DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

MAY 2005

Vol. 5

Environmental Engineering Science Program at Washington University in St. Louis

www.env.wustl.edu

INSIDE

Faculty Listing ....................... 2Students.............................3-5Alumni..........................4Program Activities...............6-10Project Highlights..........11-19

The growth spurt of the Environmental Engineering

Science Program continues - we have critical mass in both the

Air and Water Quality Groups, and a sizeable number of

graduate students. The student body remains diverse, and we

are attracting students from different nooks and corners of the

United States (incoming class had students from University of

Florida, Cornell, Stanford, and Miami University) and several

different countries worldwide. In addition to their academic

duties and work on their research projects, the students

remain active through the Environmental Engineering Student

Association (ENVESA; see details on page 3). The quality of

students is excellent - and several are winning competitive

National Awards.

As we proceed to develop our next 10 year Strategic

Plan, we have begun to define the emphasis areas in the Air

and Water Quality Groups. The Aerosols and Air Quality

Group studies topical issues over a multitude of scales - from

the formation, growth and control aspects of particles, to their

measurement at sources and in the atmosphere, to their global

transport. This holistic look enables us to address the “life

history” of an aerosol - from its inception to its eventual fate

(exposure or use as an useful product). The Water Quality

Group involves several core disciplines and focuses on the

application of scientific

principles to treatment and

remediation, and an

examination of aquatic

systems over a multitude of

scales. The group has

extensions and collaborative projects in water resources,

aerosols and air quality and energy related problems. The

Sustainable Technology group is focusing its efforts on

environmentally benign processing, and the NSF Engineering

Research Center on Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis

(CEBC, see page 18) has resulted in the initiation of several

projects ranging from safe reactor design, development of

concepts of reaction engineering for new clean processes,

sensor development and hydrogen production.

I look forward to sharing with you elements of the

Environmental Engineering Science Program Strategic Plan in

the next Newsletter. We value your opinions and comments, so

please keep them coming!

Pratim Biswas

The Stifel and Quinette Jens Professor

Director, Environmental Engineering Science

ENVIR NEWS

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2

FACULTY

Lars T. Angenent

Ph.D., 1998

Iowa State University

Assistant Professor, Department of

Chemical Engineering.

Molecular Biology for Environmental

Engineering, Bioaerosols, Anaerobic

Waste Treatment, Biological

Wastewater Treatment

Richard L. Axelbaum

Ph.D.,1988

University of California

Associate Professor, Department of

Mechanical Engineering.

Nanoparticle Synthesis,

Combustion

Pratim Biswas

Ph.D., 1985

California Institute of Technology

Stiffel and Quinette Jens Professor.

Director, Environmental Engineering

Science Program.

Aerosol Science and Engineering,

Air Quality and Pollution Control

Da-Ren Chen

Ph.D., 1997

University of Minnesota

Assistant Professor, Mechanical Engineering.

Particle Measurement and Instrumentation,

Particle Filtration and Separation, Aerosol

Dynamics Modeling, Aerosol Science and

Technology

Milorad P. Dudukovic

Ph.D., 1972

Illinois Institute of Technology

Department Chairman, Chemical

Engineering.

Laura and William Jens Professor of

Environmental Engineering

Daniel Giammar

Ph.D., 2001

California Institute of Technology

Assistant Professor,

Civil Engineering.

Aquatic Chemistry, Water Quality

Engineering, Fate and Transport of

Inorganic Contaminants

Rudolf B. Husar

Ph.D., 1970

University of Minnesota

Director, Center for Air Pollution and

Trends Analysis, (CAPITA), Profes-

sor, Mechanical Engineering.

Environmental Informatics, Aerosol

Pattern and Trend Analysis

Maxine Lipeles

J.D., 1979

Harvard University

Professor, College of Law

Environmental Law

Jay R. Turner

D.Sc., 1993

Washington University

Associate Professor, Chemical

Engineering.

Air Quality Management

Brian A. Wrenn

Ph.D., 1994

U. of Illinois

Assistant Professor, Civil Engineering.

Bioremediation Processes, Soil,

Sediment, Groundwater Treatment

Stephan Falke D.Sc., 1999 - Washington University,

Mechanical Engineering Department, Research Assistant

Professor, Air quality data analysis, environmental informa-

tion systems

Charles A. Buescher M.S., 1961- Washington University

Senior Professor, Water Quality

H. G. Schwartz Ph.D., 1966 - California Institute of

Technology, Senior Professor

R e s e a r c h & A f f i l i a t e d F a c u l t y

3

STUDENTS

ENVESA

2004/2005 ENVESA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

President: James Noel

Vice Pres.: Claire Farnsworth

Secretary: Kuk Cho

Treasurer: Eric Kettleson

Advisor: Dr. Daniel Giammar

Left to right, back row: Trent Stober (MWEA President), Zhengki Li, Daniel

Giammar, Biplabl Muhkerjee, Tom Ratzki (MWEA Student Activities Chair),

Mohamed Dahab (WEF Vice President) Front row: James Noel, Rebecca

Hoffman, and Sara Dryden

The 2004-2005 school year was an outstanding yearfor EnvESA, the Environmental Engineering Student Associa-tion, with members participating in new activities and receivingmany awards. EnvESA’s purpose is to provide a forum tointeract with individuals interested in environmental scienceoutside the classroom and the research laboratory. This yearthe organization has been focused on becoming more involvedin activities outside of the university and making connectionswith working professionals.

The beginning of the academic year was very produc-tive, with several EnvESA members presenting their researchat the Mid-American Environmental Engineering Conferenceheld at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville in September.Washington University had very strong showing at the confer-ence and one EnvESA member, Rebecca Hoffmann, wasawarded the MAEEC award for best presentation. Throughout the year, other EnvESA members presented their researchat conferences such as the American Association for AerosolResearch (AAAR), Air and Waste Management Association(AWMA), American Chemical Society (ACS), and the WaterEnvironment Federation Technology (WEFTEC) conferences.James Noel was nominated for the Richard A. Glenn Awardfor Fuel Chemistry at the ACS conference. Rafael McDonaldreceived the prestigious AWMA Milton Feldstein MemorialAward at the Indianapolis Annual Conference. While SarahDryden and Bukky Akinyemi swept the Missouri WaterEnvironment Association’s Ronald F. Layton Student Scholar-ships at the annual MWEA meeting.

EnvESA continues with its community service commit-

ment by maintaining an Adopt-A-Highway section of I-170 between the Delmar and Ladue exits. Dr. DanGiammar, EnvESA’s faculty advisor, and EnvESA mem-bers helped middle-school students learn about laboratorytechniques in “Moving and Shaking: An Introduction toEngineering,” coordinated as a Learning Lab through theGifted Resources Council. EnvESA members have alsovolunteered in Forest Park’s Riverkeepers to help main-tain the park’s water quality. In addition, members will behelping Joe Darmody as judges at the Greater St. LouisScience Fair in April.

During the school year, the student chapter of Air andWaste Management Association (AWMA) continued to growand prosper. Within the past six months, student membershipincreased to 14 members, up from 11. Several EnvESAmembers attend the AWMA monthly meetings, where theyhave a chance to socialize with professionals and enjoy both agood meal and an informative seminar. In addition, severalstudents will be presenting their work in Minneapolis at theNational AWMA conference this June.

The student chapter of Water Environment Federationreceived their official certificate and plaque from the Federa-tion and was presented by the chair of student activities, TomRatzki, this past January. Student membership has nowreached 14, and is continually growing. WEF student mem-bers overwhelmingly outnumbered (5 to 1) the WEF studentsfrom other area schools at the annual MWEA meeting lastMarch.

For the first time ever, EnvESA reached its fundraisinggoal for the year through a dinner cruise raffle and a car washover the summer. Some social activities included numerouspotlucks, an amazing Christmas party, and other gatherings.Our co-ed intramural volleyball team went very defeated thispast semester (0-4), but good fun was had by all.

