Title

Assistant Professor

Education

Ph.D. Civil Engineering – The University of Texas at Austin, 2011
M.S. Environmental Engineering – Lehigh University, 2007
B.S. Environmental Engineering – Lehigh University, 2005

Professional Interests

The thrust of our research deals with the fate and transport of emerging contaminants in natural and engineered systems. Many of our projects focus on environmental detection of pharmaceuticals or treatment processes aimed at removing pharmaceuticals from drinking water/wastewater matrices. Pharmaceuticals, and other wastewater-derived contaminants, have been detected in surface water, groundwater, and finished drinking water, and while these compounds are present in relatively low concentrations, their toxicological significance with respect to environmental and human health is not fully understood. Regardless, a growing body of literature suggests that these compounds cause reproductive abnormalities in aquatic species thereby increasing concerns over potential human health issues.

To remove pharmaceuticals from water and wastewater sources, our lab employs ozone- and UV-based oxidation processes. In these treatment processes, oxidants (e.g., ozone and hydroxyl radicals) transform parent pharmaceuticals into specific products that oftentimes exhibit similar chemical structures as the parent pharmaceuticals. Identification and characterization of these transformation products constitutes one of the core activities of our research group. As the chemical structures of some transformation products are similar to the parent pharmaceuticals, we also investigate whether transformation products exert the same biological activity as parent compounds. For example, do transformation products formed through ozonation of antibiotics exhibit antibiotic properties? By measuring not only the concentrations of pharmaceuticals in natural and engineered systems, but also the biological activity of the corresponding water samples, we hope to describe pharmaceutical presence in natural and engineered systems using a dual metric that more accurately characterizes a water's ability to exert specific biological activity.

Publications

Blaney, L.M.; Huang, L.; Katz, L.E.; Lawler, D.F. (2011). Aqueous ozonation of erythromycin and removal of the associated antimicrobial activity. In preparation.

Blaney, L.M.; Lawler, D.F.; Katz, L.E. (2011). Ozonation of cyclophosphamide and ifosfamide:  Determination of rate constants, impact of organic matter, and identification of major intermediate products. In preparation.

Blaney, L.M.; Marron, C.A.; Katz, L.E.; Lawler, D.F. (2011). Effects of natural organic matter on ozonation of ciprofloxacin and removal of antimicrobial activity. In preparation.

Sarkar, S.; Greenleaf, J.E.; Gupta, A.; Ghosh, D.; Blaney, L.M.; Bandyopadhyay, P.; Biswas, R.K.; Dutta, A.K.; SenGupta, A.K. (2010). Evolution of community-based arsenic removal systems in remote villages in West Bengal, India:  Assessment of decade-long operation. Water Res. 44(19), 5813-5822.

Sarkar, S.; Blaney, L.M.; Gupta, A.; Ghosh, D.; SenGupta, A.K. (2008). Arsenic removal from groundwater and its safe containment in a rural environment:  Validation of a sustainable approach. Environ. Sci. Technol. 42(12), 4268-4273.

Sarkar, S.; Blaney, L.M.; Gupta, A.; Ghosh, D.; SenGupta, A.K. (2007). Use of ArsenXnp, a hybrid anion exchanger, for arsenic removal in remote villages in the Indian subcontinent. React. Funct. Polym. 67(12), 1599-1611.

Blaney, L.M.; Cinar, S.; SenGupta, A.K. (2007). Trace phosphate removal with a hybrid anion exchanger (HAIX). Water Res. 41(7), 1603-1613.