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S U S T A I N A B L E
S Y S T E M S
Tomorrow’s
▼
University:
De v e lop i ng S u s ta i n a b l e
Systems
Protecting and repairing the environment have been
among NJIT’s strategic priorities since the opening
of the York Center in the 1980s. The focus has broadened in recent years to include the application of
sustainability principles to building and design,
transportation and other fields, to green chemistry,
and to ecology and conservation.
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S U S T A I N A B L E
Repairing
Problems
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S Y S T E M S
Environmental
An expert in minimally intrusive techniques for
dealing with contamination, and a notable voice
in the investigation of extraction of energy, Michel
Boufadel (below), professor of civil and environ-
studies tested hydrogen peroxide and the herbi-
Wen Zhang (below), assistant professor of civil
mental engineering, directs NJIT’s Center for
cide metolachlor on brown tide blooms and found
and environmental engineering, focuses his
Natural Resources Development and Protection
possibilities for controlling the blooms. Doctoral
research on the environmental implications and
student Megha Thakkar and research colleagues
applications of engineer-
Bin Wang (PhD ’11), Liping Wei, and Varunpreet
ed nanomaterials. He is
Randhawa (PhD ’13) (above left to right).
currently collaborating
with researchers at
Georgia Tech on an
Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering
NSF-funded project to
Kamalesh Sirkar (below) has a grant from the Bu-
develop methods for
reau of Reclamation of the U.S. Department of the
Interior for water purification and desalination.
Reclamation is the largest wholesaler of water in
the country, bringing water to 31 million people
and irrigation to 10 million acres of farmland. The
quantifying the physicochemical properties of
engineered nanoparticulates and their local-scale
biological effects. The goal is to utilize atomic force
microscopy to establish scanning probe
approaches that can quantify the local-scale
which is playing an important role in the steward-
surface physicochemical properties during inter-
ship of the Jersey shoreline post-Sandy. Boufadel
actions between nanoparticles and biological
has grants from the National Oceanic and Atmos-
systems, such as cells and DNA molecules, in order
pheric Administration, the Canadian government,
to explore the toxic effects of engineering nano-
and non-profit organizations, to study the trans-
materials.
formation and biodegradation of oil spilled in the
environment. He is also co-author of a new expert
Michael Jaffe (right), research professor of biomed-
report issued by the National Research Council on
the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the
new project is testing a more compact Direct
tinuing his work of
Contact Membrane Distillation (DCMD) module,
developing cost-effective
which will save energy and lower costs. Current
chemistries and processes
Liping Wei, assistant professor of chemistry and
DCMD modules have large footprints. This new
using vegetable extracts.
environmental science, leads a team that is study-
compact module, being developed in partner-
He is testing isosorbide,
ing brown tide blooms in New Jersey coastal wa-
ship with Applied Membrane Technology, Inc., in
a corn sugar, for use in
ters, one of the most harmful algal blooms for the
Minnesota, will make it easier to design larger
beverage and food pack-
marine ecosystem and commercial fishing. One
plants with smaller footprints. He also delivered
aging with support from PepsiCo. He also has a
study looked at the effects of pollutants – heavy
a plenary lecture on Membrane Gas Separation:
grant from the United Soybean Board to develop
metals, herbicides, and sewage – on the algae’s
Membrane Contactors, Novel Membranes and
soy protein isolate (SPI) fibers for industrial and
growth potential and found that manmade
Processes at SIMPAM 2013 in Rio de Janeiro.
biomedical applications.
ecosystem services in the Gulf of Mexico.
toxins did not significantly alter its survival. Other
26
ical engineering, is con-
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NJIT’s Strategic Initiatives Department, directed
by Colette Santasieri (below), was awarded a
S U S T A I N A B L E
five-year, $1 million cooperative agreement
with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
to provide technical assistance to brownfield
communities in EPA Regions 1 and 3, spanning
states from Maine to West Virginia. Through the
Technical Assistance to
Brownfields (TAB) pro-
Preserving the
gram, Strategic Initia-
S Y S T E M S
tives provides techni-
Natural
cal assistance to governments and non-
Environment
profits interested in
identifying, assessing,
▼
cleaning up and redeveloping brownfield properties. Staff experts
offer advice on such issues as environmental impacts, potential health risks, and community involvement in redevelopment of industrial plants
NJIT
has a growing
and other former commercial sites.