EnvESA meets biweekly and have frequently includedspeakers discussing job outlooks and careers, AWMA, andWEF activities. EnvESA has also had the pleasure of one-on-one conversations with Environmental Engineering SeminarSpeakers. Plans are in the works for an Earth Day openhouse with guest speakers, as well as student and com-pany presentations.For more informa-tion about EnvESAor any of the afore-mentioned activities,please contactEnvESA atenvesa@cec.wustl.edu.

4

OUR NEWEST ALUMNI

ALUMNI

2004 Graduates

· Neil Deardorff

· Samuel Fisher

Dr. Gary Logsdon, 2004 Kappe Lecturer,

Washington University Graduate

· Zhengkai Li

· Ayano Ito

Dr. Gary Logsdon, D.Sc.

‘71, was selected as the

Kappe Lecturer in 2004.

He visited the University

and presented a stimulating

talk on “Avoiding Water-

borne Disease Outbreaks

by Understanding Prior

Outbreaks” (http://

www.env.wustl.edu/

Seminars/Abstracts/

2004Kappe.pdf) on

September 17, 2004. Gary

Logsdon started his

distingushed career as a

Commissioned Officer in

the U.S. Public Health

Service in Cincinnati where he researched drinking water.

During his tenure with the Public Health Service, Logsdon

returned to Washington University to obtain his doctoral

degree. After completing his educational studies, he returned

to the Public Health Service and in 1989, he helped develop

the U.S. Environmental Agency’s Surface Water Treatment

Rule. After 26 years of work in the Public Health Service,

Gary retired and started a second career as a consulting

engineer with Black & Veatch. Here he worked on pilot plant

water filtration studeis and worked as a Principle Investigator

for the American Water Works Association Research

Foundation. This project produced the best-selling report on

‘Filter Maintenance and Operations Guidance’, in the history

of the AWWARF.

Dr. Logsdon has received several professional honors,

including; the Civil Engineering Academy of Distinguished

Alumni from University of Missouri, A.P. Black Research

Award, American Water Works Association, USEPA

Engineering of the Year, National Society of Professional

Engineers, Oustanding Service Medal, and Commendation

Medal from the U.S. Public Health Service.

CLASS OF 1964

OLYMPIC TORCH RUN

2004 KAPPE LECTURE

Left to Right, back row: T. Stumph, F. Verde, D. Brooman, C. Gillespie,

G. Schillinger, G. Brower, E. Lee, B. Benson, O. Chicoineau, J. Coyne,

E. Theiss, P. Moore, E. Edgerley Jr., N. Burbank Jr. Middle row: J. Buzzell Jr.,

DW Ryckman, M. Crowe, J. Goeppner, C. Lue-Hing, J. Kumagai, G. Arnold,

C. Buescher Jr. Front row: T. Popowchak, H. Roy, J. O’Rourke, H. Tomlinson,

D. Kantawala, R. Rock, R. Skrinde, and H. Wood

The campus of Washington University was the site of the 1904 Olympics,

and this past summer the Olympic Torch was carried through campus

enroute to the site of the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Pictured here are

Achariya Suriyawong, doctoral student; Olympic Torch Bearer; Chancel-

lor Mark Wrighton; Prakash Kumar, DSc 2005; and Joong-hyuk Kim,

visiting scholar, AAQRL.

5

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES 2004

ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING SCHOLARSHIPS

Charles & Gayle Leben with sponsored students,

Prakash Kumar and Sarah Dryden.

2004 RECIPIENTS

Biplab Muhkerjee Charles Buescher Jr. ScholarshipHui Zheng Charles & Marlene Buescher Scholarship &

Cecil Lue Hing ScholarshipT.C. Hsiao Forest & Patricia McGrath ScholarshipJingkun Jiang Sverdrup Scholarship and

Ed Edgerly ScholarshipChris Hogan Henry G. Schwartz Scholarship and

Paul B. Hodges Memorial ScholarshipErik Pitoniak Otis, Dorothy & Bryce Sproul ScholarshipJennifer Garlock Henry & Marjorie Reitz ScholarshipSarah Dryden Leben Family Scholarship,

ENVIRSAN Scholarship

Rafael McDonald received the prestigious Milton Feldstein Memorial

Award from the Air and Waste Management Association President at the

97th Annual Meeting held in Indianapolis, IN in June 2004. Rafael, a

doctoral student in the Program also won the First Prize in their Poster

Paper Competition.

HONORS & AWARDS

Congratulations to Seniors Carley Schaffer and Lance

Moen who just won two awards for their entry in the

WERC Environmental Design Contest held at New Mexico

State University. Their design for a system to remove

arsenic and nitrate from drinking water won awards for

Best Conceptualization of Design and Most Output per

Unit Team Member. The design competition included 34

teams from 22 different universities. The design contest

involved a written report, oral and poster presentations,

and the construction and demonstration of a bench-scale

unit. The project was supervised by Dr. Daniel

Giammar.

AEESP DISTINGUISHED DOCTORAL THESIS AWARD

Dr. Pramod Kulkarni, Doctoral Student in the Aerosol

and Air Quality Research Laboratory working under the

guidance of Dr. Pratim Biswas won the American Asso-

ciation for Environmental Engineering Science Professors

2004 CH2MHill Outstanding Distinguished Doctoral

Dissertation Award.

WERC ENVIRONMENTAL DESIGN CONTEST

6

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES 2004

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS

Angenent L. T., Sonnenburg J. and Gordon, J.

I. “Getting a grip on things: how do communi-

ties of bacterial symbionts become estab-

lished in our intestine?,” Nature Immunology,

Vol. 5, No. 6, pp. 569-573 (2004).

Angenent L. T., Karim K., Al-Dahhan M. H.,

Wrenn B. A. and Domíguez-Espinosa R..

“Production of bioenergy and biochemicals

from industrial and agricultural wastewater,”

TRENDS in Biotechnology, Vol. 22, No. 9, pp.

477-485 (2004).

Kelley S. T., Thiesen U., Angenent L. T., St.

Amand, A. and Pace N. R. “Molecular

analysis of shower curtain biofilm microbes,”

Applied and Environmental Microbiology,

Vol. 70, No. 7, pp. 4187-4192 (2004).

Angenent L. T., Sung S. and Raskin L. “The

formation of granules and Methanosaeta

fibres in anaerobic migrating blanket reactor

(AMBR),” Environmental Microbiology, Vol.

6, No. 4, pp. 315-322 (2004).

Sun, Z., Axelbaum, R.L. and Davis, R.W., “A

Sectional Model for Investigating

Microcontamination in a Rotating Disk CVD

Reactor,” Journal of Aerosol Science and

Technology 38 1161-1170 (2004).

Sun, Z., Axelbaum, R.L. and Huertas, J.I.,

“Monte Carlo Simulation of Multicomponent

Aerosols Undergoing Simultaneous Coagula-

tion and Condensation,” Journal of Aerosol

Science and Technology, 38 963-971 (2004).

Sunderland, P.B., Urban, D.L., Stocker, D.P.,

Chao, B.-H. and Axelbaum, R.L., “Sooting

Limits of Microgravity Spherical Diffusion

Flames in Oxygen-Enriched Air and Diluted

Fuel,” Combustion Science and Technology,

176 2143-2164 (2004).

Kulkarni P., Dutari G., Biswas P. and Haught,

R.: “Gravity settling characteristics of

Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts in aqueous

suspension using in situ static light scatter-

ing”, Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemi-

cal and Engineering Aspects, Vol.233 (1-3),

(2004).

Kommu S., Khomami B. and Biswas P.:

“Simulation of aerosol dynamics and trans-

port in chemically reacting particulate matter

laden flows. Part I: Algorithm development

and validation”, Chem. Engr. Sci., vol. 59 (2),

345-358, (2004).

Kommu S., Khomami B. and Biswas P.:

“Simulation of aerosol dynamics and trans-

port in chemically reacting particulate matter

laden flows. Part II: Application to CVD

reactors”, Chem. Engr. Sci., vol. 59 (2), 3 359-

371 (2004).

