DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

April 2003Vol. 3, no. a.

Environmental Engineering Science Program at Washington University in St. Louis

www.env.wustl.edu

The reinvigorated Environmental Engineering Science Programis now in its third year, as the University proceeds to celebrateits 150th year. The faculty hired recentlyare now on board, and this has helped usattain the desired critical mass in keyfocal areas. I highlight some of theactivities of the previous year:

√ The group established the Molecularand Nanoscale Analysis Laboratory, ashared facility that houses state of theart instrumentation. The instruments areup and running, and the facility is wellmanaged by a technician, and is a usefulresource to all associated with theprogram. The Hitachi Scanning ElectronMicroscope also becomes part of thisfacility starting July.

√ Activities associated with the Industrial Partners Groupcontinue to grow. We welcome DuPont to this group, and lookforward to working on several projects of mutual interest.Anheuser Busch and Ameren UE have initiated researchprograms with the faculty, and details can be read inside. Wehope to continue to expand our interactions, and look forward toenhancing the Internship Program. A meeting will be organizedwith The Industrial Advisory Board, and several topics rangingfrom education to future research directions will be discussed.We welcome a greater association with Dr. H.G. Schwartz,(Ph.D., 1966; Member NAE) as he comes on board as a SeniorProfessor. Charles Buescher (MS, 1961) is taking the lead ininitiating discussions related to the establishment of a WaterResources, Quality and Security Institute.

√ The Friday Seminar Serieshas been fostered with someexcellent speakers visiting usover the year. We weredelighted to host the AEESPDistinguished Lecturer, Dr.Phil Singer. In honor of theoriginal faculty of the Envirsan

Program, we have established the Ryckman DistinguishedLecture, with the first to be held in Fall 2004.

√ As a part of the SesquicentennialCelebrations, a University-wide Environ-mental Colloquia will be organized. Thespeakers will include Dr. Mario Molina,Nobel Laureate, and Dr. Jane Lubchenco,Member, National Science Board. Fourother targeted colloquia related to differ-ent aspects of environmental researchand education will also be organized.

√ Our student body continues to grow −our recruitment efforts went very well,and we will have a great batch of stu-dents joining us in Fall 2004. Thanks to

the assistance from the Alumni Scholarship Fund, we have beenable to attract our top choices to join us. EnVESA, the Environ-mental Engineering Student Association is becoming a presenceon campus. We value the comments and well wishes of theAlumni, and encourage you to send us your thoughts, and let usknow about your current activities.

√ The UG Summer Research Program is also in its third year -and this year we will again have about 20 students working withthe faculty and graduate students on exciting projects related toenvironmental engineering. Twelve of these students will becoming from other Universities in the U.S. and will be funded bythe NSF REU Program.

The upcoming year is expected to be as exciting with severalfocal initiatives that we intend to pursue. The Administration isvery supportive of the Program; and it is now well on its way tomaking a national and international impact. You will find newsitems of interest and description of some ofour research projects in this third volume ofENVIRONEWS. Enjoy!

Pratim BiswasStifel and Quinette Jens ProfessorDirector, Environmental Engineering Science

INSIDE

Faculty Listing ....................... 2Students.............................3Alumni..........................4REU Program..............5Program Activities..................7Project Highlights..........8 - 15

FACULTY

Lars T. AngenentPh.D., 1998Iowa State UniversityAssistant Professor, Department ofChemical Engineering.Molecular Biology for EnvironmentalEngineering, Bioaerosols, AnaerobicWaste Treatment, BiologicalWastewater Treatment

Richard L. AxelbaumPh.D.,1988University of CaliforniaAssociate Professor, Department ofMechanical Engineering.Nanoparticle Synthesis,Combustion

Pratim BiswasPh.D., 1985California Institute of TechnologyStiffel and Quinette Jens Professor.Director, Environmental EngineeringScience Program.Aerosol Science and Engineering,Air Quality and Pollution Control

Da-Ren ChenPh.D., 1997University of MinnesotaAssistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering.Particle Measurement and Instrumentation,Particle Filtration and Separation, AerosolDynamics Modeling, Aerosol Science andTechnology

Milorad P. DudukovicPh.D., 1972Illinois Institute of TechnologyDepartment Chairman, ChemicalEngineering.Laura and William Jens Professor ofEnvironmental Engineering

Daniel GiammarPh.D., 2001California Institute of TechnologyAssistant Professor,Civil Engineering.Aquatic Chemistry, Water QualityEngineering, Fate and Transport ofInorganic Contaminants

Rudolf B. HusarPh.D., 1970University of MinnesotaDirector, Center for Air Pollution andTrends Analysis, (CAPITA), Profes-sor, Mechanical Engineering.Environmental Informatics, AerosolPattern and Trend Analysis

Maxine LipelesJ.D., 1979Harvard UniversityProfessor, College of LawEnvironmental Law

Jay R. TurnerD.Sc., 1993Washington UniversityAssociate Professor, ChemicalEngineering.Air Quality Management

Brian A. WrennPh.D., 1994U. of IllinoisAssistant Professor, Civil Engineering.Bioremediation Processes, Soil,Sediment, Groundwater Treatment

Charles A. Buescher M.S., 1961- Washington UniversitySenior Professor, Water QualityStephan Falke D.Sc., 1999 - Washington UniversityMechanical Engineering Department, Research Assistant ProfessorAir quality data analysis, environmental information systems

H. G. Schwartz Ph.D., 1966 - Washington UniversitySenior ProfessorWarren White Ph.D., 1967 - University of WisconsinUniversity of California, Davis, Atmospheric Aerosols and theInterpretation of Measurements

Research & Affiliated Faculty

STUDENTS

ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING SCHOL ARSHIPS

ENVESAEnvESA, the Environmental EngineeringStudent Association, has had a busy pastyear. The goal of the association is toprovide a forum to interact withindividuals interested in environmentalengineering science outside of theclassroom and in an interdisciplinarymanner as well as effectingenvironmentally responsible changewithin the department and the engineeringschool. Last school year ended with abarbecue and with big plans for the 2002-2003 school year, EnvESA’s first full yearof existence. EnvESA’s membership hasexpanded greatly, including bothundergraduate and graduate students. Dr.Daniel Giammar advises the group andserves as a liaison between the facultyand the student organization. EnvESA hasexpanded in all directions, intellectually tosponsor a reading room for students withcurrent engineering periodicals, socially tohost international dinners and other

events and in sports to compete inmultiple intramural tournaments. Soon thevery look of the EnvironmentalEngineering Science Program will changeas the incredibly popular and well-designed EnvESA T-shirts go on sale.

