerakumar (Eds.), Biomass-Derived Carbon Materials. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9783527832903

Patents / Utility solutions

1. Indian Patent No. 532929, “Biowaste Derived Carbon Electrode Supercapacitor,” granted by the Indian Patent Office. Application No. 202041047605, filed on 31/10/2020. Inventors: Dr. D. Nirmal, Dr. S. Vasanth Kumar, Mr. Godfrey, Dr. Subramanian Ramanathan, and Dr. Arulapan Durairaj.
2. Indian Patent Application No. 202041027095, “A Triboelectric Nanogenerator,” filed with the Indian Patent Office on 26/06/2020 and published on 10/07/2020. Inventors: Mr. Godfrey, Dr. D. Nirmal, Dr. Subramanian Ramanathan, and Dr. S. Vasanthkumar.

Invited talks / Guest speaker at conferences

1. ICMDMSE 2026, PSG iTech, Coimbatore, India (2026)
2. 8^th International Conference on Recent Advances in Bioscience, KSG College of Arts and Science (2022)

Participation in organising scientific conferences and workshops

• Workshop: Organized by the Center for Molecular and Nanomedical Sciences, Sathyabama Institute of Science, Chennai, India, Event name: In vitro Cancer Cell Culture Techniques
• Role: Guest and invited talk

ICTP–Elettra Users Programme

• Award/Recognition: Selected Participant, ICTP–Elettra Users Programme
• Organization: International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) / Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste
• Year: 2026

C2F Postdoctoral Fellowship

• Award/Recognition: High-Potential Postdoctoral Fellowship – C2F Track A, FY2025
• Organization: Chulalongkorn University
• Year: 2025