Rodriguez S., Almquist C., Tai Gyu Lee, T.G.;

Furuuchi M.; Hedrick E. and Biswas P.: “A

Mechanistic Model for Mercury Capture with

In Situ Generated Titania Particles: Role of

Water Vapor, J. Air and Waste Mgmt.

Associn., vol. 54, 149-156 (2004).

Lee T.G., Biswas P. and Hedrick E.: “Overall

Kinetics of Heterogenous Elemental Mercury

Reactions on TiO2 Sorbent Particles with UV

Irradiation”, Ind. Engr. Chem. Res., vol. 43 (6),

1411-1417 (2004).

Martuzevicius D., Grinshpun S.A., Reponen

T., Gorny R.L., Shukla R., Lockey J., Hu S.H.,

McDonald R., Biswas P., Kliucininkas L.,

LeMasters G., “ Spatial and temporal varia-

tions of PM2.5 concentration and composi-

tion throughout an urban area with high

freeway density - the Greater Cincinnati

study” Atmos. Environ., vol. 38 (8): 1091-1105,

(2004).

Yoshikawa F, Namiki N, Otani Y, Biswas P., “A

titanium dioxide-silica glass granule packed

bed reactor for degradation of airborne

organic compounds”, J. Chemical Engr. of

Japan, vol.37 (4): 503-513 (2004).

Hogan C., Lee M., Biswas P., “Capture of Viral

Particles in soft X-ray Enhanced Corona

Systems: Charge Distribution and Transport

Characteristics”, Aerosol Sci. Technol., vol.

38(5):475-486 (2004).

Kulkarni P. and Biswas P., “A Brownian

dynamics simulation to predict morphology of

nanoparticle deposits in the presence of

interparticle interactions”, Aerosol Sci.

Technol., vol. 38, 541-554 (2004).

McDonald R. and Biswas P., “A methodology

to establish the morphology of ambient

aerosols”, J. Air Waste Mgmt. Associn., vol.

54, 1069-1078 (2004).

McDonald R., Hu S., Martuzevicius D.,

Grinshpun S.A., Le Masters G. and Biswas P.,

“Intensive short term measurements of the

ambient aerosol in the Greater Cincinnati

airshed”, Aerosol Sci. Technol., vol. 38, 70-79,

(2004).

C.-J. Tsai, Da-Ren Chen, HungMin Chein,

Sheng-Chieh Chen, Jian-Lun Roth, Yu-Du

Hsu, Weiling Li. and P. Biswas, “Theoretical

and Experimental Study of an Axial Flow

Cyclone for Fine Particle Removal in Vacuum

Conditions,” Journal of Aerosol Science, 35,

p1105-1118 (2004).

C.-J. Tsai, S.-C. Chen, C.-H. Huang and Da-

Ren Chen, “A Universal Calibration Curve for

the TSI Aerodynamic Particle Sizer,” Aerosol

Science and Technology, 38(5), p467-474

(2004).

Z. Gerald Liu, Da-Ren Chen, N. Perera, G.

Pingen, J. C. Lincoln and E. M. Thurow,

“Transient Analysis of Engine Nanoparticles

Using Fast Scanning Differential Mobility

Particle Analyzer”, SAE Paper #2004-01-0971,

SAE Transaction, (2004).

C-J Tsai, J.-S. Lin, S. G., Aggarwal and Da-Ren

Chen, “Thermophoretic Deposition of

Particles in Laminar and Turbulent Flows,”

Aerosol Science and Technology, 38, p131-

139 (2004).

Bhusarapu, S.; Fongarland, P.; Al-Dahhan,

M.H.; Dudukovic, M.P., “Measurement of

overall solids mass flux in a gas-solid circulat-

ing fluidized bed,” Powder Technology, 148(2-

3), 158-171 (2004).

Bhusarapu, Satish; Al-Dahhan, Muthanna;

Dudukovic, M. P., “Quantification of solids

flow in a gas-solid riser: single radioactive

particle tracking,” Chemical Engineering

Science, 59(22-23), 5381-5386 (2004).

Chen, P.; Sanyal, J.; Dudukovic, M.P., “CFD

modeling of bubble columns flows: imple-

mentation of population balance,” Chemical

Engineering Science, 59(22-23), 5201-5207,

(2004).

Roy, S.; Kemoun, A.; Al-Dahhan, M.H.;

Dudukovic, M.P.; Skourlis, Thomas B.;

Dautzenerg, Frits M., “Countercurrent flow

distribution in structured packing via com-

puted tomography,” Chemcal Engineering and

Processing, 44(1), 59-69 (2004).

Falke, S., Stella, G., Keating, T. and B.

Hemming, “Data Management Challenges in

Developing a Network of Distributed North

American Emissions Databases”, Proceed-

ings, 13th International Emission Inventory

Conference: Working for Clean Air in

Clearwater, US EPA, (2004).

Giammar, D.E. and Hering, J.G., “Influence of

dissolved sodium and cesium on uranyl oxide

7

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES 2004

hydrate solubility,” Environmental Science

and Technology, 38: 171-179 (2004).

A.P. Sullivan, R.P. Weber, A.L. Clements, J.R.

Turner, M.S. Bae and J.J. Schauer “A

Method for On-Line Measurement of Water-

Soluble Organic Carbon in Ambient Particles:

Results from an Urban Site,” Geophysical

Research Letters, 31, L13105 (2004).

Li, Z. and B.A. Wrenn. Effects of ferric

hydroxide on the anaerobic biodegradation

kinetics and toxicity of vegetable oil in

freshwater sediments. Water Research 38:

3859-3868 (2004).

Angenent, L.T., K. Karim, M.H. Al-Dahhan,

B.A. Wrenn, and R. Dominguez-Espinosa.

Production of bioenergy and biochemicals

from industrial and agricultural wastewater.

Trends in Biotechnology 22: 477-485 (2004).

Wincele, D.E., B.A. Wrenn, and A.D. Venosa.

Sedimentation of oil-mineral aggregates for

remediation of vegetable oil spills. J. Environ-

mental Engineering 130: 50-58 (2004).

REFEREED JOURNAL PUBLICATIONS (Cont.)

ANNUAL ADVISORY BOARD MEETING

Left to right: Cecil Lue-Hing, Ken Anderson, Otis Sproul, Richard Pinckert, George Schillinger, John L.

Stein, Qian Qiu Zhao, and Charles Buescher, Jr.

Dr. Otis Sproul, Chair

Ken Anderson, Ameren UE

Charlie Buescher, Sr. Prof.

Dr. Keith Carnes, EPRI

Dr. C. Lue-Hing, Lue-Hing Assoc.

Dr. Richard Pinckert, Boeing

George Schillinger, Am. Bottoms

Dr. H. Gerry Schwartz, Sr. Prof.

John L. Stein, Anheuser Busch (ret.)

Dr.Qian Qiu Zhao, DuPont

ADVISORY BOARD MEMBERS

The Advisory Board met with the Environmental Engineering Science Faculty mem-

bers on November 5, 2004. After a brief update on the Program and the key focal

areas of research, discussions focused on how collaborative research in the envi-

ronmental sciences could be fostered and promoted campus wide. Plans to

enhance the Industrial Partners Program was also discussed (see page 10).

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES PROGRAM

The Environmental Engineering Science Program Faculty are also

a part of the University’s Environmental Studies Program that

offers a BS degree in Environmental Studies. After a set of Intro-

ductory courses, the students opt for a Major Track, with flexibility

provided to the UG student to design a curriculum that suits their

interests. The Environmental Engineering Minor (http://

www.env.wustl.edu/envminor.htm) is also available to students

in the Environmental Studies Program.

Program details can be viewed at: http://epsc.wustl.edu/enst/

8

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES 2004

2004 RYCKMAN LECTURE PRESENTED BY DR. CHARLES O’MELIA

Dr. Charles

O’Melia, professor at

Johns Hopkins

Univeristy, presented

the second annual

Rick and Betty

Ryckman Lecture at

Washington University

in St. Louis. On

November 5, 2004, Dr.

