Current Research Topics
Please head over to Google Scholar for our list of publications
Thermal Treatment of PFAS-Laden Wastes
Wastes that are contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS or PFASs) pose a challenge because they cannot be safely landfilled or incinerated. Incineration holds promise, but PFAS require >1000 C to be completely destroyed. We are developing a thermal treatment process using cost-effective catalysts that allow for the complete destruction of PFAS at <500 C. Much of this is supported by our unique analytical tools for PFAS.
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This project is funded under SERDP ER21-1107 and ER24-4137.
Adsorptive Membranes for PFAS
Full-scale adsorption processes that use packed beds suffer from mass transfer limitations and the inability to selectively remove contaminants. To circumvent these limitations, we are designing adsorptive membranes derivatized with selective moieties. Various configurations of these membrane can be used at scale, including flat sheets, spiral-wound sheets, and hollow-fibers.
PFAS Contamination of Pavements
Military firefighter training exercises using aqueous film-forming foams (AFFFs) have occurred since the 1950s. The AFFFs contained large amounts of various PFAS, and thus many of these pavement training grounds are now severely contaminated and serve as legacy sources of PFAS into the surrounding environment. We are addressing this problem in two ways. We are investigating the leaching of PFAS from pavements that occurs during precipitation events. This helps us understand the extent and timeline of the contamination. We are also developing thermal treatment methods for the sustainable end-of-life management and reuse of these pavements. (*Photo cred: Matt Cashore, ND)
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This project is funded under SERDP ER23-3696.
Micro- and Nanoplastics
Micro- and nanoplastics (MNPs) are emerging contaminants of which we have little knowledge. They come from consumer products and end up in the environment during their use and disposal. Detection and quantification of the nano fraction (<1000 nm) is difficult. In collaboration with Dr. Ken Kuno's lab in Chemistry, we are developing a new tool for detecting, identifying chemical composition, and quantifying nanoplastics in environmental samples. ​This information will be used to better understand their behavior and occurrence in the environment and to develop water treatment technologies.
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We are also collaborating with Dr. Julie Peller at Valparaiso University to develop a new aggregation and separation process for MNPs.
Catalytic Membranes for Water Treatment
Conventional treatment processes fall short in addressing emerging contaminants in drinking water. Catalysts are capable of selectively treating recalcitrant contaminants to innocuous byproducts, but they currently suffer from several limitations. Catalysts are often operated in packed bed reactors (PBRs), which have an overall rate that is limited by diffusive mass transfer. Permeable membranes offer a viable solution to these problems. Our functional polymeric membranes can be engineered to accept single-atom catalysts, and because the transport of contaminants is driven by convection, there are no mass transfer limitations.
Abiotic Transformation of PFAS
There are numerous polyfluoroalkyl substances that serve as precursors to terminal perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs). We hypothesize that portion of the PFAAs found in the environment are due to the transformation of precursors through chemical or photochemical reactions. In this work, we are exploring the hydrolysis of precursors to terminal products.
Previous Research Topics
​These are topics the Doudrick Lab has published on. While we are still interested in these research areas, they are not ongoing projects.
Electrocatalytic conversion of urine to valuable products
Photocatalytic treatment of oxyanions
Fate of transport of engineered nanoparticles in streams