ENVESA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEEPresident: Carolyn MooreVice President: Rafael McDonaldSecretary: Rhoda JeremiahTreasurer: Matthew ScheinerAdvisor: Dr. Daniel Giammar

ENVESA students gather for international pot luck dinner, November 2002

Eva Crespo with scholarship donors Otis andDorothy Sproul

2002 RECIPIENTS

Kuk Cho Forest McGrath ScholarshipCarolyn Moore ENVIRSAN Program ScholarshipNeil Deardorf Charles & Marlene Buescher ScholarshipSam Fisher Henry G. Schwartz ScholarshipMin Mo Chung Sverdrup ScholarshipEva Crespo Otis, Dorothy & Bryce Sproul ScholarshipAyano Niwa Ed Edgerly ScholarshipLiyun Xie Cecil Lue Hing ScholarshipRebecca Barefoot Charles Buescher Jr. ScholarshipChalong Qi Henry & Marjorie Reitz Scholarship

OUR NEWEST ALUMNI

ALUMNI

2002 Graduates

· Dallas Nichols· Bret Spoerle· Demian Wincele

Dr. Deepak Kantawala (DSc, SI 1966) with Dr. Danforth, (formerChancellor of WuStL), and Dr. Pratim Biswas.

Dr. Kantawala presented a seminar on “WastewaterTreatment Issues in India” during his visit to WashingtonUniversity in St. Louis in June, 2002.

Robert Downer, Rhoda Jeremiah, Dr. Brian Wrenn, Rebecca Barefoot,Zhengki Li, Dr. Y. Kim

A happy group of students from the water quality grouppictured with their advisor Dr. Brian Wrenn. The groupattended the Alumni Reception at the WEF Annual Meetingheld in Chicago, October 2002.

Drs. Biswas, Wrenn, Smith (DSc.1969), Mrs. Smith, and Dr. Angenent

Faculty and alumni gather together for the Alumni receptionat WEFTEC organized by REACT Engineering. Dr. JimSmith presented an invited seminar, “Concerns with theBeneficial Reuse in Agriculture of Residuals from Munici-pal Wastewater Treatment and Animal Feeding Opera-tions,” at the Environmental Engineering Seminar Series atWashington University in St. Louis.

· Yanhui Yang· Hao Zheng

Dr. Bruce Rittmann presented an invited seminar titled, ”Adaptation ofAnaerobic Microbial Communities to Chlorinated Aromatics”. Here he ispictured with Drs. Wrenn, Pinckert, Rittmann, and Ryckman.

REU PROGRAM

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE FOR UG’S (REU) IN ENVIRONMENT AL ENGINEERING SCIENCE

In January 2002, the Environmental Engineering ScienceProgram at Washington University was awarded a five-yeargrant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to supporta summer research program for talented undergraduatestudents who are enrolled in math, science, and engineeringprograms at universities throughout the United States. This10-week program provides qualified undergraduates with anopportunity to explore their interests in environmental scienceand engineering by conducting independent research under theguidance of one of our faculty members. The REU studentsalso increase their understanding of research practice byparticipating in a series of workshops on data analysis andstudy design. In addition, participants learn about datacollection and analysis in environmental engineering practicethrough visits to several local pollution-control and waste-management facilities.

The Summer 2002 REU Program was a great suc-cess! Eleven undergraduates from eight schools participatedin the formal REU program. In addition, three WashingtonUniversity undergraduates conducted independent researchthrough our existing internship program. The interns partici-pated in all of the formal REU program activities. During thefirst half of the summer a series of four workshops were heldon topics that included Descriptive Statistics, Data Quality,Design of Manipulative Experiments, and Design of Observa-tional Experiments. Tours to local environmental engineeringfacilities were conducted during the second half of the summer.Plant trips included the Anheuser-Busch Biological EnergyRecovery System (BERS, an anaerobic biological treatmentfacility for brewery wastewater), a new thermal oxidationprocess for treating waste gases from pharmaceutical manu-facturing processes at the Mallinckrodt St. Louis Plant, theSuperior Oak Ridge Landfill in Ballwin, MO (a municipal solidwaste landfill), and the Dead Creek hazardous waste landfill inSauget, IL, which is operated by Solutia. In addition, thestudents participated in weekly seminars in which they pre-sented their research plans and results. The summer con-cluded with the Undergraduate Research Symposium, held inconjunction with the REU program in Structural Engineering,on August 2, 2002. The Symposium was well attended byWashington University students and faculty, as well as byrepresentatives of many important corporations with opera-

tions in the St. Louis metropolitan area, including Ameren,Anheuser-Busch, Boeing, American Bottoms Regional Waste-water Treatment Facility, REACT Engineers, and AlcoholSolutions.

We plan to build on last year’s success in the Summer2003 REU Program. The number of faculty participants hasincreased from six to ten, and we expect to accept eleven ortwelve students into the REU program and four to six studentsinto the research internship program. Descriptions of potentialresearch topics for Summer ’03 and final reports from Sum-mer ’02 are available at the REU Program web site(www.env.wustl.edu/REU/reu.htm).

