Arturo A. Keller | |
---|---|
Born | United States |
Nationality | American and Mexican |
Occupation(s) | Civil and environmental engineer and an academic |
Awards | United States Water Prize, U.S. Water Alliance (2015) Agilent Thought Leadership Award (2015) Outstanding Graduate Mentor Award, UCSB (2023) |
Academic background | |
Education | B.S., Chemical Engineering B.A., Chemistry M.S., Civil Engineering PhD, Civil Engineering |
Alma mater | Cornell University Stanford University |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of California,Santa Barbara |
Arturo A. Keller is a civil and environmental engineer and an academic. He is a professor at the Bren School of Environmental Science &Management [1] at the University of California,Santa Barbara. [2]
Keller is most known for his work on water quality and resource management,primarily focusing on emerging contaminants as well as creating technologies and management strategies to address water pollution. [3] His work is highly cited,with over 23,300 citations. [3] He is the recipient of the 2015 Agilent Thought Leadership award for his contributions towards the contemporary understanding of the potential environmental implications of nanotechnology,with a specific focus on its impact within agricultural systems. [4]
Keller obtained a B.S. in Chemical Engineering and B.A. in Chemistry from Cornell University in 1980. In 1992,he completed his M.S. in Civil (Environmental) Engineering,followed by a PhD in Civil (Environmental) Engineering in 1996 from Stanford University. [2]
Keller started his academic career in 1996 by joining the University of California,Santa Barbara. There he held multiple appointments including serving as an assistant professor at the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management from 1992 to 1996,and associate professor from 2002 to 2006. Since 2006,he has been a professor. [2] In 2023,he was promoted to the rank of Distinguished professor. [5]
From 1992 to 1996,Keller worked as a Research Associate in the Environmental Division at the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). He co-directed the UC Center on the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology,from 2008 to 2020. [6] He also co-directed the USEPA-funded Chemical Life Cycle Collaborative between 2014 and 2019,where the team developed a framework to predict early life-cycle impacts of new chemicals based on molecular structure,applications,and use characteristics. [2]
Keller has contributed to the management of the Santa Ana River basin and the establishment of a nutrient trading program for the Ohio River Basin,which earned him recognition through a 2015 US Water Prize. [7] His group received a grant from USEPA and developed a framework employing artificial intelligence,specifically machine learning,alongside other predictive techniques for expeditiously conducting risk assessments for both novel and pre-existing chemicals. He also developed the first numerical model,ChemFate,capable of accommodating diverse chemical classes within one unified framework. [8] He has authored numerous publications spanning the fields of water quality and resource management,environmental engineering,the fate and toxicity of nanomaterials as well as their effects on crops. [3]
Keller's environmental sciences research has focused on developing methods for quantifying nanomaterial use and release,both at the global and regional levels. His collaborative work with Suzanne McFerran and others provided a global assessment of likely engineered nanomaterials (ENM) emissions into the environment and landfills,revealing their dominant types,applications,and estimated distribution in various environmental compartments. [9] In his estimation of the ENM concentrations at global,regional,national,and local levels,he used a life-cycle approach and material flow analysis,to assess ENM concentrations at different environmental scales,including examples like the San Francisco Bay area,addressing their relevance for industry,regulators,and toxicologists. [10] In his 2014 study,alongside Anastasiya Lazareva,he estimated ENM release from different uses,in particular personal care products, [10] developed an environmental release model for ENMs in major cities,highlighting local factors' influence on release,and found that ENM concentrations across cities would vary significantly,due to local conditions that control the fate of ENMs. [11] In 2023,his team evaluated the potential implications of nanotechnology from 2020 to 2030,and found that there is a projected rapid pace of introduction of novel nanomaterials in applications such as renewable energy generation and storage,but that personal care products continue to represent the most significant release to the environment. [12] Some of his current work is investigating the life cycle of these materials as they are processed in water treatment facilities,and accumulate in bio-solids. [13]
In collaboration with Peng Wang,Keller and his team have developed a novel class of magnetic nanomaterials,Mag-PCMAs,that can be used to treat water with a wide range of contaminants,including many organic pollutants, [14] [15] oxyanions such as perchlorate, [16] and metals. [17] Very recently,he and Qian Gao demonstrated the use of these novel nanoparticles for water disinfection,to remove pathogens while being able to reuse the disinfectant,thereby reducing cost and environmental impacts. [18] Key to the eventual use of nanotechnology for water treatment will be its effectiveness and cost-competitiveness,which was assessed by Keller,Adeyemi Adeleye and other colleagues. [19] With these concepts in mind,he and Victoria Broje developed an advanced oil skimmer for collecting oil from seawater after an oil spill. [20]