Daniel Bunker (above), assistant professor of
research concentration
global environmental change on ecological
Hsin-Neng Hsieh (below, pointing), professor of
civil and environmental engineering, partners
with department chair Taha Marhaba in leading
in biology and ecology
that will be housed in a
ing, he is studying the effects of climate
If pollinators respond strongly to climate
change and emerge earlier in the season than
U.S. EPA under the Clean Water Act. Designed for
managing vessel discharges, the VGP was first
communities and ecosystems. With NSF fundchange on bees and the plants they pollinate.
a research group that is investigating the impact
of the Vessel General Permit (VGP) issued by the
biological sciences, studies the effects of
new Biological Sciences
their preferred flowers, a mismatch will result
with potentially dire consequences such as
poor crop pollination and low yields. The
Education and Research
team is developing micro-tagging and tracking technologies in which tiny labels similar
Center in the Central
to bar codes are affixed to the backs of bees,
so that bees and tags can be monitored by
computer-assisted image recognition.
issued in 2008 and replaced in 2013 with more
King Building.
stringent limitations for ballast water. The VGP
Federated History Pro-
has potentially serious consequences for commer-
fessor Neil M. Maher
cial vessels operating in the New York/New Jersey
has received a research
Harbor and at the Delaware River, both in terms
fellowship from Harvard
of cost and operation, since the infrastructure
University’s Charles
for compliance — onboard graywater treatment
Warren Center for Stud-
facility or holding tank; onshore ballast water
ies in American History.
storage and treatment facilities — may not cur-
While at Harvard, Pro-
rently exist. The team (above, from left), Aliasghar
fessor Maher will com-
Ghadimkhani, doctoral student; Kunzang
plete his book on the space race to the Moon
Kazi, chemical engineering major; Hsieh; and
between the United States and the Soviet
Marhaba, will develop recommendations for the
Union during the 1960s and 1970s, and also
New Jersey Department of Transportation, as to
participate in the Charles Warren Center’s
what the state needs to do to make compliance
interdisciplinary workshop on the theme of
possible.
“The Environment and America’s Past.”
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Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
S U S T A I N A B L E
Gareth Russell (below) focuses his research on
spatially complex ecological systems and how
they work. Habitat loss and the attendant
fragmentation threatens the existence of many
species, so his recently published study applied
a novel method for linking large-scale habitat
fragmentation to population sustainability to
assess the extinction risk for bird species in the
S Y S T E M S
Sustainable
▼
Design
Atlantic Forest of Brazil, a global ‘hotspot’ of
that 28 species not previously considered
bird diversity. In collaboration with researchers
threatened, including the Rufous-backed
from Duke University, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Antvireo (above), had severely fragmented
Service, and Jessica Schnell (PhD ’12), he found
habitats.
Repairing
and Improving the
Zeyuan Qiu (left), associate professor of chemistry and environmental science, is studying how best to manage critical source areas
(CSAs) — caused by natural hydrological and
ecological processes coupled with human
interactions through active land use management — since CSAs contribute disproportionately to ecosystem degradation such as poor
water quality and impaired aquatic ecosystem
integrity. The goal is to determine threshold levels in land-use intensity that lead to ecosystem
degradation so that resource managers can
enhance ecosystem services to protect water
quality and aquatic ecosystem health in agricultural landscapes. The project is funded by the
National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the
U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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Infrastructure
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Industrial Design major Andrew Saada
Assistant Professor of Architecture
Jesse LeCavalier (right) focuses
designs by utilizing unwanted or
his research on “big box”
discarded materials. RAW/END, his
retail structures and their
collection of “haute couture objects via the
effect on urban form and
reimagination of reclaimed materials,” including
organization with emphasis
“The Bundle,” a reimagined child’s stool (left and
on how these entities interact
with local retail areas and residential neighbor-
100 percent recy-
hoods. His current work explores the spatial op-
cled materials, was
erations of Walmart — its building efforts, its real
recently featured in
estate practices, its management protocols, and
the Redu NYC show
its urban investments — to show how the com-
at the Chashama Gallery
pany’s logistical obsessions have implications on
in New York.
S Y S T E M S
above) made from
S U S T A I N A B L E
’13 creates innovative industrial
a wide range of scales. His goal is to uncover new
▼
directions for architecture and urbanism based
solely on the features of logistics.
Martina Decker (left), assistant professor of architecture and design, partners with scientists to
create new building materials that have the
potential to make buildings more sustainable. She
fabricated a prototype “smart screen” that, once
installed within glass building facades, could moderate temperature and light. The conceptual drawing (right) shows a building with a homeostatic
façade in which smart screens expand and contract to regulate the amount of light entering the
interior in response to changes in temperature.
