| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.20 |
| Liaison | Sarah Gilly |
| Submission Date | March 2, 2020 |
Stevens Institute of Technology
IN-50: Innovation D
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.50 / 0.50 |
Dibs
Sarkar Professor Civil Environmental and Ocean Engineering |
Name or title of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome:
A brief description of the innovative policy, practice, program, or outcome that outlines how credit criteria are met and any positive measurable outcomes associated with the innovation:
Petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated road runoff can cause short- and long-term ecological problems once it reaches surface waters. Various best management practices (BMP) have been developed to mitigate road runoff-induced flooding issues, but most of them were not designed to address the issue of water pollution. In a research study, a group of students and faculty advisors developed a green filter media and tested its efficiency in removing total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) in a parking lot in Brick Township, NJ. The green filter media consisted of sand, carbon material (CM), and aluminum-based drinking water treatment residuals (Al-WTR), a byproduct of alum coagulation during drinking water treatment.
The field study was conducted for 4 months, from August 2017 to November 2017. Representative influent and effluent samples from 8 storm events were extracted for TPH with n-pentane and analyzed by GC-MSD. Filter media was found to be effective in removing TPH from stormwater, and was comparable to catch basin inserts with no filter media in terms of water flow through rates (ie. no water pooling was observed at the site of catch basins with filter media). This filter media previously demonstrated its effectiveness in removing metals (Pb, Zn, Cu) and turbidity in stormwater. Hence, the filter media offers a sustainable solution to point-source pollution problems associated with urban runoff.
Due to the success of the installation in Brick Township, green filter media was recently installed on campus, and will continue to be monitored and contribute data towards a PhD dissertation.
A letter of affirmation from an individual with relevant expertise or a press release or publication featuring the innovation :
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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