Current Students
Scroll down to page learn a bit about each of Dr. Goel's current students...
Mitch Hogsett
PhD Candidate
Research: Surface water quality (WQ) is influenced by both natural processes and anthropogenic activities with excessive organic matter present in the sediments playing a large role in shallow mixed systems. Traditional WQ sampling practices focus on water column grab samples, but neglect the sediments and benthic communities known to drive WQ in streams. Research objectives include the quantification of reaeration coefficients, seasonal sediment oxygen demand (SOD), sediment ammonia, nitrate, phosphate and methane fluxes, light and dark metabolism (i.e. primary production), and general sediment characterization. Using these tools, questions associated with degraded WQ in the urban Jordan River can be addressed while moving forward with the national goal of improving our surface waters for the future generations
PhD Candidate
Research: Surface water quality (WQ) is influenced by both natural processes and anthropogenic activities with excessive organic matter present in the sediments playing a large role in shallow mixed systems. Traditional WQ sampling practices focus on water column grab samples, but neglect the sediments and benthic communities known to drive WQ in streams. Research objectives include the quantification of reaeration coefficients, seasonal sediment oxygen demand (SOD), sediment ammonia, nitrate, phosphate and methane fluxes, light and dark metabolism (i.e. primary production), and general sediment characterization. Using these tools, questions associated with degraded WQ in the urban Jordan River can be addressed while moving forward with the national goal of improving our surface waters for the future generations
Ananda Shankar Bhattacharjee
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Ananda Shankar Bhattacharjee, a graduate under the supervision of Dr. Ramesh Goel (Associate professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Utah). Studying the role of bacteriophages in spread of antibiotic resistance genes in the environment. He is currently working on human gut microbes through sampling feces of patients prescribed antibiotics before and after. On similar lines he is working on sampling from Municipal wastewater treatment plants, as well as natural systems such as wetlands to understand and provided evidences that phages play a role in enriching the resistome in natural and engineered systems. For his research under the supervision of Dr. Goel, he is collaborating with researchers from Scripps Research Institute, San Diego, California. Wherein they are trying to use advanced molecular, and extensive bioinformatic tools to provide cues. For his training he attended workshop at Joint Genome Institute, Department of Energy, California, and spent two weeks in Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, New Delhi, India.
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Ananda Shankar Bhattacharjee, a graduate under the supervision of Dr. Ramesh Goel (Associate professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Utah). Studying the role of bacteriophages in spread of antibiotic resistance genes in the environment. He is currently working on human gut microbes through sampling feces of patients prescribed antibiotics before and after. On similar lines he is working on sampling from Municipal wastewater treatment plants, as well as natural systems such as wetlands to understand and provided evidences that phages play a role in enriching the resistome in natural and engineered systems. For his research under the supervision of Dr. Goel, he is collaborating with researchers from Scripps Research Institute, San Diego, California. Wherein they are trying to use advanced molecular, and extensive bioinformatic tools to provide cues. For his training he attended workshop at Joint Genome Institute, Department of Energy, California, and spent two weeks in Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, New Delhi, India.
Amir M. Motlagh
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Amir M. Motlagh is a PhD student. He earned his master's degree in environmental engineering in 2011 from University of Toledo, OH. His research involves the role of bacteriophage (viruses that infect bacteria) in bacterial community diversity and the phage-bacteria interaction in natural ecosystems and lab-scale biological nutrient removal bioreactors such as enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) and partial nitrification. Viruses are the most abundant biological entities in aquatic systems that bridge the gap between life and non-life and can have significant contribution to bacterial abundance, diversity and composition.
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Amir M. Motlagh is a PhD student. He earned his master's degree in environmental engineering in 2011 from University of Toledo, OH. His research involves the role of bacteriophage (viruses that infect bacteria) in bacterial community diversity and the phage-bacteria interaction in natural ecosystems and lab-scale biological nutrient removal bioreactors such as enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) and partial nitrification. Viruses are the most abundant biological entities in aquatic systems that bridge the gap between life and non-life and can have significant contribution to bacterial abundance, diversity and composition.
Pei Huang
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Pei Huang is a Ph.D student. She revived her M.S (2012) in Environmental Engineering from University of Utah. She joined Dr. Goel’s research group in December 2010. Her project focuses on the solids reduction and nutrient removal in activated sludge operation. Activated sludge process is the most widely used biological wastewater treatment all over the world, but the excess solids is becoming a big concern and can contributes up to 60% of the total operational cost of a wastewater treatment plant, solids minimization is more and more evident. Besides, she also works on the NASA EPSCoR research project - urine separation and treatment, and also starts the research about anaerobic methane oxidation couple with denitrification.
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Pei Huang is a Ph.D student. She revived her M.S (2012) in Environmental Engineering from University of Utah. She joined Dr. Goel’s research group in December 2010. Her project focuses on the solids reduction and nutrient removal in activated sludge operation. Activated sludge process is the most widely used biological wastewater treatment all over the world, but the excess solids is becoming a big concern and can contributes up to 60% of the total operational cost of a wastewater treatment plant, solids minimization is more and more evident. Besides, she also works on the NASA EPSCoR research project - urine separation and treatment, and also starts the research about anaerobic methane oxidation couple with denitrification.
Sha Wu
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Sha Wu is a phD student in Dr. Goel’s research group since 2011. Her research focuses on nitrogen removal from wastewater using anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox). Anammox is a novel biological process that utilizes nitrite and ammonium simultaneously to produce di-nitrogen gas. It is reported as a short-cut for nitrogen removal comparing to conventional nitrification/denitrification. Sha is currently working on lab-scale Anammox reactors and microbial diversity in the reactors.
PhD Candidate
Research & Bio: Sha Wu is a phD student in Dr. Goel’s research group since 2011. Her research focuses on nitrogen removal from wastewater using anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox). Anammox is a novel biological process that utilizes nitrite and ammonium simultaneously to produce di-nitrogen gas. It is reported as a short-cut for nitrogen removal comparing to conventional nitrification/denitrification. Sha is currently working on lab-scale Anammox reactors and microbial diversity in the reactors.
Daniel Scott Teeters
Masters Student
Research: Scott Teeters is currently involved in a nutrient flux study in the Jordan River. This study monitors the natural attenuation of nitrate, phosphorus, and ammonia in wetland environments and the changes that occur when excess ammonia and phosphorus enter these aquatic environments. The study focuses on the bacterial effects and how absorption occurs in these wetland environments.
In addition, Scott is involved with a study of the effects of illicit drug micropollutants on nitrifying bacteria. This research should eventually lead to the effects of such micropollutants from municipal waste streams on bacteria in the environment.
Masters Student
Research: Scott Teeters is currently involved in a nutrient flux study in the Jordan River. This study monitors the natural attenuation of nitrate, phosphorus, and ammonia in wetland environments and the changes that occur when excess ammonia and phosphorus enter these aquatic environments. The study focuses on the bacterial effects and how absorption occurs in these wetland environments.
In addition, Scott is involved with a study of the effects of illicit drug micropollutants on nitrifying bacteria. This research should eventually lead to the effects of such micropollutants from municipal waste streams on bacteria in the environment.
Sachiyo Taraka, PhD
Research Associate (post doctorate)
Research: Remediation of munitions, biosensors, nitrogen cycles
Research Associate (post doctorate)
Research: Remediation of munitions, biosensors, nitrogen cycles