Rate My Professor Bandita Mainali

Dr. Bandita Mainali is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Engineering at Macquarie University, where she has been teaching a wide array of subjects related to Civil and Water Resources Engineering since 2022. She earned a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil Engineering from an institution in Nepal, a Master of Engineering in Water Resources Management through a DAAD Scholarship in Germany, and a PhD in Environmental Engineering with an APA Scholarship in Australia. Before joining Macquarie University, she worked as a Lecturer in the Civil Engineering Department at La Trobe University from 2014 to 2021, serving as course advisor for the Master of Engineering Program, First Year Engineering Program Coordinator, and Capstone Project Coordinator for BE and ME programs. In these roles, she supervised over 100 Capstone project students and several Higher Degree Research students. Presently, she supervises three PhD students—one as principal supervisor and two as co-supervisors. She also holds the position of Director of the Women in Engineering Committee, fostering diversity, equity, and professional networks for women in engineering through collaborations with organizations like IEEE Women in Engineering and Engineers Australia.

Dr. Mainali's research interests center on innovative water and wastewater treatment and reuse technologies, including optimization of coagulation processes for water treatment, acid mine drainage management, exploration of new end uses for recycled water, implementation and monitoring of Water Sensitive Urban Design, solid waste management, and community perceptions of alternative water sources alongside environmental education. Her expertise spans civil and environmental engineering, hydrology and hydraulics, hydraulic modeling with tools like MUSIC and HEC-RAS, membrane technologies, and advanced biological wastewater treatment methods. Key publications include 'Current advances in the classification, production, properties and uses of microplastic treated wastewater sludge' (2022), 'Manganese oxides and their application to metal ion and contaminant adsorption from waters - A review' (2018), 'Nitrous oxide emission in altered nitrogen cycle and implications for the greenhouse gas mitigation in agriculture' (2022), 'Advances in produced water treatment technologies: an in-depth exploration of conventional and emerging technologies' (2023), and 'Effect of temperature on turbidity removal by coagulation-sludge blanket clarifier' (2022). Her work has garnered over 2,300 citations on Google Scholar, demonstrating substantial impact in the field. Notable awards include the DAAD Scholarship for her Master's degree and the APA Scholarship for her PhD.