During Phase I, the Biophysical Research team will:
- Identify and quantify sources of salt entering the Occoquan Reservoir from water treatment systems, sewage collection systems, and wastewater treatment systems
- Develop a predictive model that tracks the movement of salt into the sewer system, through the sewage collection system, through the wastewater treatment plant, and into the Occoquan Reservoir
- Characterize the ion content of common products that are routinely flushed into the sewage collection system from households and commercial enterprises
- Evaluate the implications of the above results for microbial functions and water chemistry in the Occoquan Reservoir and its tributaries and for corrosion of critical drinking water systems
Participating Faculty
co-Principal Investigator, Charles Lunsford Professor & University Distinguished Professor, Virginia Tech
co-Principal Investigator, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Vanderbilt University
Principal Investigator, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech
co-Principal Investigator, Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech
co-Principal Investigator, Professor of Geology and Geochemistry, University of Maryland
Postdoctoral Scholar, Vanderbilt University
co-Principal Investigator, Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech
co-Principal Investigator, Nick Prillamen Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Coordinator of the CEE Environmental and Water Resources Program, Virginia Tech
Participating Students
PhD Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech
PhD Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Vanderbilt University
PhD Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech
PhD Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech
PhD Candidate, Department of Geology at the University of Maryland
PhD Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech
M.S. Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech
PhD received in 2021 from Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech, now an ORISE Fellow at the Office of Water, Environmental Protection Agency
M.S. Thesis Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech
PhD Candidate, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Vanderbilt University