We wish to extend our sincere thanks to the followingindividuals for donating their time and energy to provide thestudents participating in our undergraduate research programswith very informative plant tours: Mr. James L. Martin(Anheuser-Busch), Mr. Mitch Stepro (Superior Oak RidgeLandfill), Ms. Claudia N. Wright (Mallinckrodt), Mr. LarryWaite (Mallinckrodt), Ms. Sarah Bock (Mallinckrodt), Ms.Bernadette Hoffmeister (Mallinckrodt), Mr. Alan G. Faust(Solutia), Mr. Donald Ridenhower (Solutia), and Mr. RichardS. Williams (Solutia).

Anita Askman, a math and physics major from the University ofPuget Sound and a participant in the Summer 2002 REU Program,takes a break from preparing oxygen-sensitive samples in ananaerobic chamber.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

ü Total Research Awards in 2002 = $3.6 million

ü Total number of graduate students = 26

ü Total full-time faculty in Environmental Engineering = 10

ü Students pursuing Undergraduate Minor = 7

ü Major Program Endowments are: Jens, Browne,Forrer & McGrath

ENVIRONMENTAL SESQUICENTENNIAL ACTIVITIES

INDUSTRIAL PARTNERS - CURRENT MEMBERS

Dr. Richard Pinckert (DSc, EN62) Industrial Advisory BoardMember, Dr. Pratim Biswas, Dr. Stefan Falke, and Dr. DanGiammar at the AAEE reception.

· Ameren UE· Anheuser-Busch· American Bottoms· The Boeing Company· DuPont Company

Drs. D.W. Ryckman, Bill Darby, Pratim Biswas, KeithCarnes, and Cecil Lue-Hing at the AAEE reception held onWashington University campus in November 2002. Thedinner was attended by AAEE Board Members, IndustrialPartners, and several professionals in the field. A tour of theprogram laboratories was conducted which highlighted stateof the art instrumentation and experimental projects currentlyunderway.

During the sesquicentenninal year celebrations, there will be acampus wide series of colloquia organized to highlight currentenvironmental research and education. Prominentindividuals who have excelled in the sciences, engi-neering, law, architecture, and policy will be invited topresent the latest developments in the field. Several ofthe presentations will be followed by panel discussionsincluding faculty experts from WuStL. In addition, theFriday Seminar Series will continue to be held oncampus. Several laboratory and open houses are alsoplanned. For the latest activities, continue to browseour website at www.env.wustl.edu.

RYCKMAN DISTINGUISHED LECTURESHIP INITIATEDThe Environmental Engineering Science Program an-nounces the establishment of the “Ryckman Lecture inEnvironmental Engineering Science” in recognition of allthe faculty members (Drs. D.W. Ryckman, E. Edgerly,N. Burbank, H.D. Tomlinson, R. Skrinde and J. Buzzell),who helped start the program at WUStL. The Programwas one of the first accredited environmental engineeringgraduate programs. One hundred fifteen graduatedegrees were conferred and the Seminar will also be atestimonial to all the students of the original program.Each year, a distinguished scholar would be invited tocampus to present a Seminar on topics related to theEnvironment.

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES 2002

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS

Angenent L. T., Zheng D., Sung S. andRaskin L. (2002). “Microbial communitystructure and activity in a compartmental-ized, anaerobic bioreactor,” WaterEnvironment Research. Vol. 74, No. 5.,pp. 450-461.

Angenent L. T., Abel S. and Sung S.(2002). “Effect of an organic shock loadon the stability of an anaerobic migratingblanket reactor,” Journal of Environmen-tal Engineering, Vol. 128, No. 12, pp.1109-1120.

Angenent L. T., Sung S., and Raskin L.(2002). “Methanogen population dynam-ics during startup of a full-scale anaerobicsequencing batch reactor treating swinewaste,” Water Research. Vol. 36, No. 18,pp. 4648-4654.

Zimmer A.T., Baron P.A. and Biswas P.:“The influence of operating parameterson number-weighted aerosol size distribu-tion generated from a gas metal arcwelding process,” J. of Aerosol Sci., vol.33, 519-531, 2002.

Smith F.L., Sorial G.A., Suidan M.T.,Biswas P., Brenner R.C.: “Developmentand demonstration of an explicit lumped-parameter biofilter model and designequation incorporating Monod kinetics,”J. Air Waste Management, vol. 52 (2),208-219, 2002.

Kulkarni P., Namiki N., Otani Y. andBiswas P.: “Charging of particles inunipolar coronas irradiated by in-situ softX-rays: Enhancement of Capture Effi-ciency of Ultrafine Particles,” J. AerosolSci., vol. 33 (9), 1279-1298, 2002.

Lee T.G., Hedrick E. and Biswas P.: “HgReactions in the Presence of ChlorineSpecies: Homogenous Gas Phase andHeterogenous Gas-Solid Phase,” J. Airand Waste Mgmt. Associn., vol. 52, 1316-1323, 2002.

Almquist C. and Biswas P.: “Role ofsynthesis method and particle size ofnanostructured titanium dioxide on itsphotoactivity,” J. of Catalysis, vol. 212(2), 145-156, 2002.

Yoshiyuki Endo, Da-Ren Chen, and D.Y. H. Pui, “Collection Efficiency ofSintered Ceramic Filters Made of Submi-cron Spheres,” Filtration and Separation,39(2), 43-47, 2002.

Yoshiyuki Endo, Da-Ren Chen, and D. Y.H. Pui, “Theoretical Consideration of Per-meation Resistance of Fluid through a Par-ticle Packed Layer,” Powder Technology,124, 119-126, 2002.

Sintaro Sato, Da-Ren Chen, and D. Y. H.Pui, “Particle Transport at Low Pressure:Particle Deposition in a Tube with an AbruptContraction,” J. of Aerosol Science, 33, 659-671, 2002.

Sintaro Sato, Da-Ren Chen, and D. Y. H.Pui, “A Novel Method for Producing Spa-tially Uniform Aerosol at the Low PressureEnvironment,” Aerosol Science and Tech-nology, 36(2), 145-153, 2002.

Dudukovic, M. P.. “Opaque multiphaseflows: experiments and modeling,”Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science(2002), 26(6-7), 747-761.

