Gubkin University at the XXIV International Forum "Ecology of the Big City"
From March 12 to 14, 2025, the XXIV International Forum "Ecology of the Big City" was held at the Expoforum Convention and Exhibition Center in St. Petersburg.
For three days, environmental experts, government and business representatives, and scientists have shared their experiences and developments on topical issues of the environmental agenda. Particular attention was paid to waste management strategies, including medical waste, the development of the secondary resource recycling industry, the introduction of new technological solutions, innovations in environmental supervision, measures for an adequate response to the global climate challenge, the formation of an environmental framework for the integrated development of urban areas, and the search for a balance between the development of city infrastructure and the preservation of natural ecosystems.
The forum included 40 events in various formats, such as a plenary session, master classes, meetings, special projects and a quest. The event was attended by more than 5,000 people from 60 regions of Russia and more than ten countries, including Kazakhstan, Myanmar, Belarus, Hungary, China and others.
A specialized thematic exhibition presenting successful practices of Russian regions in the environmental protection sphere complemented the program. Innovative developments were demonstrated by 38 companies-manufacturers of environmental protection equipment from ten regions of Russia.
Gubkin University was represented by employees of the Department of Metal Science and Non-Metallic Materials as participants of the exhibition: assistants Georgy Bokoev, Artem Bereznyakov and representatives of the student scientific society Danila Andrianov (group CHEM-24-06) and Kristina Suanova (group MB-22-08).
Three developments were presented at the Gubkin University stand. The staff of the Department of Metal Science and Non-Metallic Materials proposed and developed a method for processing plastic bottles (PET) into filament for printing models on a 3D printer. This technology can become an alternative for printing and developing equipment prototypes, as well as decorative modeling using 3D printing technology. They also talked about the use of hogweed in industry. Scientists from Gubkin University have developed a method for obtaining a sorbent from Sosnowsky's hogweed and found a way to process this dangerous type of hogweed into a sorbent that can be used to eliminate emergency spills of oil and oil products on land and in water, as well as to purify industrial water. The sorbent absorbs contaminants in an hour and a half. In addition, the patented development will help reduce the spread of hogweed in Russia.
The Department of Industrial Ecology has developed a method for producing a sorption material for eliminating oil spills on the water surface based on waste paper (waste paper). The analysis of the obtained material confirmed its effectiveness in eliminating oil spills on the water surface. The study demonstrates the potential for using paper waste to produce environmentally friendly sorption materials and increase the share of recycling of waste paper generated.
On March 14, 2025, on the Youth Day of the Forum, an innovative session "Green Technologies of Young Scientists" was held. As part of the session, a career guidance event was held, where the responsible secretary of the admissions committee Viktor Telkov told the participants of the session about the scientific and educational center of Gubkin University in St. Petersburg. The participants of the meeting were able to ask the speaker of the event questions of interest.
