Research Projects

CAREER: Development of a Novel Approach for the Identification of Toxic Byproducts and their Precursors in Oxidative Drinking Water Treatment
Project duration: 06/2022 – 05/2027
Team members involved: Daisy, Zhuoyue & Carsten (Project lead)

The overarching goal of this NSF CAREER project is to develop a novel approach to identify toxic byproducts and their precursors in drinking water treated with chemical oxidants. This novel approach, reactivity-directed analysis (RDA), builds upon techniques and protocols pioneered in drug development and chemical risk assessment to identify all byproducts with simar mechanisms of toxicity in a sample of drinking water treated with chemical oxidants. The successful completion of this project will benefit society through the generation of new fundamental knowledge to understand, control, and mitigate the formation of toxic byproducts and their precursors in drinking water treated with chemical oxidants. The educational component of the project will focus on the development of an EnviroSense after school program that will expose middle and high school students to the design and application of online water quality sensors.

Project duration: 07/2021 – 06/2024
Team members involved: Noor, Kate, Angela, Dominic, Matt & Carsten (Project lead)
Collaborators: Keeve Nachman (JHU EHE), Thomas Burke (JHU EHE)

This project funded by US EPA focuses on the elucidation of previously unknown contaminants in biosolids, their fate in agricultural soils after their application, uptake into plants as well as potential risks for consumers and agricultural workers. We are also collaborating with US EPA scientists Antony Williams, Jon Sobus, Caroline Ring, and Charles Lowe on this project.

Project duration: 06/2021 – 05/2024
Team members involved: Matt & Carsten
Collaborators: Keeve Nachman (JHU EHE; Project lead), Meghan Davis (JHU EHE), Lesliam Quirós-Alcalá (JHU EHE), Kristin Voegtline (JHU Medicine), Alan Yuille (JHU Cognitive Science and Computer Science), Tracey Woodruff (UCSF)

This project that is funded by US EPA focuses on identification of chemical markers in soil and dust that can be used to assess the soil/dust intake by children. We propose an integrated and highly innovative portfolio of tools and approaches to assess dust and soil exposures for children ages six months to six years via macro-and micro-activity pattern and tracer studies.

Understanding Polymer Additive Release and Transformations in Aquatic Environments
Project duration: 07/2020 – 06/2023
Team members involved: Casey & Carsten
Collaborators: Howard Fairbrother (JHU Chemistry; Project lead), James Ranville (Colorado School of Mines)

This project funded by the National Science Foundation aims to develop a molecular level understanding of how the chemical composition and physical characteristics of additives in polymers influence the release and subsequent photochemical transformations of additives in aqueous environments.

Antiviral drugs as previously unrecognized contributors to antibiotic resistance
Project duration: 01/2022 – 01/2023
Team members involved: Veronica (Project lead) & Carsten
Collaborators: Sarah Preheim (JHU EHE), Trish Simmer (JHU Medicine), Cynthia Sears (JHU Medicine)

This project funded by the JHU Sherrilyn and Ken Fisher Center for Environmental Infectious Diseases focuses on the elucidation of the impacts of antiviral drug exposures on antimicrobial resistance.

Selective PFAS Removal via Sustainable Materials Design
Project duration: 07/2022 – 06/2024
Team members involved: Carsten
Collaborators: Rebekka Klausen (JHU Chemistry; Project lead)

This Discovery Award funded by the JHU will develop novel materials for the removal of poly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) from water.