O’Melia presented his

talk titled “Aquasols:

On the Role of

Secondary Minima”.

Dr. O’Melia is the

Abel Wolman

Professor of Environ-

mental Engineering at

Johns Hopkins University. His research interests are in

aquatic chemistry, environmental colloid chemistry, water

and wastewater treatment and modeling of natural surface

and subsurface waters. He received his MS and PhD

degrees from the University of Michigan, and his BS

degree from Manhattan College. He has won numerous

awards such as the AP Black Research Award from

AWWA in 1990, the Gordon Maskew Fair Medal from

the Water Environment Federation in 1993, several

Awards from the Association of Environmental Engineer-

ing Science Professors. In 1989, he was elected to the

National Academy of Engineering.

Dr. O’Melia elegantly presented the implications for

colloid transport of reversible deposition in secondary minima,

and pointed out the differences from those involving irrevers-

ible deposition in primary minima. First, particles that are

continually captured and released will travel much farther in the

subsurface than might be expected if the classic irreversible

filtration model is applied. Second, and perhaps more

significantly, deposition in the secondary well can increase with

increasing particle size. Although particle transport by

convective diffusion increases as particle size decreases,

particle “attachment” in secondary minima decreases with

Dr. Charles O’Melia presented the secondRyckman Lecture presentation in November2004.

decreasing particle size. Thus, smaller particles (those

with diameters in the order of a few tens of nm) would be

more effective in the facilitated transport of highly sorbing

contaminants such as hydrophobic organic molecules,

metals and radionuclides. Other contaminants are

themselves particles, such as viruses (10s of nm in

diameter) and bacteria (near 1 μm in diameter). Due to

this difference in size, viruses could be transported over

much larger distances than bacteria. Third, the transport of

colloids and, hence, the transport of contaminants

associated with them, depends on the Hamaker constant of

the particle-water-aquifer media system. Colloids of lower

Hamaker constant are likely to be transported farther than

colloids of higher Hamaker constant. The extent of adsorption

of specific contaminants and the Hamaker constant for the

particle-aquifer system are both characteristics of the particles

and contribute to the effectiveness of colloid-facilitated

transport. Finally, the solution chemistry of the pore waters,

through pH, ionic strength, types of solutes, and the valence of

the ions, ultimately controls the deposition and release of

colloidal particles in porous media. The pH determines the

charge density and surface potential of the surfaces. When the

surfaces are similarly charged, their interaction can be

unfavorable, with an energy barrier and secondary minimum.

The ionic strength and valence of the ions determines the

shape of the interaction energy curve, including the presence

and height of the energy barrier and the presence and depth of

the secondary well. Since the subsequent release of a particle

depends on the mode in which the particle is deposited

(primary or secondary), these factors are particularly

important in determining the extent of colloid transport in the

subsurface.

Inaugural Ryckman Lecture 2003

Dr. Perry L. McCarty, Stanford University

“Precautionary Approach for Toxic Chemicals

in the Environment - Experiences and Concepts

in the Making”

PREVIOUS RYCKMAN LECTURES

9

D.W.

Ryckman

founding

Director of

the Environ-

mental

Engineering

Science

Program at

Washington

University in

St. Louis

passed away

on Septem-

ber 14, 2004.

DeVere W. “Rick” Ryckman, was

the founding director and responsible for

setting up the environmental engineering

science department at Washington

University, died Tuesday (Sept. 14,

2004) of complications of lymphoma at

St. John’s Mercy Medical Center in

Creve Coeur. He was 80 and a resident

of Ballwin.

Mr. Ryckman was brought up on a

farm in South Boardman, Michigan. He

attended the University of Maine before

enlisting in the Navy as a member of the

Construction Battalion, stationed in the

Pacific while serving in World War II.

After his military service, Mr.

Ryckman earned a bachelor of science

degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic

Institute in Troy, N.Y., one of the

nation’s oldest technological universities.

Mr. Ryckman received a master’s

degree from Michigan State University

and a doctorate of science from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology in

environmental engineering.

In 1956, Mr. Ryckman moved to

St. Louis, where he was in charge of

setting up a new department in environ-

IN MEMORY

mental engineering at Washington

University. The Program was established

with Drs. Edgerly, Burbank, Tomlinson,

and Skrinde. He would teach there for

the next 15 years. At the university, Mr.

Ryckman was the A.P. Greensfelder

professor of engineering.

In 1962, Mr. Ryckman helped

organize a graduate program at the

University of Hawaii. From 1963 to

1975, Mr. Ryckman was a partner in the

environmental consulting firm RETA

(Ryckman, Edgerley Tomlinson and

Associates). In 1975, he founded

REACT (Ryckman, Emergency, Action

and Consulting Team) which continues

today on Sixth Street. His son, Stewart

Ryckman of Ladue, is president of the

company. His other son, Mark D.

Ryckman of Atlanta, is the principal

engineer of Remtech Engineers, another

engineering consulting firm in Marietta,

Georgia.

The Environmental Engineering Science Program established the

annual “Distinguished Ryckman Lecture in Environmental Engineer-

ing” in recognition of all the faculty members - Drs. D. W. Ryckman,

E. Edgerley, N. Burbank, H. D. Tomlinson, R. Skrinde and J.

Buzzell who helped start the program at Washington University in St.

Louis in the mid 1950’s. One hundred fifteen graduate degrees

were conferred, and the Seminar is also a testimonial to the

achievements of the students of the original program. An Endowed

Fund has been created to support the expenses associated with the

invitation of a Distinguished Scholar to the University every year.

Please contact Libby Gutberlet (Tel: (314) 935-8730 or

Libby_Gutberlet@aismail.wustl.edu if you are interested in

supporting this Endowment.

Mr. Ryckman was a member of the

First Congregational Church of Webster

Groves, St. Louis downtown Rotary

Club, the Engineers Circle Club and the

Washington University Eliot Society. He

served on the board of the Salvation

Army.

In addition to his sons, among the

survivors are his wife of 55 years, Betty

J. Ryckman; a daughter, Jill Ferguson of

Chicago; three brothers, Seymour

Ryckman of Dayton, Ohio, Willard

Ryckman of northern Michigan and

Clesson Ryckman of South Boardman;

two sisters, Gene Woodhams of north-

ern Michigan and Virgil Uitvlugt of Battle

Creek, Mich.; and seven grandchildren.

Excerpted from an eulogy that

appeared in the St. Louis Post Dis-

patch, Sept 18, 2004

D.W. Ryckman

DISTINGUISHED RYCKMAN LECTURE SERIES

10

����� Total Research Awards in 2004 = $ 2.5 million

����� Total number of graduate students = 32

����� Full-time faculty in Environmental Engineering = 10

����� Students pursuing Undergraduate Minor = 5

����� Major Program Endowments are:

Jens, Browne, & McGrath

INDUSTRIAL PARTNERS

PROGRAM ACTIVITIES

The Environmental Engineering Science Program has an Industrial Partners Group whose primary objectives are to provide

access to cutting edge, state of the art research and developments in Environmental Engineering and allow interaction of

faculty and students with counterparts in the Industrial sector. Members enjoy several benefits such as,

• Participate in fundamental and applied research projects at Washington University

• Technology transfer of novel developments

• Access to state of the art research facilities

• Pooling of Industrial Funding with Federal Research Funding

• Specialized Training Programs for Industrial Sponsors

• Access to Graduate Student Interns who will participate in Industrial Research and Development as part of the

Degree Program

• Opportunity to collaborate with Faculty in areas of mutual interest

• Participate in an Industrial Advisory Board for the Program

• Discounted use of Instrumentation Facility

• Annual Meeting at Washington University where results of current research will be discussed. Opportunity to have a

Publicity Booth at Open House event in WUStL.

• Annual Newsletter highlighting key research projects, list of publications, list of current and graduated students

The Environmental Engineering Science Program

is now planning to recruit additional partners.

Details on this program and how one can become a

Member are outlined in http://www.env.wustl.edu/

indpartmain.htm For additional details, please

contact Pratim Biswas at 314-935-5548.