Jiang, Y.; Khadilkar, M. R.; Al-Dahhan,M. H.; Dudukovic, M. P.. “CFD ofmultiphase flow in packed-bed reactors:II. Results and applications,” AIChEJournal (2002), 48(4), 716-730.

Jiang, Y.; Khadilkar, M. R.; Al-Dahhan,M. H.; Dudukovic, M. P.. “CFD ofmultiphase flow in packed-bed reactors:I. k-fluid modeling issues,” AIChEJournal (2002), 48(4), 701-715.

Dudukovic, M. P.; Larachi, Faical;Mills, Patrick L. “Multiphase catalytic

reactors: a perspective on currentknowledge and future trends,” Cataly-sis Reviews - Science and Engineering(2002), 44(1), 123-246.

Roy, Shantanu; Larachi, Faical; Al-Dahhan, M. H.; Dudukovic, M. P..“Optimal design of radioactive particletracking experiments for flow mappingin opaque multiphase reactors,”Applied Radiation and Isotopes (2002),56(3), 485-503.

Falke, S.R., “Environmental Data:Finding It, Sharing It, and Using It,”Journal of Urban Technology, 9, 111-124, (2002).

Falke, S.R., R.B. Husar and B.A.Schichtel, “Fusion of SeaWiFS andTOMS Satellite Data with SurfaceObservations and Topographic DataDuring Extreme Aerosol Events,” J.Air Waste Manage. Assoc., 51, 1579-1586 (2001).

Husar, R.B., D.M. Tratt, B.A.Schichtel, S.R. Falke, F. Li, D. Jaffe,S. Gassó, T. Gill, N.S. Laulainen, F. Lu.M Reheis, Y. Chun, D. Westphal, B.N.Holben, C. Geymard, I. McKendry, N.Kuring, G.C. Feldman, C. McClain,R.J. Frouin, J. Merrill, D. DuBois, F.Vignola, T. Murayama, S. Nickovic,W.E. Wilson, K. Sassen, and N.Sugimoto, “The Asian Dust Events ofApril 1998,” J. Geophys. Res.,106(D16), 18317-18330 (2001).

Schichtel, B.A., R.B. Husar, S.R.Falke, and W.E. Wilson, “Haze Trendsover the United States,” Atmos.Environ. 35, 5205-5210, (2001).

Giammar, D.E. and Hering, J.G.,“Equilibrium and kinetic aspects ofsoddyite dissolution and secondaryphase precipitation in aqueous suspen-sion”, Geochimica et CosmochimicaActa,” 66: 3235-3245, 2002.

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

A NEW LABORATORY IN WATER CHEMISTRY

Upon joining the Environmental Engineering ScienceProgram in October, 2002, Daniel Giammar has focused onsetting up an aquatic chemistry research laboratory andadvising graduate students in the design of their researchprojects. Dr. Giammar’s research is aimed at understandinghow chemical processes occurring at solid-water interfacesaffect the behavior of heavy metals and radionuclides inaquatic systems. Chemical reactions at the solid-waterinterface operate in many water treatment processes andinfluence the fate and transport of contaminants in naturalwaters. These reactions include adsorption-desorption, ionexchange, dissolution-precipitation, as well as chemicaltransformation reactions.

Recently renovated laboratory space is being outfittedfor laboratory-scale research in aquatic chemistry. Therenovated laboratory is equipped with two fume hoods,purified air, vacuum, deionized water, and a point-of-useultrapure water system. The laboratory has a glovebox forconducting experiments at anoxic and/or carbon dioxide-freeconditions. The laboratory contains all of the equipmentnecessary for conducting a large set of batch experimentsincluding pH meters, magnetic stir plates, a general purposecentrifuge, an orbital shaker, temperature control baths, and adrying oven. The laboratory also houses a new freeze-drierfor the preparation and isolation of fine particles in aqueoussuspension.

The projects of current graduate students CarolynMoore (B.S./M.S.) and Liyun Xie (D.Sc.) are investigatinginterfacial chemical processes which affect the mobility andbioavailability of lead in soil and groundwater systems.Research on the environmental fate and transport of lead isparticularly significant in Missouri, the nation’s leading leadproducer and home to several mining and smelting operations.Ms. Moore is currently designing an experimental approachfor evaluating the effects lead speciation on lead transport inforested soils. Her research will combine field work withcontrolled laboratory studies. Liyun Xie is currently designingexperiments to measure the dissolution rates of several lead-bearing minerals. The investigation of mineral dissolutionrates is part of an overall focus on metal-mineral-carbondioxide interactions in aquatic systems. Carbon dioxide caninfluence both pH and the dissolved phase metal speciation

(by metal complexation with carbonate and bicarbonate ions).Metal mobility in soil and groundwater systems may respondto natural carbon dioxide cycles related to bacterial and rootrespiration as well as to carbon dioxide fluxes from proposedcarbon dioxide storage and sequestration systems.

Dr. Giammar is also advising the independent studyresearch of B.J. Browning, a graduate student in the Environ-mental Management Program. Mr. Browning is an avidwhitewater kayaker and is studying the water quality of astretch of the St. Francis River in Madison County regardedas the best whitewater in Missouri. While Mr. Browning isprimarily interested in the concentrations and sources ofnutrients, he is also working with Ms. Moore in the collectionand analysis of samples for dissolved heavy metals.

As his research program grows, Dr. Giammar islooking forward to developing projects that build on hisprevious work in the areas of uranium fate and transport andcarbon sequestration. With respect to uranium research, Dr.Giammar is particularly interested in understanding howaquatic chemistry controls the dissolution and precipitation ofuranium(VI) minerals, a group that includes more than 200minerals. In the area of carbon sequestration, Dr. Giammar isinvestigating the conditions necessary for the formation ofmineral carbonates during the reaction of silicate minerals inaqueous suspension at high levels of dissolved carbon dioxide.