Keller has focused on the fate and toxicity of different classes of nanomaterials. His collaborative work with Hongtao Wang and others explored the conditions that increase or decrease the likelihood of exposure to ENMs,particularly in the aquatic environment. Studies of the behavior of well known ENMs,such as Titanium Dioxide (TiO2),Zinc Oxide (ZnO),and Cerium Dioxide (CeO2),within aqueous matrices commonly encountered in realistic environmental settings such as freshwater,groundwater,estuarine and marine waters,demonstrated the major influence of water characteristics such as pH,natural organic matter,and ionic strength (water hardness and salinity). [21] Furthermore,working with Adeyemi Adeleye and others,they demonstrated that microscopic organisms such as phytoplankton and microbes can release extracellular polymeric substances,that play a key role in the determining how ENMs will behave in natural waters. [22] Other studies showed that ENMs are very likely to form aggregates with natural sediments in water,and in fact this can be used as a "cleansing" mechanism to remove ENMs from contaminated water,by adding clay particles to remove them. [23] In 2014,he and his colleague Kendra Garner performed an analysis of publications,to develop the emerging patterns for ENMs in the environment,assessing the potential exposure and toxicity of the most widely used ENMs,and ranking them from high to low risk. [24] These studies led to the development of the nanoFate model,which can be used to assess the predicted environmental concentrations of ENMs in different regions,under a variety of conditions,and considers the dynamics of ENM release as well as local climate and hydrology. [25] Keller has also worked closely with ecotoxicologists,to investigate the health effects of ENMs on different aquatic organisms,such as marine phytoplankton, [26] sea urchins, [27] daphnids, [28] and mussels. These studies have demonstrated that some ENMs pose a health risk to diverse organisms at higher concentrations,typically above predicted environmental concentrations. For example,TiO2 nanoparticles are phototoxic to marine phytoplankton, [29] while ZnO nanoparticles notably inhibited their growth. [26] Mussels are filter feeders,and can thus remove large number of particles from water,including ENMs,which can result in transfer of ENMs up the food chain. [30] Eventually,the results of several toxicity studies on a wide range of aquatic species was assessed using Species Sensitivity Distributions for nanomaterials,a tool developed by USEPA to better assess the potential impact of toxicants on an ecosystem. [31]
Keller,in his research,has recently turned his attention to the benefits and potential negative implications of ENMs on agricultural crops. Copper-based nanopesticides promise high effectiveness against fungi and other crop pests,while potentially reducing the amount applied. This may result in less cost for the farmer,and lower environmental implications. Working with Yiming Su and colleagues,they demonstrated that for nanotechnology to live up to its promise,costs have to continue to decrease,while effectiveness requires a careful assessment of the form in which the nanopesticides are formulated. [32] In collaboration with Lijuan Zhao and others,the benefits of nanotechnology to reduce plant stress were assessed. [33] To evaluate the effect of ENMs on crop plants,his research group have been researching the use of metabolomics,to assess how plants respond to the use of different ENMs. His metabolomics analysis with Lijuan Zhao and others highlighted the potential implications and detoxification strategies associated with the agricultural use of nano-Cu and demonstrated that exposure to copper nanoparticles (nano-Cu) in hydroponic culture significantly alters nutrient uptake,triggers metabolic changes,and activates defense mechanisms in cucumber plants. [34] [35] In his investigation of the interaction between Cu(OH)2 nano pesticides and lettuce plants,his study provided insights into the molecular-scale plant response to copper nano pesticides in agriculture,and revealed that exposure of lettuce plants to Cu(OH)2 nano pesticides predominantly accumulated copper in leaves,disrupted metabolism,caused oxidative stress,and triggered detoxification. [36] Furthermore,a study suggested that Cu-containing nano pesticides,while not harming photosynthesis in cucumber plants,induce molecular responses related to antioxidant and detoxification genes,potentially serving as biomarkers for nano pesticide exposure. [37] In related research,his exploration of the metabolic effects of Cu(OH)2 nano pesticide and copper ions on spinach leaves revealed reductions in antioxidants,disruption of metabolic pathways,and a potential decrease in nutritional value. [38]
At the larger scale,Keller has developed the science for large-scale water quality trading programs. For trading to be effective,knowledge of the factors that go into evaluating a trade was developed by Keller and his team. [39] This work led to the 2015 United States Water Prize from the U.S. Water Alliance to the team led by Jessica Fox at the Electric Power Research Institute. [7] Keller and Hongtao Wang,along with other collaborators,have also made contributions to the assessment of the Energy-Water Nexus,that is the linkage between these two key resources. His research highlighted many important aspects,including the fact that significant energy is needed for potable water treatment, [40] as well as for wastewater processing. [41] [42] His research further emphasized that the water footprint of the iron and steel industry is also significant,with important implications for China and other major economies. [43] Additionally,his research also stressed that water is also an important aspect in power generation,which is changing as the use of renewable energies continues to rise. [44]
Nanotechnology was defined by the National Nanotechnology Initiative as the manipulation of matter with at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometers (nm). At this scale,commonly known as the nanoscale,surface area and quantum mechanical effects become important in describing properties of matter. The definition of nanotechnology is inclusive of all types of research and technologies that deal with these special properties. It is therefore common to see the plural form "nanotechnologies" as well as "nanoscale technologies" to refer to the broad range of research and applications whose common trait is size. An earlier description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal of precisely manipulating atoms and molecules for fabrication of macroscale products,also now referred to as molecular nanotechnology.