AmerenUE

Emissions control from coal fired utilities. Sponsoring

projects related to Hg control and Enriched Oxygen

Combustion for potential CO2 control

American Bottoms Regional Wastewater Facility

Wastewater treatment processes, Field Trips for students,

Possible Internships.

Boeing Corporation

Interests in cabin air cleaning using environmentally benign

photocatalysts. Measurement of ultrafine particles in jet

engine exhausts. Workshop and Seminars in Env discipline.

Cabot Corporation

Interests in nanoparticle synthesis and measurement.

Nanoparticle Health Effects.

DuPont

Synthesis of nanostructured, doped titanium dioxide.

Measurement of nanoparticles in plasma and other high

temperature reactors. Graduate student internships.

Johnson Controls

Humidity controlled rooms for weighing of ambient PM

filters.

The Group currently consists of 6 Industries, and the nature of the partnership is outlined for each.

11

SELECTED COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS

project highlightsPROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

DOD- MURI Project onNanoparticle ToxicologyDrs. Biswas and Chen alongwith their colleagues

Dr. David Pui at the University of Minnesota and

Dr. Gunter Oberdorster at the University of Rochester

have embarked on a five year project to unravel the

toxicological properties of nanoparticles. Researchers

at WUStL will focus on the synthesis and classification

of narrow size nanoparticles (with tight control on size

and composition) and also on establishing the properties

as a function of size. These characterized samples

will be used in biological studies to determine their

effects as a function of size and composition.

NSF Engineering Research CenterCenter for Environmentally Benificial Catalysis

Synthesis and Application of Magnetic Nano-

and Nano-composite Particles. PIs: Drs. D. Chen,

P. Biswas, R. Indeck and R. Axelbaum. Industrial

Collaborator: Stereotaxis. Magnetic nanoparticles/

nano-composites have many promising industrial

and biomedical applications. This project is explor-

ing laboratory scale synthesis methods to obtain

nanoparticles with tailored size, composition and

morphologies; developing systems for online

measurement of high concentrations in high

temperature environments, and demonstrating

applications in data storage, recording,

and biomdedical applications.

NSF-NIRT

Generating technologies that will transform thecatalytic manufacture of chemicals into inher- ently safe and ecologically responsible processes, while retaining their economic viability. Dr. M.Dudukovic is Associate

Director of the Center.

The REU program is now in its fourth year and provides an opport-

unity for students to participate in cutting edge research in environ-

mental disciplines. The Program is directed by Dr. Brian Wrenn and

includes participation of all the faculty members affiliated to the Program.

Drs. Axelbaum, Biswas, Chen and Giammar are members of the Center

for Materials of Innovation at the University (www.cmi.wustl.edu).

These faculty along with their colleagues are establishing a Minor in the

School of Engineering and the University that will introduce under-

graduates to the exciting field of nanotechnology.

Another collaborative project on Education with the University of

Florida has resulted in the development of interactive Aerosol

Education Modules. For a first hand experience, please

access http://www.aerosols.wustl.edu/aaqrl/

Courses/CYCOPCRESP/index.html

NSF – Research Experience for Undergraduates& Educational Programs

Recent research performed by Drs. Stefan Falkeand Rudy Husar includes development of datastructures for the transmission of environmentalknowledge (geographic, animation, hypertext); theuse and refinement of interactive, graphic dataexploration, and analysis techniques; and applicationand demonstration of multimedia data deliverysystems. A sizable research effort focuses on long-term air pollution trends spanning this century in theUnited States. Visibility trends have been compiledfor North America and Europe. The CAPITAvisibility trend analysis work contributed signific-antly to the deliberations for the Clean Air ActAmendment of 1990. Details are availableat www.capita.wustl.edu

NASA - Application of ESE Data andTools to Particulate Air Quality Management

12

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

DEVELOPMENT OF A NOVEL BIOREACTOR FOR SIMULTANEOUS ORGANIC REMOVAL AND ELECTRICITYGENERATION FROM WASTEWATERBy Lars Angenent

The Angenent Lab: http://users.seas.wustl.edu/angenent

The production of energy from wastewater is a high priority for

society given current trends of population growth and world-

wide resource depletion. Wastewater containing a high content

of organic matter is an ideal commodity to produce alternative

energy carriers, such as methane and bioelectricity, and there-

fore The Angenent Lab works in this area of research as one of

the main thrusts. Bioelectricity is the most promising of the

alternative energy products generated from waste in our elec-

tricity-based economy, because efficiency-losing conver-

sions to a useful energy carrier (i.e., electricity) are not re-

quired. Bioelectricity generation from wastewater is accom-

plished with microbial fuel cells (MFCs). In the anode cham-

ber, bacteria attaching to anode electrodes degrade organic

material in wastewater while releasing electrons directly to

the anode rather than an electron acceptor molecule. Elec-

trons move from the anode electrode to the cathode elec-

trode through an external circuit. Protons are transferred

from the anode to the cathode chamber through a proton-

exchange membrane (PEM) and react with electrons and

oxygen molecules to form water.

Jason He, a D.Sc. student in The Angenent Lab, and Lars

Angenent have invented a novel type of MFC, the upflow

microbial fuel cell (UMFC). A provisional patent application

has been deposited at the US patent office and Washington

University in St. Louis has provided The Angenent Lab with a

Bear Cub Grant to further develop the UMFC technology.

Jason He and Lars Angenent are currently envisioning the

UMFC as an alternative configuration for continuous waste-

water treatment and electricity generation in relative simple

full-scale bioreactors. Laboratory-scale results have shown

constant electricity production at a power density of 170 mW

per square meter of electrode surface area. This must be

further increased by at least 20 times to make this technology

viable. The scientific approach to improve power densities is

to work simultaneously on the mechanistic understanding of

the molecular and microbial processes in MFCs and on the

optimization of the UMFC reactor configuration.

This work has been accepted for publication: He, Z., Minteer,

S.D. and Angenent, L.T. (2005). Electricity generation from

artificial wastewater using an upflow microbial fuel cell.

Accepted for Environmental Science and Technology.

13

ARSENIC REMOVAL FROM DRINKING WATERBy Dan Giammar

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

High concentrations of arsenic in

drinking water pose a threat to public

health both in the United States and

around the world. Arsenic is present

naturally in certain groundwater sources.

Effects of arsenic in groundwater in

Bangladesh and West Bengal, India

have been considered an international

crisis. In the United States, the drinking

water standard for arsenic was recently

lowered from 50 parts per billion (ppb)

to 10 ppb, and water systems must

comply with the new lower standard by

January 2006. Many of the water

systems that would be out of compliance

with the 10 ppb standard are small

systems that currently have minimal

treatment. These systems require

technologies that can be implemented

easily and with minimal changes to the

water system infrastructure. Adsorption

to inorganic solid materials is an effec-

tive technology for small systems.

In the Aquatic Chemistry Labora-

tory, my doctoral student Hui Zeng and I

are evaluating novel sorbent materials

for arsenic treatment. The materials are

synthesized by Enviroscrub Techologies

Corporation of Minneapolis, and

Enviroscrub is sponsoring the research

project. The sorbents studied are iron

Aquatic Chemistry Laboratory Research Group. First row:

Jessica Mohatt, Liyun Xie, Hui Zeng, Zhiwen Yuan; Second

Row: Dan Giammar, Claire Farnsworth, James Noel.

oxide- and manganese oxide-

based materials with very high

specific surface areas (almost

300 m2/g). The sorbents are

prepared as solid pellets that

can be used in packed columns

for water treatment. The

objectives of our research are

1) to understand the equilib-

rium adsorption of two oxida-

tion states of arsenic (arsenite

and arsenate) as a function of

pH and the presence of other

species (e.g., sulfate) and 2) to

evaluate arsenic removal in

packed beds using the

adsorbents. The research can

provide a scientific basis for a

valuable new technology and

it also advances our funda-

mental understanding of chemical

reactions that occur at the solid-water

interface.

