Rice Water Institute

12/03/2025

👏Congrats to Professor Menachem Elimelech of Rice University, and RiCeME Lead (Rice Center for Membrane Excellence) on being named a Membrane Society of Australasia 2025 Distinguished Scholar!

🧪https://water.rice.edu/riceme

🌟 Congratulations to Professor Menachem Elimelech on being named a Membrane Society of Australasia 2025 Distinguished Scholar!
As part of this prestigious honor, Professor Elimelech will visit institutions across Australia and deliver a plenary address at IMSTEC 2025 next week, sharing his pioneering research and advancing global collaboration in membrane science and technology.

This recognition reflects Professor Elimelech's outstanding contributions to the field and his commitment to addressing critical water and environmental challenges. We are immensely proud to have him represent Rice University, the Rice WaTER Institute, and our Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering on the international stage.

Please join us in congratulating Professor Elimelech on this well-deserved recognition! 👏
https://www.membrane-australasia.org/msadistinguishedscholars

11/11/2025

🎇Dr. pedro alvarez of Rice University, Director of NEWT Engineering Research Center and Rice WaTER Institute's Founder has been awarded the 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Civil Engineering! Franklin Laureates will be recognized at the Awards Ceremony in April 2026. 👏
“This is a huge recognition, not only for a lifetime of work but also for the tremendous help I’ve received from students and colleagues and everyone in this field before me,” Alvarez said.
📣https://water.rice.edu/.../align-your-passion-your...
🎖️Benjamin Franklin Medal - https://fi.edu/en/awards
Rice WaTER Institute
Rice University Civil and Environmental Engineering
Rice University Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Rice University School of Engineering and Computing

📣 Announcing the 2026 Franklin Institute Awards Laureates!

Their work spans an extraordinary range of scientific discoveries, from the smallest units of life to the vast expanse of the universe. They have pioneered new fields of inquiry and transformed entire disciplines, preserving vital pieces of our past and charting bold paths to the future.

🏅 2026 Bower Award and Prize for Achievement in Science - David R. Liu, Ph.D. of Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Howard Hughes Medical Institute - HHMI, and Harvard University
🏅 2026 Bower Award for Business Leadership - David M. Rubenstein of The Carlyle Group
🏅 2026 Benjamin Franklin NextGen Award - Josh Alman, Ph.D. of Columbia University
🏅 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Chemistry - Geoffrey W. Coates, Ph.D. of Cornell University
🏅 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Civil Engineering - Pedro J.J. Alvarez, Ph.D. of Rice University
🏅 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Computer and Cognitive Science - Dedre Gentner, Ph.D. of Northwestern University
🏅 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Earth and Environmental Science - Karen C. Seto, Ph.D. of Yale University
🏅 2026 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Physics - Wendy Laurel Freedman, Ph.D. of The University of Chicago

Awards Week begins April 27, 2026, culminating in a gala ceremony on April 30, to celebrate the 8 laureates and recognize one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious honors in science, engineering, and business leadership.

10/30/2024

Eventful day at the Yokogawa User Conference on enjoyed by team members and partners. Movie Premier viewing of - A Water Odyssey
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06/17/2024

If you missed Dr. Pedro Alvarez's interview with Dr. Carrie Masiello this morning, check it out here on Apple Podcast.

‎Show Gulf Streams, Ep Ep. 38 Research Along the Gulf - 17 Jun 2024

03/23/2024

Watch Dr. Pedro Alvarez of Rice University interview by Univision’s Anna Bueno, Environmental Reporter

Link: https://buff.ly/43swCI5

Hoy celebramos mundialmente el día del agua, con el tema de agua limpia para la paz y la prosperidad. Como todos sabemos, el agua potable es un factor limitante para la capacidad humana y es muy importante no solo para la salud publica sino también para producir comida y energía, y para la prosperidad de nuestras comunidades. Pensando en un futuro más sostenible, la Universidad de Rice lanzó recientemente el Instituto del Agua, donde estamos desarrollando tecnologías de punta para crear agua limpia bajo demanda, tratada a la medida, usando fuentes no convencionales como aguas servidas o agua del mar o incluso aguas desechadas de varias industrias. Nosotros nos especializamos en el uso de materiales avanzados como adsorbentes y membranas que separan contaminantes prioritarios selectivamente, y catálisis para destruirlos, lo cual facilita el desarrollo de procesos de tratamiento más eficientes y más asequibles. También promovemos un espíritu empresarial de innovación tecnológica, apoyando el lanzamiento de empresas nuevas.

“El agua limpia puede salvar más vidas que los médicos”, afirma Pedro Álvarez, director del Instituto del Agua en la Universidad Rice, a propósito del Día Mundial del Agua, que se celebra este 22 de marzo. Y es que el experto señala que miles de millones de personas alrededor del mundo no ...