Human-induced increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide have led to significant global warming. Urgent action is needed to reduce emissions and implement carbon dioxide removal (CDR) strategies. One promising approach involves storing remnant biomass in marine sediments for permanent CDR. The ocean's biological pump effectively removes CO2 from the atmosphere via phytoplankton, but only 1% of that carbon reaches ocean sediments, leaving significant potential for carbon storage across the ocean, which covers 70% of the Earth's surface. This research focuses on particle resuspension during the biomass injection process, in collaboration with Sinkco Labs.

Collaborators: Brenna Boehman (Sinkco Labs & WHOI-MIT program)

Ocean alkalinity enhancement, an approach for carbon dioxide removal, can involve introducing milled mineral particles into the ocean to promote carbon dioxide update. Our research will assess the effectiveness of this method by examining the settling of particles under ocean waves, turbulence, and stratification while dissolution take place.

Collaborators: Mary-Louise Timmermans (Yale), Matthew Eisaman (Yale), Chien-yung Tseng (CSU)

The mixing and transport of tracers in stratified flows are fundamental aspects of environmental fluid dynamics. Tracers, such as dyes or dissolved chemicals, help study fluid motion and dispersion in stratified environments where density variations create distinct layers. This research is critical for understanding oceanic circulation, atmospheric pollutant dispersion, and the dynamics of lakes and reservoirs. Studying tracers in stratified flows enhances our ability to predict and manage the spread of contaminants, nutrient movement, and heat/salt distribution in these complex systems.

Collaborators: Greg Lawrence (UBC), Adrien Lefauve (U of Cambridge), Paul Yi (Princeton University)

Many natural and industrial flows are laden with solid particles. Examples include sediment deposition from river plumes in estuaries and lakes, sedimentation of volcanic ash in the ocean, vertical transport of microorganisms and microplastics in the ocean, and discharge of dredged materials and industrial waste. Buoyancy-induced convective sedimentation has been shown to play a pivotal role in transporting the near-surface suspended matter to depth in a water column. In this case, sedimentation is enhanced in the sense that the apparent particle settling rate exceeds that based on the Stokes settling velocity of an individual particle.This effect may be influenced by a range of other factors including flocculation, and the presence of a background shear flow.

Collaborators: Jason Olsthoorn (Queens), Mona Rahmani (UBC), Alexis Kaminski (UC Berkley)