Five of the six research projects awarded funding from the Water Equipment and Policy Center (WEP) for 2024 are led by researchers at the College, says center director Qian Liao, professor of civil and environmental engineering.
WEP is a university-industry research collaboration, backed by the National Science Foundation, that focuses on creating new sensors and devices, novel materials, and innovative systems that aim to help the world manage its stressed water resources. Because regulations significantly affect the adoption of new technologies in the water industry, WEP has a policy component as part of its mission.
Ten faculty members in the College are currently involved the center. WEP’s industry advisory board selected these UWM projects:
- Nathan Salowitz, $93,922
“Embedded Ultrasonic Inspection of Water-Filled Equipment.” - Junjie Niu, $50,000
“Designing an electrochemical sensor for PFAS detection in water.” - Junjie Niu, $79,769
“Portable biosensor to rapidly detect bacteria in water.” - Xiaoli Ma, Yin Wang and Shangping Xu, $75,000
“Development of positively charged nanofiltration membranes for water softening: Phase 2.” - Pradeep Rohatgi and Ben Church, $99,957
“Low-cost surface alloying of brass to improve corrosion resistance in chlorine and chloramine-rich environments.”