Marvin Nakayama, professor
global warming effects and an analytical/numerical
ment of transportation infrastructure based on per-
of computer science, is devel-
approach to evaluate evacuation plans and estimate
formance and user costs. The system takes into
oping simulation methods
minimum evacuation times at various levels of
consideration the high costs of disruptions as well
for estimating risk measures
flooding conditions. Findings in this study appeared
as the financial outlays that are necessitated when
and other performance met-
in the Journal of the International Society for the
transportation infrastructure fails due to negli-
rics that may alter the way un-
Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards,
gence. The new methodology will generate infor-
certainty and safety analyses
concluding that sea-
mation to help highway agencies better assess the
are performed in the nuclear energy industry. With
level rise will lead to a
economic benefits of maintenance actions and
NSF funding, Nakayama is developing variance-
substantial increase in
their role in enhancing the level of service.
reduction techniques for estimating a quantile and
vulnerability of resi-
constructing confidence intervals for it.
dents and transporta-
Priscilla Nelson, professor of civil and environmen-
tion infrastructure to
tal engineering, is developing a framework
Professor Steven Chien, civil and environmental en-
storm floods, and
for quantitative analysis
gineering, is studying the potential effects of coastal
such a flood tends to affect more population in
for the assessment of
flooding due to climate change on transportation
Cape May County but more transportation facilities
resilience in urban
in Cumberland County, New Jersey.
infrastructure systems
in the New York/New Jersey
area. With a grant from the
over geography and time
U.S. Department of Trans-
Civil Engineering Profes-
through a study of
portation through its Univer-
sor Jay Meegoda has de-
performance response
sity Transportation Research
veloped a methodology
functions with a focus on the New York/New
Center at City University of
to determine the opti-
Jersey region. Her study is supported by the U.S.
New York, he has developed
mum time and optimum
Department of Transportation through its University
a hybrid hydrologic and hydrodynamic flood mod-
allocation of funds for the
Transportation Research Center at City University
eling system to predict coastal flooding due to
rehabilitation or replace-
of New York.
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S U S T A I N A B L E
Technologies
▼
S Y S T E M S
New Energy
Doctoral student Xinbo Lau (above right) is re-
separated the anode and the cathode in an elec-
study on the kinetics of electric field-driven
searching the use of nanocarbons as charge car-
trochemical cell, controlling the external cell's
phase transitions in polarized colloids will in-
riers in solar cells. She has investigated carbon
current electrically. By irradiating the cell with
clude three experiments on the International
nanotubes (SWCNT and MWNTs), fullerenes,
modulated light intensity, they obtained an AC
Space Station.
nanodiamond, graphene and their chemical de-
open-circuit response. The optically induced
rivatives, materials notable for physical properties
open-circuit AC voltage could be tuned by the
Professor Nirwan Ansari (below) and his doctoral
such as carrier mobility, thermal conductivity, me-
DC electrical bias.
student Tao Han are researching ways to provide
chanical strength, and optical absorption. She
energy efficient communications by powering
found that the nanoscale size benefits faster
Professor of Chemical Engineering Boris Khusid’s
wireless networks with renewable energy. In
charge transport and forms effective percolating
2003 Microgravity Team developed a novel
wireless cellular networks, energy consumption
network. She received a student award from
method using electro-hydrodynamics for con-
Sustainable Nanotechnology Organization to
centration and removal of air bubbles from fluids
present her paper at the 2012 annual meeting of
in microgravity. This NJIT-developed technology
the organization, took second prize for her work
in the graduate division of the Dana Knox Student
Research Showcase, and she published a paper in
Solar Energy on “Functionalized Nanodiamond
as a Charge Transporter in Organic Solar Cells.”
Somenath Mitra, distinguished professor of
chemistry, is her advisor.
is mainly drawn from base stations, which consume more than 50 percent of the power of a
cellular network. Green energy powered base
stations could utilize wind or solar power, or
sustainable biofuels, saving on-grid energy and
30
was recently selected for parabolic flight tests
reducing the CO2 footprint, but may not guar-
aboard a 2013 NASA parabolic suborbital flight
antee sufficient power supplies. The researchers
to provide the ultimate proof-of-concept for EHD
envision stations that are powered by multiple
gas-liquid separation in microgravity. The NJIT
types of energy sources — the grid, solar energy,
crew (above left to right) Dana Qasem, chemical
and wind energy, using green energy when it
Doctoral student Amrita Banerjee (above left)
engineering major, Khusid, and postdoctoral
is sufficiently stored and reverting to on-grid
and her advisor, Haim Grebel (above right), pro-
student John Tang, flew the device aboard G
energy as needed to maintain service. Ansari
fessor of electrical and computer engineering,
Force One at the NASA Ground Facilities, Elling-
and Han have developed algorithms to optimize
are researching electrically controlled electro-
ton Field, Houston. Another team member,
the utilization of green energy in order to
chemical cells. Their paper, recently published
postdoctoral student Ezinwa Elele, was instru-
reduce the on-grid energy consumption of
in Electrochimica Acta, reported on novel methods
mental in developing an electro-hydrodynamic
cellular networks. Ansari’s research on green
to control and monitor ion currents in electro-
method that utilizes high-gradient electric fields
communications and networking has been
chemical cells. They applied a DC electrical bias
to control the bubble behavior in microgravity.
supported by three grants from NSF and a grant
to a central graphene gate electrode, which
A second NASA grant is supporting a five-year
from AT&T Foundation.