Dr. Vinka Craver was awarded a 5 year NSF CAREER grant to study bacteria and their reaction to metal & rare earth element nanoparticles.  Nanoparticles are introduced to the environment in a variety of ways and this research hopes to examine and minimize their risks when introduced to the natural environment.  Dr. Craver has also secured NSF funding for the enhancement of bioengineering, development of smart residential water systems, and study of coastal environments.

Dr. Joe Goodwill was awarded a 5 year NSF CAREER grant to study the fundamental chemistry in new iron-based advanced oxidation processes for drinking water treatment that could help cut the "clean water gap" between larger urban systems and small rural systems. The project will also focus on the recycling of wastewater effluent (water reuse), which is especially beneficial for the rural communities that generally have limited access to most new and advanced treatment technologies. The study will build upon prior iron-based water reuse studies which were funded by the US Department of the Interior. 

The RIWRC current supports Dr. Craver's research is also supported by Rhode Island Water Resources Center, the Woodward & Curran Foundation, and RIDOT.  These resources have allowed the study of microplastics in drinking water systems, the design of water systems for climate change, and the implementation of the RHODECAP program.

While water stress affects large, urban and small, rural communities, equally, major advanced in water reuse technology have historically focused on larger systems. Collaborative research by Dr. Goodwill with Iowa State University will work to accelerate water reuse adoption in small, rural systems by increasing technical and community readiness. This project will involve a regulatory summary literature review, target technology scan, bench and pilot studies of selected water technology, and community case studies that include piloting. Research on this project is done in partnership with Tighe & Bond and the Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH).

Dr. Craver worked with several engineering undergraduate students to develop a solar powered portable water treatment System for developing countries. In January 2019, the system was field tested in Cumayasa, Dominican Republic. For more information on the project, visit https://h2g-o.weebly.com/

The objective of this study is to address research gaps in the use of ferrate, a powerful water treatment chemical that is not currently widely used, in a potable reuse contact to increase its readiness for use. Using bench-scale, laboratory experiments, the treatment benefits associated with this chemical will be quantified and experimentally compared to more typical (but more complex) options. This research will benefit communities of any size considering potable reuse. 

In partnership with RI Commerce, Sea Fresh USA, and Aclarity, Dr. Goodwill is researching electrochemical oxidation of seafood processing wastewater. This project involved pilot scale evaluation of electrochemical approach to "squid water."

In this research project, Dr. Craver is working with the Rhode Island Department of Transportation to enhance the state's street sweeping program. Their goal is to prioritize the location and frequency of street sweeping events to remove pollution from the roads before stormwater washes it off into our waterways. The team is collecting and analyzing street solid and stormwater samples to characterize and determine trends between pollutant accumulation and various geographical climatic conditions (e.g. land use, tree coverage, season). They then use predictive modeling to stimulate how different street sweeping activities may impact the transport of these pollutants.