The iron oxide-based sorbent has a

very high capacity for arsenic(V) (i.e.,

arsenate) adsorption (10 mg arsenic per g

of sorbent), which is higher than for other

sorbents being considered for arsenic

treatment (Figure 1). We have examined

adsorption over the pH range of 6-8 and

observed a slight increase with decreas-

ing pH, which is expected for

the adsorption of anionic

solutes such as arsenate (the

dominant species are HAsO4

2-

and H2AsO

4

-). A manganese

oxide-based sorbent also has

a high capacity for arsenate

adsorption. The adsorption

of arsenic onto the sorbent

materials occurs rapidly.

Treatment tests using small-

scale columns filled with the

iron oxide-based sorbent

have evaluated arsenic

removal from water that

initially contained 100 ppb

arsenic(V). After more than 1200 hours,

the arsenic in the column effluent was

still below 1 ppb. Our estimates suggest

that the columns may be able to remove

the arsenic for more than 2000 hours,

which is more than 24,000 bed volumes.

Arsenic treatment also played a role

in the senior design projects of Civil

Engineering students Carley Schaffer and

Lance Moen. They entered their project

in the Environmental Design Contest

organized by WERC: A Consortium for

Environmental Education and Technol-

ogy Development. This year one of the

contest tasks was to design a system for

removal of arsenic and nitrate from

drinking water for isolated, rural commu-

nities. The Washington University

team’s design used nitrate-selective ion

exchange resins and the Enviroscrub iron

oxide-based sorbent. The design contest

involved a written report and a trip to Las

Cruces, New Mexico to present oral and

poster presentations and to demonstrate a

bench-scale system. The team came in

third out of eleven teams and won a

Judge’s Choice award.

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

0 200 400 600 800 1000

As equilibrium concentration (ppb)

)g/

gm(

ytis

ne

d n

oitpr

os

dA

iron oxide

manganese oxide

14

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

MAPPING NORTH AMERICAN AIRBy Stefan Falke

In an

age of

interna-

tional air

quality

agree-

ments,

integrat-

ing

emissions

data

from

multiple

invento-

ries is needed to support public outreach, emission trends

reporting, control strategy application studies, benefit analy-

ses, and estimation of air quality in large regional areas.

Emissions inventories represent a substantial source of uncer-

tainty in air quality analysis and modeling. Being able to view

and analyze emissions inventories from multiple countries is a

first step in addressing this uncertainty at regional and conti-

nental scales. However, integration of North American emis-

sions databases faces numerous challenges due to differences

in the way agencies collect and store the data. A key solution

in addressing these data management issues is the application

of new web services technologies that help automate the

access, analysis, and visualization of emissions data that are

distributed among multiple sources.

The North American Commision for Environmental

Cooperation sponsored an initial study by Washington Univer-

sity and Alpine Geophysics, LLC. to examine and demon-

strate the application of new information technology for

emission inventories. The pilot project accessed sources of

emissions inventory data for electricity generating power

plants and developed a prototype system for working with the

data through the web. An example map of North American

nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from power plants is shown

above. The map was generated using data from the 2002 US

National Emissions Inventory (preliminary), 2002 Canada’s

National Pollutant Release Inventory, and 1999 BRAVO

study of Mexico emissions (more recent Mexico emissions

data are not yet available to the public).

A new cooperative agreement between Washington

University and the US EPA Office of Air and Radiation will

extend the results of the pilot project with the goal of establish-

ing operational connections to the key emissions databases in

North America. The ultimate goal is to provide applications

accessible through standard web browsers that allow users to

dynamically work with and combine the latest air emissions

data in supporting air quality management.

The overarching challenge in developing an integrated

emissions inventory is how to integrate data without requiring

strict data format standards or introducing a new data reposi-

tory to centrally store and maintain the data. The guiding

principles of an integrated emissions inventory are to create a

network of data characterized by the following attributes.

• Distributed. The data sources remain distributed and

in the control of their original ‘owners.’ The data are dynami-

cally accessed through the internet rather than through a central

repositroy.

• Non-intrusive. Data providers are more likely to

participate if joining an integrated network does not impose

new or additional burden on them.

• Transparent. The distributed data should appear to the

user to originate from a single database. One stop shopping

and one interface to multiple data sets are desired without

requireing special software to be downloaded on the user’s

computer.

• Flexible/Extendable. An emissions network should be

designed with the ability to easily incorporate new data and

tools from new sources joining the network so that they can be

easily integrated with existing data.

The emissions integration project use an existing web

services infrastructure, called DataFed, developed by Rudolf

Husar and the Center for Air Pollution Impact and Trend

Analysis (CAPITA). DataFed (www.datafed.net) supports

data sharing and processing for collaborative air quality

management and atmospheric science research. DataFed.net

provides mediator software for creating “views” of data,

including maps, time series, and tables, that are distributed

among multiple web servers. The views are created using web

services thereby allowing them to be used and reused in

custom applications with standard web programming lan-

guages.

15

DEVELOPMENT OF A MULTIPLE-STAGE DMA

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

By Da-Ren Chen

Differential mobility analyzers (DMAs) have been widelyapplied in a variety of aerosol fundamental studies and appli-cations, especially for particles in the submicron and nanom-eter diameter ranges. Two primary functions of DMAs are forthe particle sizing and classification. The devices perform thefunctions based on particle electrical mobility. The DMAtechnique has been continuously improved and extended sinceits introduction by Liu and Pui in 1974. In general the perfor-mance of DMAs deteriorates as the particle size reducesbecause of the particle diffusivity. To improve the DMAresolution in small particle size range researchers has beenoperated DMAs with shorter column length or at high sheathflowrate. The upper sizing limit of DMAs is controlled by themaximal voltage applicable to DMAs once their configurationand operational flow rates are defined. To extend the uppersize limit DMAs of longer column length or operated at lowsheath flowrate are often used. To be able to cover a widerparticle size range with one single column a DMA of adjust-able-column length (ACLDMA) capable of measuring par-ticles with the diameters ranging from a few nanometer tosubmicron has been developed. In the direction of reducingthe instrument response, scanning mobility particle sizers(SMPS) having the cycle time of 135 seconds have beencommercially available. The time has further been reduced to 1second with the development of nanometer Aerosol SizeAnalyzer. For the sub-second response time, electric aerosolspectrometer (EAS) has been developed and two versions ofthis instrument are currently commercially available. All thesenew developments however focus on the use of DMAs as theaerosol sizing instrument and neglect the function of particle

classification. Further,the EAS sizing resolu-tion is limited by thenumber of electrodesinstalled.

Under the financialsupport from DOEOak Ridge NationalLaboratory a newDMA column withmultiple extractions(multiple-stage DMA:MDMA) has thus beendeveloped inNanoparticle Technol-ogy and ResearchLaboratory at Wash-

ington University in St. Louis. The objectives of this develop-ment are (1) to cover a wide aerosol size range; (2) to classifymonodisperse particles of different sizes simultaneously; (3) toretain theDMAvoltagescanningoperationfor highsizingresolutionmeasure-ment; (4)to reducethemeasuringcycle toless than 1second.Figure 1shows thepicture ofprototypeMDMAdeveloped. It has one polydisperse aerosol inlet and threesampling outlets, capable of classifying particles of threedifferent sizes simultaneously. The length of each stage isspecially designed to cover a sub-section of an entire particlesize range covered by MDMA. The stage design is modularand stackable. Individual users could also make their ownstages based on specific aerosol applications. By scanning asmaller range of voltage (thus reducing the scanning time) theentire MDMA size range is thus covered. The design allowsthe operation of sheath flow up to 80 lpm for either a highsizing resolution or extending its lower sizing limit. For measur-ing the particle size distribution the MDMA can couple witheither UCPCs or electrometers as concentration sensors. Theperformance of MDMA was experimentally calibrated usingthe tandem DMA technique. The transfer function is used tocharacterize the DMA performance. The width at the half-height of the transfer function represents the sizing resolution ofDMAs. Figure 2 shows the increasing sizing resolution (in theelectrical mobility term) of the 1st stage of MDMA as thesheath flowrate increases. Silver particles of 20 nm in diameterwere used in this example. Polydisperse aerosol flowrate ofMDMA was kept at 4.5 lpm and sampling flowrate 1.5 lpmfor each MDMA stage. The result demonstrates the promisedperformance of MDMA.

