Hoseo University Environmental Engineering Department Wins National Competition with Innovative Mine Drainage Treatment Technology

Double Encouragement Award at Mine-Tech Festa
Intelligent Drainage Treatment and Iron-Based Eco-Friendly Purification Technologies Receive High Praise

Suspicious students and Professor Ji Wonhyun (third from the left)/Hoseo University

Students from the Department of Environmental Engineering at Hoseo University are drawing attention for their outstanding achievements at a national competition with next-generation technologies for mine wastewater purification.

Their creative ideas, which provide engineering solutions to industrial field problems, are being recognized as a new model for "innovation in eco-friendly resource industries."

On October 16, Hoseo University announced that students Kang Yurim and Kang Sandeul from the Department of Environmental Engineering received the Encouragement Award at the "2025 Mine-Tech Festa," hosted by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation.

The two students, together with doctoral student Yang Suchan, proposed the "Intelligent Mine Drainage Treatment System," which was highly praised for its technical completeness and practicality.

The core of this technology lies in maximizing mixing and coagulation efficiency through a variable reactor that accommodates the fluctuating flow characteristics of mine drainage, as well as adjusting reaction conditions in real time to achieve energy savings and processing stability.

Another award-winning technology, the "Arsenic and Manganese Complex Contaminant Treatment Technology Using Iron-Based Materials," was recognized for improving the reactivity of iron-based adsorbents even in environments with large inflows of low-concentration pollutants, thereby reducing chemical usage and enhancing eco-friendliness.

Both technologies received high marks for their field applicability and scalability.

Professor Ji Wonhyun, the supervising professor, stated, "The technologies proposed by the students have achieved a level of completeness that goes beyond the laboratory and can be applied to industrial sites. We will further specify the commercialization potential through follow-up research."

Meanwhile, since its establishment in 1988, the Department of Environmental Engineering at Hoseo University has been leading the development of industry-ready environmental professionals through the introduction of engineering education accreditation, the establishment of the Environmental Technology Research Center, and the operation of the Chungnam Green Environment Support Center.

Based on a convergence education of engineering, humanities, and social sciences, the university is solidifying its position as a hub for nurturing talent in sustainable environmental technologies.