Webinar title: Identification and Control of Odor Compounds in Drinking Water

Speaker: Min Yang

Webinar time: November 28th, 2025 (Friday) 9:30

Venue: Room 231, New Environmental Building

Inviter: Zhimin Qiang, Wentao Li

Abstract:

    Odor issues in drinking water are relatively prominent in China. Since odor-causing compounds in drinking water typically exist at nanogram-per-liter levels, and many complex odors result from the combined effects of multiple trace substances, one of the major challenges for ensuring drinking water safety in China lies in identifying which compounds among hundreds or thousands of pollutants contribute to odor, and effectively removing these trace odorants. This report will systematically introduce our team’s work on odor identification and detection method development, in situ control of odor-producing algae, and odor-targeted treatment strategies in water treatment plants. It will also present application cases of these technologies in national water quality surveys and in solving odor-related issues.

About the speaker:

    Professor Min Yang is a senior researcher at Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Director of the National Engineering Research Center for Industrial Wastewater Detoxication and Resource Recovery, and a high-level young talent. He also serves as deputy chief engineer of National Major Science and Technology Project for Environmental Management in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, editor-in-chief of the Chinese Journal of Environmental Engineering, and Associate Editor of ACS E&ST Water. His research focuses on water quality risk identification and control. He has made breakthroughs in major engineering challenges such as nature-based in situ regulation of large water source quality and source blocking of antibiotic resistance dissemination in pharmaceutical wastewater. His work has supported the development and revision of key national, industry, and World Health Organization (WHO) standards and guidelines, including the Standards for Drinking Water Quality. He has provided critical scientific and technological support for drinking water safety in cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, emergency responses to odor events in Wuxi and Qinhuangdao, safe utilization of South-to-North Water Transfer Project water in Beijing, and COVID-19 pandemic control. He has received numerous major awards, including the First and Second Prizes of the State Science and Technology Advancement Award, the Second Prize of the State Natural Science Award, the CAS Outstanding Science and Technology Achievement Award, the Grand Prize of Science and Technology by the China Association for Water Supply and Drainage, and the Regional Award of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), among others.