The August 2024 AAEES PechaKucha

August 28, 2024

Join us as we showcase three of our 40 under 40 Recognition Program recipients using a popular Japanese-inspired presentation format called a PechaKucha.

What exactly is a PechaKucha?

A PechaKucha celebrates people, passion and creative thoughts. The event will consist of several speakers each showing 20 slides and presenting for about 6 and a half minutes. We will have a few minutes in between each presentation for some Q & A. You will gain knowledge on four different topics in under an hour!

AAEES members will earn 1.5 PDHs for attending.

Presentation Topics	Speaker
Microplastic Pollution	Nicole L. Fahrenfeld, Ph.D.
Data Driven Approaches for Understanding Oil and Gas Well Integrity	Greg Lackey, Ph.D.
Using Low Dissolved Oxygen for Energy-Efficient Biological Nitrogen Removal	Fabrizio Sabba, Ph.D., ENV SP
Novel insights into nanoplastics release in natural environment	Boya Xiong, Ph.D.

Nicole L. Fahrenfeld, Ph.D., AAEES Member
Associate Professor, Civil & Environmental Engineering
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Microplastic Pollution

Microplastics: Where are they coming from, where are they going?

Greg Lackey, Ph.D.
Research General Engineer
U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory

Data Driven Approaches for Understanding Oil and Gas Well Integrity

There are millions of active and abandoned oil and gas wells in the United States. Wells that become compromised and leak can have negative impacts on the environment and human health. Oil and gas regulatory agencies compiles information about the integrity of oil and gas wells in the United States. We analyze these data to understand the current condition of wells and build data-driven models that provide new insights into the causes of integrity issues.

Fabrizio Sabba, Ph.D., ENV SP
Process Engineering Associate | Water
Black & Veatch

Using Low Dissolved Oxygen for Energy-Efficient Biological Nitrogen Removal

Aeration is one of the most energy-intensive processes in WRRFs, and optimizing its requirements in the activated sludge process is essential to address this issue. Recent advances in wastewater treatment processes have focused on how to capitalize on the physiological differences among nitrifying bacteria, which can help to reduce aeration energy and chemical addition while enhancing effluent quality.

Boya Xiong, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
University of Minnesota

Novel insights into nanoplastics release in natural environment

Mechanical degradation (i.e., abrasion and fragmentation) of plastic waste is a primary mechanism of micro- and nanoplasticsrelease in the use phase and natural environment. However, a fundamental understanding of the mechanism remains elusive. Furthermore, we lack tools to construct quantitative relationships between mechanical weathering intensity and the extent of nanoplastics release, which limits our ability to convertrates from lab to natural conditions. In this talk, I will highlight how fragmentation and surface abrasive wear play different role in the lifetime of plastics. Focusing on studying abrasive wear, I will introduce our novel and quantitative methods to probe nanoplastic release using lateral force microscopy by a single surface roughness protrusion (asperity). Next, I will highlight the combined effects of photo-oxidization and nanoscale abrasive wear on releasing nanoplastic release. In particular, Iwill elucidate the evolution of the wear mechanism and rates of semi-crystalline polyethylene during photooxidation. Theseresults provide underlying mechanism why photooxidation leads to more nanoplastic release via abrasive wear. Our quantitative approach will contribute to future predictive modeling of nanoplastic release rate as a function of polymer properties and environmental conditions. Incorporating such models into an environmental framework will guide the early-stage design, selection, and management of materials for responsible environmental outcomes.