Figure 1: Prototype multi-stage

differential mobility analyzer

Figure 2 shows the sizing resolution (half-width in

particle electrical mobility) on 1st stage of MDMA

increases as the sheath flowrate increases. In this

test polydisperse aerosol flowrate was 4.5 lpm and 1.5

lpm was extracted from each stage.

20nm particles

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

ST. LOUIS - MIDWEST SUPERSITEBy Jay Turner

The St. Louis – Midwest Supersite was established in 2001 tocharacterize the physical and chemical properties of ambientfine particulate matter. Sustained monitoring in East St. Louis(IL) is nearing completion of a fourth year. The first two yearsfeatured a sophisticated platform of measurements to supportthree objectives: provide air quality data to three health effectsstudies; evaluate measurement technologies; and quantifysource-receptor relationships. The subsequent two years haveincluded selected measurements from the original monitoringplatform, with added emphasis on beta testing prototype, pre-production and newly-commercialized instruments. More thantwenty conference presentations were delivered over the periodApril 2004 through March 2005, and several manuscripts arecurrently being prepared.

In December 2004 the St. Louis area was designated asnonattainment for fine particulate matter under the NationalAmbient Air QualityStandards (NAAQS).The base year foranalysis in support ofthe ozone and fineparticulate matterattainment demonstra-tions (includingcontrol strategydevelopment) is 2002and thus we arecurrently focusing ona detailed character-ization of our datafrom this time period. Figure 1 shows the St. Louis (MO-IL)fine particulate matter nonattainment area including compli-ance monitors in operation during calendar year 2002. We are

conducting analyseswhich compare thefine particulatematter concentra-tions within thenonattainment areaand also between thenonattainment areaand nearby ruralareas to understandthe relative contri-butions of local andregional sources tothe observed ambi-ent particulate matterburden.

Figure 2 shows the annual-average distribution of majorchemical components to the ambient fine particulate matter(PM

2.5, particulate matter smaller than 2.5 mm aerodynamic

diameter) at our site in East St. Louis. The largest contributor iscarbonaceous material (OC = organic carbon, OC ∞ 1.8 ac-counts for oxygen and hydrogen associated the OC and is likelyan upper bound for the multiplier; EC = elemental carbon suchas soot). Sulfate and nitrate – and its associated ammonium –together account for nearly half of the PM

2.5 burden; these

species are largely formed in the atmosphere from emissions ofgaseous precursors (SO

2, NO

x, NH

3). This presents interesting

challenges for control strategy development as not only thedirect particle emissions but also gaseous precursors must beaddressed.

Measurements were alsoconducted for three monthsin 2001 at Park Hills (MO), arural site approximately 100km south of St. Louis.Figure 3 shows a scatter plotof sulfate at Park Hills (rural)against sulfate at East St.Louis (urban). Sulfateburdens are nearly identicalon a daily basis between thetwo sites (September 5-6 is an anomaly as the two sites werebathed in distinctly separate air masses) which provides evi-dence that the sulfate is regional in nature and thus requires

regional (i.e., multi-state)control strategies. In contrast,Figure 4 shows organic carbon(OC) between the two sites forthe same time period. UrbanOC concentrations are typicallygreater than or equal to OC atthe rural site, suggesting the OCin St. Louis is significantlyimpacted by both regional andlocal emission sources. Indeed,for the three-month period of

these measurements the OC at East St. Louis was typically 40%greater than the OC at Park Hills.

Work is currently underway to provide a quantitative descriptionof the relationships between emission sources (and/or sourceregions) and PM

2.5 burdens in St. Louis. For example, a

detailed accounting of the specific organic compounds compris-ing the OC provides insights into the emission source typescontributing to the observed OC levels.

16

Figure 3. Daily 24-hour integrated sulfateat Park Hills (rural) and East St. Louis(urban), August-November 2001.

Figure 4. Daily 24-hour integrated organic

carbon at Park Hills (rural) and East St.

Louis (urban), August-November 2001.

Figure 1. St. Louis (MO-IL) fine

particulate matter nonattainment area.

Figure 2. Annual average fine particulate matter

mass composition at East St. Louis (calendar

year 2002).

17

project highlightsPROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

Metallic species are encountered in many high temperature

processes – both as a natural, trace constituent in fuels and as

an industrially processed commodity. Sources include coal

combustors, waste incinerators, oil combustors, jet engines,

smelters, steel production processes, welding, deactivation

furnaces for demilitarization operations, and many others. When

introduced into a combustion system, the volatile heavy metals

vaporize at high temperatures, and nucleate and grow in the

cooler downstream regions. This results in the formation of a

submicrometer aerosol. Conventional particle control devices

are not effective in capturing particles in these size ranges;

resulting in an enrichment of these heavy metals in the exhaust

gases; and combustion systems are a major contributor of heavy

metals to the atmosphere.

There are several methods that have been proposed for

control of toxic metal emissions from combustors. Bulk sor-

bents have been have been shown to be effective for capture of

heavy metal species in combustion systems, however, they are

plagued with several physico-chemical limitations. Once the

metallic species has chemisorped to the outer surface, the inner

volume is rendered ineffective. Thus a large volume of bulk

sorbent is required to capture trace concentrations of metal

secies. Furthermore, they have been ineffective in certain

environments, for example when chlorine is present. In addition

bulk sorbents do not effectively suppress the nucleation of the

heavy metal species. An alternate approach is the use of novel

nanostructured sorbent agglomerate processes for the capture

of heavy metals in combustion environments that has been

developed in the Aerosol and Air Quality Research Laboratory

(see US Patents 5, 888, 926 and 6,248,217). The nanostructured

sorbent consists of an agglomerate of nanometer sized primary

particles which has a very high surface area to allow for chemi-

sorption of

the heavy

metal

species.

The

agglomer-

ate is large

enough

that it is

readily

captured in

conven-

tional

NOVEL NANOSTRUCTURED SORBENT AGGLOMERATES FOR TOXIC SPECIES CAPTURE IN COMBUSTION ENVIRONMENTS

particle control devices. As the nanostructured sorbent is

synthesized in situ in the combustor, its characteristics (surface

activity, crystallinity) could be readily tailored for optimal

performance for system specific metals capture.

Laboratory scale research has focused on capture of

cadmium species encountered in ammunition deactivation

furnaces. Figure 1 outlines the pathways of cadmium species in

the combustion system. When no sorbents are injected, the

cadmium vapors nucleate to form submicrometer sized par-

ticles that are difficult to capture. When a sorbent is present,

the vapors are scavenged, and the nucleation is suppressed and

no fine particles of cadmium are formed, and the cadmium is

associated with the sorbent.

Figure 2 outlines the effectiveness of two different

sorbents, MMT(Test 9) and silica precursor(Test 11), on

capture of cadmium species. The size distributions of the co-

feed tests (Test 9) are between the MMT only(Test 5) and

cadmium only(Test 2) experiments. This might be attributed to

the fact that some of the cadmium oxide vapors are physically

adsorbed on the MMT surfaces and the remaining nucleate to

form cadmium oxide particles.

Results

of the in situ

generated

silica

sorbent

capture

experiments

(Test 11)

are also

shown in

Figure 2.

Cadmium

oxide

particles

that were

formed by nucleation(with a mean size of 62.9 nm at 700 (Test

2) are completely suppressed in presence of the silica sorbent.

The mechanistic pathway is shown in Figure 1(c), and the

presence of a highly reactive surface results in scavenging of

the cadmium species vapors before they can nucleate. As the

silica particles are formed and present in the high temperature

environment, condensation is the dominant pathway(prior to

any possibility of nucleation of cadmium species). The XRD

analysis for the silica sorbent and cadmium feed test indicates

no cadmium oxide peaks, further confirming the effectiveness

of the silica sorbent.