Engineering Management graduate student B.J. Browning collectsa water sample on the St. Francis River in Madison County,Missouri. Mr. Browning is working on an independent study projectadvised by Professor Daniel Giammar. Dr. Giammar and Mr.Browning are investigating nutrient and metal concentrations alonga stretch of the St. Francis River that is a favorite of whitewaterkayakers.

By Dan Giammar

Dr. Stefan Falke joined the Environmental Engineering Sciencesfaculty as a research assistant professor this past fall. Hereceived his D.Sc. from Washington University in 1999 and hisB.S. degree from Lehigh University. He spent 2000-2002 inWashington, DC where he was an American Association for theAdvancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow at the U.S. Environ-mental Protection Agency (EPA). At the US EPA, he workedwithin the Office of Environmental Information on projectsinvolving the delivery of near real-time environmental informa-tion to the public and the application of internet systems inintegrating environmental information from heterogeneousdatabases located across the US.

At Washington University, Dr. Falke is part of the Center forAir Pollution Impact and Trend Analysis (CAPITA), where hisresearch interests include air quality assessment and develop-ment of information systems in support of environmentalmanagement. In particular, his research examines spatialpatterns and temporal trends in air quality and develops methodsfor determining the air quality status in areas for which data arenot available. An overview of two current projects is describedbelow.

Forest Fire Emmisions

The past several years have seen vast areas of the UnitedStates impacted by wildfires. The damage to human respiratoryhealth, the environment and property due to these events hasprompted the development of a National Fire Plan involvingcoordinated participation of many federal, state, and localagencies. Research is being conducted to develop new meth-ods and web technologies for integrating, analyzing, and sharingdata collected by the diverse agencies and organizations in-volved in forest fire and smoke management. The data usedinclude fire locations, vegetation type, prescribed burningpermits, air pollution monitoring and meteorological and emis-sions models. The web accessible information system will helpforest fire managers identify and fill data gaps, better under-stand forest fire emissions and their air quality impacts, andincorporate newly available data, such as satellite images, intheir daily activities.

PM Mapping

The US EPA, along with State air quality agencies, has imple-mented a national fine particulate matter (PM2.5, particlessmaller than 2.5 mm diameter) monitoring network to support

national ambient air quality standards. The network collects dataat over 1000 monitors every third day across the U.S. Re-search is being pursued to develop advanced methods for usingthe PM2.5 data to create PM2.5 concentration maps (see figurebelow). Spatial interpolation methods calculate PM2.5 concen-tration estimates using a weighted average of the concentrationsat nearby monitors. The weight assigned to each monitordepends on its distance from the estimated location, physio-chemical characteristics of PM2.5, and the spatial configurationof the monitor network. The configuration of PM2.5 monitorspresents a substantial challenge in mapping because they tend tobe densely clustered in urban areas with sparse coverage innon-urban areas, biasing estimates in non-urban areas. Account-ing for these urban/non-urban differences is achieved by“declustering” the urban monitors so that, when they are beingused to estimate PM2.5 concentrations in a non-urban area, theirassigned weights are in balance with non-urban monitors. Asecond approach to account for the urban monitor bias is to usesecondary information available in non-urban areas, such asvisibility measured at airports (visibility is a good indicator ofPM2.5 concentrations), to generate more meaningful estimates inareas where PM2.5 data is unavailable.

Spatial Analysis Course

Dr. Falke designed a new spatial data analysis and GeographicInformation System (GIS) course for upper level undergraduateand graduate students offered in the spring 2003 semester. Insupport of this course, Dr. Falke was awarded an ESRI FIGGrant that provides Engineering School students with state-of-the-art Geographic Information System (GIS) software andtraining. The ESRI FIG program was established to assistuniversities in teaching their students the latest spatial analysistechnologies for engineering applications. GIS is a core informa-tion and analysis tool in understanding and managing geo-graphic-based problems through map generation, statisticalanalysis, and modeling.

SPATIAL DATA ANALYSIS OF AIR QUALITY

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

By Stefan Falke

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

By Da-Ren ChenThe characteristics of a filter loading

process are determined by the proper-ties of filter media and loaded particles.Previous studies have been focused oneither solid or liquid particle loading.For solid particle loading examples arethe works published by Billings (1966),Davies (1970), Loeffler and Muphr(1972), Kanaoka et al (1983),Dvukhimennyi et al (1985), and Novicket al (1992). More recent publicationby Poon (1997) systematically studiedthe solid particle loading characteristicsof different filter media. For the filtrationof liquid particles less contributions arefound among literatures. Fairs (1985)described the mechanisms operating inthe filtration of fine mists and alsoconsidered the adhesive forcesbetween the fibers of the filter.Mohrmann (1970) described the wayin which liquid particles settled onto afiber filter. Kirsch (1978) performedexperiments to study the increase ofthe pressure drop across the filter forliquid particles. Agranovski andBraddock (1998) conducted a seriesof studies in which fibrous filters wereloaded with wetting and nonwetttingliquid aerosols. More recently,Earnest (2000) has done a fundamen-tal research of different of liquidaerosols loading on filters in his Ph. D.study.

However, particles in real worldsare commonly coated with liquids.Examples are atmospheric particles,particulate emitted from internalcombustion engines, machines using

F I LTER LOADING CHARACTERISTICS OF LIQUID -COATED PARTICLES

metal working fluids, and engine crank-cases. There is no study on filters whenloaded with liquid-coated particles.Despite the complex loading processesfor solid or liquid particles remain to befurther studied in great detail, the studyof the loading process of liquid-coatedparticles on filters are much needed. Itis because filters/cartridges are typicaldevices for the removal of these airborneparticles and the lifetime is significantlyreduced due to the increased stickinessof liquid-coated particles. If theseparticles were collected on industrialdust collectors with reserve pulse flowcleaning systems the cleaning efficiencywill be dramatically reduced and conse-

Figure 1: Pressure drop ratio v.s. loaded mass when filters are loaded with particles of differentsolid-to-liquid ratio.

