PhD Chemist · Researcher · Educator

Dr. Momal Akram

I develop visible-light photocatalysts and green adsorbents for wastewater treatment — doped-oxide catalysts and low-cost biosorbents that remove textile dyes, antibiotics, and heavy metals from water.

Open to Available now

Postdoctoral & fellowship positions
Faculty roles
Industry R&D & analytical QC
Research collaborations

Based in Lahore, Pakistan · open to opportunities in Pakistan and internationally.

Download CV My research agenda → Google Scholar →

Chemistry researcher and educator with over a decade of teaching and research experience — most recently at the University of Central Punjab (2022–2026), rising from Lecturer to Assistant Professor and Academic Coordinator, with a PhD on eco-friendly remediation of textile dye wastewater using green adsorbents, including a six-month HEC-funded research placement at the University of Glasgow.

9Peer-reviewed publications
13Student research projects supervised (1 MPhil, 12 BS)
10+Years of teaching & research experience

Latest

News

Oct 27, 2026

First-author paper published in Chemical Papers

as First & corresponding author

A trimetallic Ni–Mg–Zr nanocomposite made with aloe vera extract, tested for antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant activity and for breaking down a textile dye.
2025

PhD conferred — University of the Punjab

as Doctoral researcher

Received the Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry at the 135th Convocation of the University of the Punjab, Lahore.
Oct 20 – Nov 6, 2025

LabXpert 2025 — hands-on laboratory instrumentation training

as Organizer & UV–Vis Resource Person

Practical training on analytical instruments, lab safety, and research techniques at the Department of Basic and Applied Chemistry, UCP — including a hands-on UV–Vis session I led.

All news & events →

Focus Areas

Research interests

Green chemistry for cleaner water, backed by analytical instrumentation.

Read about my research →

Visible-light photocatalysis with doped & co-doped ZrO₂
Green biosorbents from plant biomass & biowaste
Dye, antibiotic & heavy-metal removal from industrial effluents
“Capture-and-destroy” adsorbent–photocatalyst hybrids
Adsorption kinetics, isotherms & thermodynamics
Analytical method development & instrumentation
Plant-mediated green synthesis of nanomaterials
Herbal & cosmetic formulation (applied student research)

Selected Work

Publications

Ten peer-reviewed articles in internationally indexed journals. Three that show the range of my work:

View all 10 publications →

Synergistic effect of Zn and Mo co-doping in ZrO₂ for efficient photodegradation of Congo Red and Ciprofloxacin under visible irradiation

Tahir, S., Akram, M., Salman, M., Ahmad, B., Farooq, U., & Ali, F. (2026). Chemical Papers, 1–23.

Zinc–molybdenum co-doping lets zirconia break down both a textile dye and an antibiotic under visible light — the core of my photocatalysis work.

DOI ↗ Photocatalysis
Kinetic and Isothermal Investigations of Cost-Effective Sorptive Elimination of Gentian Violet Dye from Water Using Haplophragma adenophyllum Biowaste

Akram, M., Salman, M., Rehman, R., Farooq, U., Tahir, S., & Nazir, H. (2021). Journal of Chemistry, 1–12.

First-author study turning waste bark into a low-cost sorbent for a toxic textile dye, with full kinetic and isotherm analysis.

DOI ↗ Free PDF ↗ First author
Citric Acid Functionalized Bougainvillea spectabilis: a Novel, Sustainable, and Cost-effective Biosorbent for Removal of Heavy Metal (Pb²⁺) from Waste Water

Nazir, H., Salman, M., Athar, M., Farooq, U., Wahab, A., & Akram, M. (2019). Water, Air, & Soil Pollution, 230(12), 303.

Citric acid adds carboxyl binding sites to garden biomass, creating a cheap, sustainable sorbent for lead — my most-cited paper.

DOI ↗ Most cited

Recognition

Highlights

See full CV →

HEC IRSIP Fellowship — six-month PhD research placement at the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, University of Glasgow, UK (Mar – Aug 2023).
Promoted to Assistant Professor, University of Central Punjab (January 2026), in recognition of performance and contributions.
Faculty Partner, LIC Student Pedagogy Partnership Programme, Spring 2026 (UCP) — co-designed an AI-resilient interdisciplinary Environmental Chemistry course. Read more →
Peer reviewer for Scientific Reports, Microchimica Acta, Archives of Microbiology, Water Conservation Science and Engineering, and Nanotechnology for Environmental Engineering.
Professional development through Cornell University (eCornell), Duke University, HEC Paris, UNESCO, the European Commission, Wiley, and Elsevier — plus certified graduate-supervision and teaching training. See all certifications →

Writing

From the blog

All posts →

September 17, 2026 · Academic life
From Lahore to Glasgow: what a short research visit taught me

Six months as an HEC IRSIP visiting PhD researcher at the University of Glasgow: lessons on planning, SOPs and organised work, peace of mind, and research culture, plus advice for students thinking of applying.

Let’s work together

Where would you like to start?

I’m open to postdoctoral and fellowship positions, faculty roles, industry R&D and analytical QC work, and research collaborations.

Postdoc & faculty hiring
Hiring a researcher or lecturer?

See where my research is heading, my teaching record, and my full CV.

Research agenda Teaching
Industry
Working on water, effluent or product quality?

Analytical testing, low-cost treatment materials, method development, and lab training.

What I offer industry
Collaboration
Planning a project, talk or co-supervision?

Joint research on green water treatment, invited seminars, and student co-supervision.

Email me Download CV

Dr. Momal Akram

News

First-author paper published in Chemical Papers

PhD conferred — University of the Punjab

LabXpert 2025 — hands-on laboratory instrumentation training

Research interests

Publications

Highlights

From the blog

From Lahore to Glasgow: what a short research visit taught me

Where would you like to start?

Hiring a researcher or lecturer?

Working on water, effluent or product quality?

Planning a project, talk or co-supervision?