By Pratim Biswas

Figure 1. Mechanistic description of pathways of Cd in reactor

Figure 2. Size distributions of Cd only and Cd+ sorbent tests.

18

NSF CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTALLY BENEFICIAL CATALYSIS (CEBC)

By Milord Dudukovic

This NSF Engineering Research Center(ERC) is headquartered at the Universityof Kansas at Lawrence and involves ascore partners the University of Iowa,Washington University in St. Louis andPrairie View University in Texas. Thefocus, after this full year of research,remains on developing catalysts andprocesses for manufacture of fuels,chemicals and materials by more environ-mentally benign routes. Considerableattention at the Center is paid to possibili-ties of replacing hazardous solvents byalternative means and/or by usingsupercritical carbon dioxide mixture withmore benign solvents.

The activities in our Chemical ReactionEngineering Laboratory (CREL) relatedto the CEBC include: 1.) Studies of hydrocarbon oxidationin mini-reactors to assess the conditionsneeded for best rates and selectivity. Weare investigating whether a safe reactordesign is possible at conditions that leadto much higher productivity and selectiv-ity. Success would revolutionize theproduction of commodity chemicals likeadipic acid (precursor for nylon),therephthalic acid (needed for polyes-

ters), etc. Professors M. Al-Dahhan andM.P. Dudukovic are involved in thisresearch with graduate student RadmilaJevtic. 2.) Quantification of flow fields andmodeling of stirred tank reactors isneeded since stirred tanks are used inso many organic syntheses and ofteninvolve more than a liquid phase. Usingour unique Computer Aided RadioactiveParticle Tracking facility (CARPT) andgamma ray Computer Tomography (CT)we strive to provide a complete databaseon mixing and phase distributions instirred tanks. This can be used tovalidate computational fluid dynamic(CFD) codes in order to be able to scaleup the results. Professor P.A.Ramachandran and M.P. Dudukovic areinvolved in this project with graduatestudent Debangshu Guha. 3.) Adsorption and reaction studies inpacked beds of solid acid catalysts pavethe way for the use of solid acids, whichare environmentally acceptable comparedto hydrofluoric acid and sulfuric acid thatare traditionally used in alkylations, forproduction of high octane gasoline orlinear alkyl benzenes for detergents. Theadsorption-desorption studies on a single

pellet, in a stirred auto-clave, and in packed bedswill provide the cluesneeded for optimal reactorselection and operation.Professors M.P.Dudukovic, M. Al-Dahhan, and.ARamachandranare involved inthis project withgraduate studentsR.C. Ramawamyand SubramanyaNayak.

4.) Sensor development is under wayto identify in-situ the presence of one ormore phases close to supercriticalconditions. This is important in dealingwith carbon dioxide expanded solvents.Professors M. Al-Dahhan and M.P.Duukovic are in charge of this projectwith graduate student to be, SeanMueller. 5.) A new project on catalytic hydro-gen production from water using solarenergy has been initiated by Prof. PratimBiswas with graduate student RafaelMcDonald. 6.) A large effort is under way topresent to chemists, biochemists, andbiologists the key concepts of chemicalreaction engineering in development ofnew clean processes. Professors Al-Dahhan, Dudukovic, Ramachandran andTurner are involved in this effort with thehelp of postdoctoral associate CananTunca. 7.)A K-12 effort is under way toeducate younger generations on thescience and art of environmentally benignprocessing and sustainability. ProfessorTurner and Dr. Tunca lead this effort.

If you have additional questions pleasecontact Canan Tunca(tunca@che.wustl.edu) or Professor M.P.Dudukovic (dudu@wustl.edu) or visit thecebc (http://www.cebc.ku.edu) or CRELweb site (http://crelonweb.che.wustl.edu).

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

19

project highlightsPROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

THE JENS ENVIRONMENTAL MOLECULAR & NANOSCALE ANALYSIS LABORATORY

The Jens Environmental Molecular and

Nanoscale Analysis Laboratory, estab-

lished in 2001, is located in Urbauer Hall,

Environmental Engineering Science

Program, Washington University in St.

Louis. The Laboratory is a shared

Instrumentation facility supported by the

core faculty in Environmental Engineer-

ing Science. The instruments in the

Laboratory are also made available to all

university researchers and the scientific

community for performing analysis at the

molecular and nanometer scales.

The following is a list of Instruments that

are currently available in the Laboratory:

BET Surface Area and Pore Volume

Measurement Instrument, Gemini 2375,

Micrometrics|

HPLC-High Performance Liquid Chro-

matography, HP 1100 with diode array

detector

Humidity Controlled Microbalance

Facility (Precision weighing of samples,

conditioned to a specific humidity level)

ICP-Inductively Coupled Plasma Spec-

trometer-Routine elemental analysis,

Varian with SP-5 Autosampler

TOC-Total Organic Carbon Analyzer,

Shimadzu TOC-500

GC-Gas Chromatography with TCD,

FID-HP5890 Series

SEM-Scanning Electron Microscope,

Hitachi model s-4500 Field Emission

Scanning Electron Microscope, (EDX)

microanalysis system.

96 Well Plate Reader, BIO-TEK SYN-

ERGY HT

Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrom-

eter (FTIR), Nicolet Nexus 470 instru-

ment with mid-IR source and DTGS

detector.

The Environmental Engineering Science

Faculty has several other specialized

laboratories with state of the art instru-

mentation for aerosol measurements,

biological and molecular biological

studies and other chemical reactor

studies.

Scanning Electron Microscopy

Researchers in the Aerosol and Air

Quality Research Laboratory (AAQRL)

routinely use the SEM for analysis of

nanoparticles synthesized for environ-

mental nanotechnology applications. An

active area of research is in the synthesis

of wide gap semiconductors, such as

titanium dioxide in pristine and doped

forms for the remediation of environmen-

tal contaminants. Dr. Biswas and his

students are exploring the use of dopants

for tailoring the properties of the

nanoparticles so that they are readily

activated by light of visible frequencies.

The addition of the dopant results in an

increase in the primary particle size as

illustrated in the Figure below.

30nm Aerosol reactor synthesized titanium dioxide

particle.

Dr. Giammar and his research group

evaluate chemical tracers for source

apportionment of phosphorous in Table

Rock Lake on the Missouri-Arkansas

border. In this project, they also rely on

the ICP-OES to analyze other elements

like sodium, potassium, magnesium, and

calcium. Finally, they use the HPLC to

determine concentrations of synthetic

organic compounds such as caffeine and

acetaminophen in the lake.

The Center for Implant Retrieval and

Analysis, utilizes the SEM to analyze

failure mechanisms of silicone breast

implants. The SEM has permitted highly

detailed microscopic examination of

surface contours, textures, and structural

changes that have developed in the shell

due to abrasion mechanism, elucidating

failure sites.

The photomicrograph shows the failure site of an

implant due to shell abrasion.

The facility is partially sup-

ported by the Center for

Materials Innovation. For

details, see:

www.env.wustl.edu/faciliti.htm

Laboratory Manager:

Dr. Lawrence P. Norcio

lpnorcio@seas.wustl.edu

Environmental Engineering Science Program

One Brookings Drive

Campus Box 1180

St. Louis, MO 63130

Published by:

Environmental Engineering

Science Program

One Brookings Drive

Campus Box 1180

Washington University in St. Louis

St. Louis, MO 63130

(314) 935-5548

Fax: (314) 935-5464

www.env.wustl.eduv

If you are an Alumnus of the Environ-

mental Engineering Science Program,

please make a copy of this page, fill

out the appropriate information and

fax to (314) 935-5464 or mail to:

Washington University in St. Louis

One Brookings Drive

Campus Box 1180

St. Louis, MO 63130

Name:________________________________________

Address:______________________________________

City:____________________ State:______ Zip:_______

Phone:________________________________________

Fax:__________________________________________

E-mail:_______________________________________

Year of Graduation:___________ Degree:_____________

This form is also available on-line at www.env.wustl.edu.