Liquid-coated Particle Loading Curves(Filter A)

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Mass Loaded(mg/cm2)

Pres

sure

Dro

p((P

-Pi)/

Pi)

NaCl 100% NaCl 50%:Oleic Acid 50% NaCl25%:Oleic Acid75%

NaCl10%:Oleic Acid90% NaCl 5% : Oleic Acid 95% Oleic Acid 100%

quently it increases the pulse frequencyaccording to the field observation.

In this study, the behavior of differ-ent filters under the loading of liquid-coated particles was studied experimen-tally. Shown in Figure 1 is a typicalloading characteristics as the liquidpercentage in liquid-coated particles isincreased. The result evidences thetransition from pure-solid particle topure-liquid particle loading on thepressure vs. loaded mass curves doesexist. The transition is possibly attrib-uted to the liquid movement into filtermedia after liquid-coated particles werecollected. Consequently more particlemass can be loaded on filters.

ENRICHMENT OF H2 - UTILIZING PHOTOTROPHS FROM HYPERSALINE MICROBIAL MATS.By Lars Angenent

One of the recommendations from the road map laidout by the American Academy of Microbiology (Microbialecology and genomics, a crossroads of opportunity: edited byDavid A. Stahl and James M. Tiedje), states that there is aneed to develop methods for measuring the activity of micro-organisms in the environment; to develop approaches tocultivate currently uncultivable species; and to develop meth-ods for rapid determination of key physiological traits andactivities. It is now well accepted that fewer than 1% ofmicrobial organisms can be cultivated under standard labora-tory conditions. A better representation of microbial diversityis needed in culture for further studies in genomics andproteomics. Hence, engineered systems need to be devel-oped that can obtain cultures of “unculturable” microbes.

Hypersaline microbial mats from salt evaporationponds in Baja, Mexico were found to consist of a very diversemicrobial population. These microbial mats are sustainedenergetically by a thin layer of phototrophic bacteria (usinglight as an energy source) on top of the mat. High rates ofphotosynthesis and C fixation in microbial mats are balancedby high rates of organic-C degradation. One by-product offermentation processes in microbial mats is H2

gas. A hypoth-

HELPING OUT OUR INDUSTRIAL PARTNER ANHEUSER-BUSH: PERFORMANCE STUDY OF ANHEUSER-BUSH’S ANAEROBIC DIGESTERS

esized sink for H2 in the mat is its use by phototrophic organ-

isms. We are seeking to enrich H2-utilizing photosynthetic

organisms using hollow-fiber bioreactors and want to answerthe following research question: What specific organism(s)utilize both H

2 and light in the hypersaline microbial mat? This

work is one example of the novel culturing techniques thatenvironmental engineers have a history of developing andwhich are required if novel organisms are to be enriched andcultured. The failure of traditional techniques to culture thevast majority (>> 99%) of microbial diversity is a result ofinadequate technology, as well as a lack of pertinent physi-ological information. Cultures of novel organisms are neededfor studies of genome analyses and physiological studies. Theexpertise of environmental engineers is central to obtainingsuch cultures.

Currently, Saurabh Agarwala (master’s student) isrunning the laboratory-scale reactors. This work is in collabo-ration with Drs. Norman Pace and Ruth Ley (University ofColorado), as part of the NASA Astrobiology Institute’sEcoGenomics research on the biogeochemistry and microbiol-ogy of hypersaline microbial mats.

By Lars Angenent

We are currently building a pilot-reactor setup toperform studies on reactor operation of the anaerobic waste-water treatment systems owned by Anheuser-Bush. This pilotsetup is designed to mimic the operation of the upflow anaero-bic blanket reactor (UASB), and expanded granular sludgebed (EGSB), Biobed reactors, which are operated byAnheuser-Bush at several locations in the US. These reactorswill be set up side-by-side, to be operated in parallel or inseries, and housed in a metal frame equipped with wheels sothat the entire system can be moved (including pumps, heatingsystems, gas meters, etc.).

An increased knowledge of the stability of high-rateanaerobic treatment systems, such as the EGSB-Biobed,during high loading conditions is of utmost importance forAnheuser-Bush. An upset in operation may lead to reducedbiogas production and a loss of revenue (biogas production

reduces the amount of natural gas to be purchased for thebrewing process). We are currently obtaining monthly biom-ass samples from two full-scale anaerobic digesters and areusing a sensitive method (molecular with DNA probes), toquantify the individual methane-producing species by detectingtheir ribosomal RNA. This sensitive test may also correlatechanges in reactor operation and reactor upsets with changesin the methanogenic activity. A better understanding of thelinks between methanogenic population dynamics and methaneactivity will result in finer control and optimization of reactorperformance.

Currently, Dr. Young Whan Kim is performing meth-ane activity tests and membrane hybridizations with DNAprobes to study stability in anaerobic digesters. Meanwhile,Dr. Jon Elders and Min-mo Chung (D.Sc. student) aredesigning and building the pilot-scale reactors.

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

project highlightsPROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

BIOREMEDIATION OF SEDIMENTS CONTAMINATED WITH HIGHLY WEATHERED PETROLEUM

The shoreline and subsurface sediments of the IndianaHarbor Canal in northwestern Indiana are heavily contami-nated with crude oil and residues from local industrial opera-tions. Samples collected from within about six inches of thesurface at several locations along the canal shoreline had totaloil concentrations ranging from about 20 g oil/kg sediment(2% oil by mass) to greater than 400 g/kg (>40% oil bymass), with mean and median total hydrocarbon concentra-tions of about 250 g/kg. This area has been the site of indus-trial activity, including oil refining and coke and steel making,for at least one hundred years. Due to extensive weatheringand significant input from nonpetroleum sources, the sedimentscontain very high concentrations of polycyclic aromatichydrocarbons (PAHs; concentrations range from about 0.5 to>7 g/kg with a mean of 4.2 g/kg) and relatively low concentra-tions of normal and methyl-branched alkanes (concentrationsranging from <0.1 to about 3.5 g/kg with a mean of 1.4 g/kg).Comparison of the resolvable PAH and alkane concentrationsto the total oil concentration shows that these target com-pounds represent a very small fraction (about 1 to 5%) of thetotal petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) concentration in theseshoreline sediment samples, the remainder is a complexmixture of branched and fused ring hydrocarbons and slightlypolar compounds (i.e., resins and asphaltenes), most of whichare poorly biodegradable. The concentrations of the pyro-genic PAHs (e.g., benz[a]anthracene and benzo[e]pyrene),some of which are suspected carcinogens, are also very high.

