Environmental Molecular Science Institute on Chemical Sources and Sinks at Liquid/Solid Interfaces

由George W. Flynn和Richard M. Osgood领导的哥伦比亚大学液体/固体界面化学源和汇环境分子科学研究所（EMSI）支持一个关于地下环境中污染物行为的跨学科研究项目，以及广泛的教育活动，包括针对K-12教师、高中生和公众的特殊项目。该研究所由美国国家科学基金会化学部、MPS多学科活动办公室和教育与人力资源理事会以及能源部基础能源科学办公室化学科学部共同资助。研究所分为三个合作研究小组：矿物表面和孔隙中的分子尺度过程；微观多孔介质中的基本化学和生物反应及传输过程；以及宏观的化学传递和扩散。三个长度尺度（分子、微观和宏观）的结果将为化学和传输模型提供输入，该模型将由工业实验室和太平洋西北国家实验室（PNNL）的合作伙伴在“现实世界”中进行测试。特别强调将放在氧化铁表面的有机污染物及其通过酶或光化学过程的降解。通过提高对地下运输的认识可以更有效地解决的一些问题的例子有：污染物在水合金属氧化物和土壤上的行为；表面化学分解的机理与动力学；有机污染物的迁移。预期研究所将对开发预测和补救有机化学品污染的新工具产生重大影响。这个由22人组成的调查小组包括来自哥伦比亚大学5个系和拉蒙特-多尔蒂地球天文台的16名教员，加上巴纳德学院的一名教员和PNNL的5名研究人员。其他合作者位于通用电气、IBM、杜邦、埃克森美孚和英拉德。每年将有大约4名博士后、20名研究生和20名本科生参加。

The Environmental Molecular Science Institute (EMSI) on Chemical Sources and Sinks at Liquid/Solid Interfaces at Columbia University, directed by George W. Flynn and Richard M. Osgood, supports an interdisciplinary research program on the behavior of contaminants in subsurface environments as well as a wide range of educational activities, including special programs for K-12 teachers, high school students, and the public. This Institute is jointly funded by the NSF Division of Chemistry, MPS Office of Multidisciplinary Activities and Directorate for Education and Human Resources and by the Chemical Sciences Division of the Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Department of Energy.The Institute is organized into three collaborative research groups: molecular scale processes on mineral surfaces and in pores; fundamental chemical and biological reactions and transport processes in microscopic porous media; and macroscopic chemical transport and dispersal. The results at the three length scales (molecular, microscopic, macroscopic) will provide input to a chemical and transport model that will be tested in the "real world" by partners at industrial laboratories and at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). Particular emphasis will be placed on organic contaminants on iron oxide surfaces and their degradation by enzymatic or photochemical processes. Examples of some problems that could be addressed more effectively by improved knowledge of subsurface transport are: behavior of pollutants on hydrated metal oxides and soils; mechanism and dynamics of chemical decomposition on surfaces; and migration of organic contaminants. The Institute is expected to have a major impact on the development of new tools to predict and remediate contamination by organic chemicals. The 22-member team of investigators includes 16 faculty from five Columbia departments and the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, plus one faculty member from Barnard College and five researchers from PNNL. Additional collaborators are located at GE, IBM, DuPont, Exxon, and Inrad. Approximately four postdoctoral associates, 20 graduate students, and 20 undergraduates will participate each year.