Nanomedicine is the medical application of nanotechnology. Nanomedicine ranges from the medical applications of nanomaterials and biological devices,to nanoelectronic biosensors,and even possible future applications of molecular nanotechnology such as biological machines. Current problems for nanomedicine involve understanding the issues related to toxicity and environmental impact of nanoscale materials.
Nanosensors are nanoscale devices that measure physical quantities and convert these to signals that can be detected and analyzed. There are several ways proposed today to make nanosensors;these include top-down lithography,bottom-up assembly,and molecular self-assembly. There are different types of nanosensors in the market and in development for various applications,most notably in defense,environmental,and healthcare industries. These sensors share the same basic workflow:a selective binding of an analyte,signal generation from the interaction of the nanosensor with the bio-element,and processing of the signal into useful metrics.
Nanomaterials describe,in principle,materials of which a single unit is sized between 1 and 100 nm.
A nanoparticle or ultrafine particle is a particle of matter 1 to 100 nanometres (nm) in diameter. The term is sometimes used for larger particles,up to 500 nm,or fibers and tubes that are less than 100 nm in only two directions. At the lowest range,metal particles smaller than 1 nm are usually called atom clusters instead.
The impact of nanotechnology extends from its medical,ethical,mental,legal and environmental applications,to fields such as engineering,biology,chemistry,computing,materials science,and communications.
Nanotoxicology is the study of the toxicity of nanomaterials. Because of quantum size effects and large surface area to volume ratio,nanomaterials have unique properties compared with their larger counterparts that affect their toxicity. Of the possible hazards,inhalation exposure appears to present the most concern,with animal studies showing pulmonary effects such as inflammation,fibrosis,and carcinogenicity for some nanomaterials. Skin contact and ingestion exposure are also a concern.
As the world's energy demand continues to grow,the development of more efficient and sustainable technologies for generating and storing energy is becoming increasingly important. According to Dr. Wade Adams from Rice University,energy will be the most pressing problem facing humanity in the next 50 years and nanotechnology has potential to solve this issue. Nanotechnology,a relatively new field of science and engineering,has shown promise to have a significant impact on the energy industry. Nanotechnology is defined as any technology that contains particles with one dimension under 100 nanometers in length. For scale,a single virus particle is about 100 nanometers wide.
Thalappil Pradeep is an institute professor and professor of chemistry in the Department of Chemistry at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. He is also the Deepak Parekh Chair Professor. In 2020 he received the Padma Shri award for his distinguished work in the field of Science and Technology. He has received the Nikkei Asia Prize (2020),The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) prize (2018),and the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for Science and Technology in 2008 by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.
Green nanotechnology refers to the use of nanotechnology to enhance the environmental sustainability of processes producing negative externalities. It also refers to the use of the products of nanotechnology to enhance sustainability. It includes making green nano-products and using nano-products in support of sustainability.
Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are a class of nanoparticle that can be manipulated using magnetic fields. Such particles commonly consist of two components,a magnetic material,often iron,nickel and cobalt,and a chemical component that has functionality. While nanoparticles are smaller than 1 micrometer in diameter,the larger microbeads are 0.5–500 micrometer in diameter. Magnetic nanoparticle clusters that are composed of a number of individual magnetic nanoparticles are known as magnetic nanobeads with a diameter of 50–200 nanometers. Magnetic nanoparticle clusters are a basis for their further magnetic assembly into magnetic nanochains. The magnetic nanoparticles have been the focus of much research recently because they possess attractive properties which could see potential use in catalysis including nanomaterial-based catalysts,biomedicine and tissue specific targeting,magnetically tunable colloidal photonic crystals,microfluidics,magnetic resonance imaging,magnetic particle imaging,data storage,environmental remediation,nanofluids,optical filters,defect sensor,magnetic cooling and cation sensors.
Nanomaterials can be both incidental and engineered. Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) are nanoparticles that are made for use,are defined as materials with dimensions between 1 and 100nm,for example in cosmetics or pharmaceuticals like zinc oxide and TiO2 as well as microplastics. Incidental nanomaterials are found from sources such as cigarette smoke and building demolition. Engineered nanoparticles have become increasingly important for many applications in consumer and industrial products,which has resulted in an increased presence in the environment. This proliferation has instigated a growing body of research into the effects of nanoparticles on the environment. Natural nanoparticles include particles from natural processes like dust storms,volcanic eruptions,forest fires,and ocean water evaporation.
Platinum nanoparticles are usually in the form of a suspension or colloid of nanoparticles of platinum in a fluid,usually water. A colloid is technically defined as a stable dispersion of particles in a fluid medium.
Silver nanoparticles are nanoparticles of silver of between 1 nm and 100 nm in size. While frequently described as being 'silver' some are composed of a large percentage of silver oxide due to their large ratio of surface to bulk silver atoms. Numerous shapes of nanoparticles can be constructed depending on the application at hand. Commonly used silver nanoparticles are spherical,but diamond,octagonal,and thin sheets are also common.
A nanofluid is a fluid containing nanometer-sized particles,called nanoparticles. These fluids are engineered colloidal suspensions of nanoparticles in a base fluid. The nanoparticles used in nanofluids are typically made of metals,oxides,carbides,or carbon nanotubes. Common base fluids include water,ethylene glycol and oil.
Nanoremediationis the use of nanoparticles for environmental remediation. It is being explored to treat ground water,wastewater,soil,sediment,or other contaminated environmental materials. Nanoremediation is an emerging industry;by 2009,nanoremediation technologies had been documented in at least 44 cleanup sites around the world,predominantly in the United States. In Europe,nanoremediation is being investigated by the EC funded NanoRem Project. A report produced by the NanoRem consortium has identified around 70 nanoremediation projects worldwide at pilot or full scale. During nanoremediation,a nanoparticle agent must be brought into contact with the target contaminant under conditions that allow a detoxifying or immobilizing reaction. This process typically involves a pump-and-treat process or in situ application.
Liquid-phase electron microscopy refers to a class of methods for imaging specimens in liquid with nanometer spatial resolution using electron microscopy. LP-EM overcomes the key limitation of electron microscopy:since the electron optics requires a high vacuum,the sample must be stable in a vacuum environment. Many types of specimens relevant to biology,materials science,chemistry,geology,and physics,however,change their properties when placed in a vacuum.
Sara E. Skrabalak is a James H. Rudy Professor at Indiana University. Skrabalak leads a research group in the department of chemistry which focuses on the development of new nanomaterials. She has an adjunct appointment in the department of intelligent systems engineering.
Zinc oxide nanoparticles are nanoparticles of zinc oxide (ZnO) that have diameters less than 100 nanometers. They have a large surface area relative to their size and high catalytic activity. The exact physical and chemical properties of zinc oxide nanoparticles depend on the different ways they are synthesized. Some possible ways to produce ZnO nano-particles are laser ablation,hydrothermal methods,electrochemical depositions,sol–gel method,chemical vapor deposition,thermal decomposition,combustion methods,ultrasound,microwave-assisted combustion method,two-step mechanochemical–thermal synthesis,anodization,co-precipitation,electrophoretic deposition,and precipitation processes using solution concentration,pH,and washing medium. ZnO is a wide-bandgap semiconductor with an energy gap of 3.37 eV at room temperature.
Nanoinformatics is the application of informatics to nanotechnology. It is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding nanomaterials,their properties,and their interactions with biological entities,and using that information more efficiently. It differs from cheminformatics in that nanomaterials usually involve nonuniform collections of particles that have distributions of physical properties that must be specified. The nanoinformatics infrastructure includes ontologies for nanomaterials,file formats,and data repositories.