Because these sediments are very highly contaminatedwith materials that are not amenable to treatment by standardshoreline bioremediation procedures, innovative solutions arebeing sought. The Environmental Biotechnology Laboratory atWashington University is investigating a remediation alternativethat combines chemical oxidation with bioremediation. Al-though these sediments may be treatable by chemical oxidationalone, the high contaminant concentrations would requiretreatment with an excessively large amount of the oxidant. Forexample, the stoichiometric requirement for treatment bypotassium permanganate, KMnO4, would be 5.7 kg KMnO4/kg sediment; actual requirements usually exceed the stoichio-

metric requirements by many fold. In our approach, thefunction of chemical oxidation will be to convert the highmolecular weight, poorly biodegradable contaminants intosmaller compounds that are more accessible to degradation byindigenous microorganisms. Since most of the oxidationwould occur through biological processes and be coupled toreduction of oxygen (O2), the amount of chemical oxidant thatwould be required should be reduced by several orders ofmagnitude.

Potential limitations to this technology include slowtransport of the oxidants relative to their decomposition rates,the requirement for reaction of aqueous-phase oxidants withnonaqueous-phase contaminants, and toxicity of the oxidantsto indigenous microorganisms. Previous results with use ofhydrogen peroxide as a chemical oxidant have shown that veryhigh concentrations (greater than about 400,000 mg/l) arerequired to effectively mineralize nonaqueous-phase contami-nants, such as petroleum hydrocarbons, by a purely chemicalmechanism. Such high concentrations tend to increase the rateof hydrogen peroxide decomposition through nonproductivereactions, thus increasing the overall oxidant demand. Hydro-gen peroxide has been shown to kill or inactivate microorgan-isms at concentrations lower than about 500 mg/l. Thus,although high oxidant concentrations may be required, theupper limit will be set by microbial toxicity. Thus, the oxidantdose must be optimized for this process to be effective.

An example of the need for optimization is shown inFigure 1, in which the extent of oil mineralization in IndianaHarbor Canal shoreline sediments is plotted as a function oftime for three treatments: (a) sediments to which hydrogenperoxide was added every other day at 500 mg/l, (b) sedi-ments to which potassium permanganate was added everyother day at 1,500 mg/l, and (c) sediments to which nooxidant was added. The oxidant concentrations for thisexperiment were selected based on the reported toxicity ofhydrogen peroxide while maintaining equivalent oxidizingpower for potassium permanganate (i.e., both oxidant solu-tions were capable of accepting approximately 0.03 electronequivalents per liter). Note that all three treatments, regardless

By Brian Wrenn

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

of whether oxidant was present, mineralized oil at essentiallyidentical rates. Although this result did not demonstrate anyenhancement of oil biodegradation, it also did not show anysigns of inhibition due to the presence of the oxidant. There-fore, we are currently attempting to determine the maximumconcentrations of hydrogen peroxide and potassium perman-ganate that can be used. An example of the preliminary resultsof this investigation are shown in Figure 2.

Figure 1: Mineralization of weathered crude oil in Indiana HarborCanal sediments exposed to (a) 500 mg H2O2/l, (b) 1.5 g KMnO4 /l, or (c)no oxidant. Oxidant was added to treated sediments every other day for 9weeks. Carbon dioxide produced by mineralization of oil was trapped in0.1 M potassium hydroxide and measured using a total organic carbonanalyzer.

Figure 2: Rates of oil (-acetate) or oil plus acetic acid (+acetate)mineralization in Indiana Harbor Canal sediments after incubation for 2days following addition of the indicated concentration of hydrogen peroxide.The solid horizontal line shows the average mineralization rate over allhydrogen peroxide concentrations for microcosms to which 500 mg/l aceticacid was added. The dashed line represents the average mineralizationrate over all hydrogen peroxide concentrations for microcosms withoutadded acetate.

Figure 2 shows the rate of carbon dioxide production inIndiana Harbor Canal sediments after incubation for two daysfollowing addition of the indicated concentration of hydrogenperoxide. The mineralization rates are shown in the presenceand absence of 500 mg/l acetic acid. The rate observed in theabsence of acetic acid reflects mineralization of weathered oil.Under both conditions, no inhibition due to hydrogen peroxidewas observed even at an initial concentration greater than4,000 mg/l (eight-times larger than the concentration used in

the experiment shown in Figure 1). A similar experiment iscurrently underway to determine the toxicity of potassiumpermanganate, and the effects of both oxidants on the size ofthe indigenous hydrocarbon-degrading microbial populationare being measured. Once the maximum concentration thatdoes not inhibit microbial activity has been determined, theexperiments shown in Figure 1 will be repeated using higheroxidant concentrations.

project highlightsPROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

The St. Louis – Midwest Supersiteis a multi-institutional project to charac-terize the physical and chemical proper-ties of ambientparticulate matterin the St. Louisairshed. The firstyear of fieldmeasurementscommenced inApril 2001 andwas funded byUSEPA, EPRI,and AmerenUE.The measurement program was subse-quently expanded to include a secondyear, in this case with funding fromUSEPA, EPRI, Missouri Department ofNatural Resources, and two regionalhaze planning organizations (RPOs) –the Midwest RPO and the CentralStates Regional Air Planning (CENRAP)RPO. The pooled funds for the projectto date total more than $4.5M. Inaddition to sustained measurements atthe East St. Louis monitoring site, amovable platform with a battery ofsemicontinuous monitors and integratedsamplers was deployed at rural Reserve,Kansas in collaboration with the Sac &Fox Nation of Missouri. These mea-surements provide substantial insight intothe climatology of ambient particulatematter in the central United States. Thefour-month intensive study includedcollaboration by several institutionsparticipating in the St. Louis – MidwestSupersite; field operations were spear-headed by two environmental engineer-ing graduate students in the Air QualityLaboratory at Washington University –Neil Deardorff and Scott Duthie. JeffreyReifschneider from Sac & Fox, handled

day-to-day activities at the field site.Figure 1 shows the monitoring platformdeployed in Reserve. A detailed

analysis andinterpretationof the datawill beconductedafter all thechemicalanalyses havebeen com-pleted.Preliminary

insights can be obtained from thesemicontinuous data streams.

