Nanotechnology is rapidly moving from laboratories to the real world – purifying water, filtering air, and demonstrating that the connection between science and practice is transforming entire industries. CXI TUL is at the forefront of this development. Our researchers became an important part of the international NanoCzech 2025 conference, which this year in Liberec offered not only presentations, but also the opportunity to look directly into the places where technologies that are changing the future are being created.
The NanoCzech 2025 conference was organized by the Regional Development Agency together with the Liberec Region and attracted around 150 scientists, researchers, company representatives, and diplomats from more than twenty countries around the world to the city. Their participation only confirmed that Liberec has a firm place in the world of nanotechnology. „The Technical University and companies such as Elmarco, which have put its patents into practice, have launched a new era in the industrial history of our region. Thanks to this, we were able to discuss specific solutions that can help create a cleaner environment with scientists and businesspeople at NanoCzech. Our task is to create space for new initiatives, projects, and collaborations that will strengthen the region and improve the quality of life for local residents,“ said Martin Půta, Governor of the Liberec Region, during the conference.
Leaders in sustainable technologies
A morning excursion to the Technical University of Liberec and regional companies offered participants the opportunity to take a look behind the scenes at the technologies that are currently pushing the limits of contaminated water treatment, air filtration, and soil remediation. All this was accompanied by expert commentary from those who develop these solutions. CXI TUL attracted great interest from conference participants.
„We focus on applications in the field of environmental protection. We develop and test equipment for the purification of drinking water, wastewater, and groundwater. We collaborate with companies that want to put our technologies into practice,“ says Miroslav Černík, director of CXI TUL, adding that other areas of focus include soil remediation using iron nanoparticles, the development of graphene-based sorbents, and materials for medical applications.
Conference participants were able to see where these applications are created. Visitors to CXI saw the electron microscopy laboratory, which houses the latest Plasma FIB Helios electron microscope, which can directly cut samples in the microscope chamber using an ion beam. CXI TUL acquired the microscope thanks to a grant from the Interreg Czechia-Saxony program as part of a project called Cross-border Support for the Involvement of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Future Materials Research (SUPPORT4SME).
They also visited the environmental technology laboratories, where they saw methods for water purification using nanomaterials in combination with other technologies, and of course the nanofiber preparation laboratory, which continues the Liberec nanotradition.
In the afternoon, the conference continued at the Vratislavice 101010 Cultural Center with lectures, networking, and a final panel discussion. Professor Martin Pumera from CXI TUL, one of the most cited scientists in the world, gave a lecture. He is working with CXI to expand the application of nanorobots from the laboratory scale to full use in wastewater treatment. Another of our scientists, Lukáš Dvořák, also spoke at the conference with a presentation on the use of advanced technologies and innovative materials in water treatment processes.
The conference served as a reminder that over more than twenty years, a strong community of nano-experts respected around the world has been created in Liberec and throughout the Czech Republic. „Bold solutions are created here thanks to people who seek paths where none yet exist. Equally important are entrepreneurs who have the courage to put new technologies into practice and offer them to their customers,“ confirms Luboš Komárek from the Nanoprogress cluster.
Photo: Jan Jirouš
using a press release from the Regional Development Agency and a contribution from Adam Pluhař on TUNI