Figure 2 shows a multiday sulfateepisode which was centered over thesoutheastern United States and extendedinto northeast Kansas. The squaremarkers represent hourly-average sulfatemeasured by a method recently devel-oped by theHarvard Schoolof Public Health.The trianglesrepresent hourly-average blackcarbon (BC)measured usingthe MageeScientificAethalometer.Black carbon is aprimary emissionfrom combustion processes; assumingthere are no significant local sources ofblack carbon near the monitoring site,then this signal can be used as a qualita-tive measure for atmospheric ventilation.The black carbon time series exhibits amidday minimum on several days whichis consistent with the period of maximum

atmospheric ventilation which merely“dilutes” the black carbon concentration(this simple model can be confoundedby local sources and also entrainment ofaloft species as the mixing height growsevery morning). The sulfate shows amore complex pattern with a graduallyrising baseline throughout the first severaldays of this episode with superposedpeaks and valleys. Insight can be gainedfrom the dashed line, which is thesulfate-to-black carbon ratio. This ratiois subject to the propagated uncertaintyfrom the two independent measurementsand, in light of the low black carbonconcentrations, has been smoothed usinga centered five-hour rolling average.The key feature of this time series is themidday peak observed to varyingdegree on all days except 8/30 and 9/2(the latter being a meteorological transi-tion day). This pattern suggests the

observedsulfate is acombinationof aged,regionalsulfate (form-ing the base ofthe multidayepisode) ontowhich there issuperposeddaytimeformation of

sulfate by gas-to-particle conversion ofsulfur dioxide and/or entrainment of aloftsulfate plumes as the mixing height growsthroughout the morning and early after-noon. Such insights into the data willfeed into a conceptual model for particu-late matter formation and transport in thecentral United States.

ST. LOUIS – MIDWEST SUPERSITE MONITORING DEPL OYMENT IN RURAL NORTHEAST KANSASBy Jay Turner

Figure 1. Supersite monitoring platform (left) locatedwith an IMPROVE network site (right).

Figure 2. Time series for a fine particulate matter eventobserved in rural Kansas.

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

By Pratim Biswas

Nanotechnology deals with material in the nanometer sizes(typical range 1 to 100 nm, a nanometer being a billionth partof a meter), and therefore at the atomic, molecular andmacromolecular states. At these size ranges, particles couldhave properties very different from the bulk materials, and bytheir assembly one can create products with desired uniqueand novel functions. Nanotechnology involves the creationand use of structures, systems, and devices with novelproperties and functions resulting due to their small and/orintermediate size. Optimal sizes, compositions and othercharacteristics are very application specific - hence significantresearch and developmental efforts are currently underway tobetter understand these dependencies. For example, asemiconducting catalyst to remediate an environmentalpollutant may be most effective in the 30 to 50 nm range,whereas a metallic alloy may result in the highest strengthmaterial in the 5 to 10 nm size range. The societal implicationsof nanotechnology are vast, and hence the interest in thisdiscipline.

Several projects in our group are related to nanoparticlesand the environment. Many engineered systems such ascombustion processes encountered in industrial units result inproduction of particles which are enriched with toxicconstituents and in sizes that are captured with low efficienciesin conventional control devices. The understanding of theparticle formation processes allow us to design nanostructuredsorbent processes that are effective at chemisorping some ofthe toxic metal species, and converting them to a benign formthat are readily captured in existing control devices. Currentprojects are aimed at evaluating the use of nanostructuredsorbents for mercury capture in coal combustion exhausts.Another project is evaluating the use of such nanostructuredsorbents in lead smelter exhausts to convert potentially toxicemissions into by-products of value.

The same understanding has been used to synthesize widegap semiconducting oxides which are used in a host ofenvironmental technologies for remediating contaminated airand water streams. Specifically, our group has been focusingon the applications of nanostructured titanium dioxide - in bothpristine and doped forms. We have successfully usednanostructured titanium dioxide films for the oxidation ofMTBE in contaminated drinking water. An embedded coronareactor was designed and demonstrated to be very effective atcomplete degradation of MTBE. The requirement of uv light

to be incident on the catalyst surface precludes its use inpacked bed or honeycomb configurations. However, a noveldesign wherein we have demonstrated that embedded ceramicelectrodes could be used to generate localized surface coronasto provide the necessary uv light in each channel of ahoneycomb structure, has been proposed for severalapplications. A prototype sketch of the unit is shown in theFigure, along with data from a single channel reactor whereinwe have demonstrated the degradation of an organicsubstrate. Fundamental studies have been conducted atunderstanding the photoactivity of titanium dioxide as afunction of particle size. As aerosol synthesis allows control ofthe final particle characteristics (size, morphology, phasecomposition, surface defect structures), we have used this tounderstand the properties of these materials, and also producematerials (e.g. V-doped TiO2) for a host of novel applications.

AAQRL AND ENVIRONMENTAL NANOTECHNOLOGY

B

A

Schematic drawing of a honeycomb reactor design. Dark bands arenanostructured TiO2 deposits (A) and white bands are embeddedelectrodes (B) which generate a surface corona.

Degradation efficency of TCE as a function of voltage applied for asingle channel reactor for two different coating application methods.

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