Anna Feerick 
Dr. Nikiforos Alygizakis will present on the NORMAN Database System and the Digital Sample Freezing Platform (https://dsfp.norman-data.eu/).
This meeting will occur on Tuesday, September 17th, from 12 pm – 1 pm EST.
Click here for the recording: BP4NTA Monthly Meeting-20240917_195848-Meeting Recording.mp4
David Schiessel is the Technical Manager for Organics at Babcock Laboratories. He will be discussing their commercial laboratory NTA product development.
This meeting will occur on Tuesday, August 20th, from 12 pm – 1 pm EST.
Title: Implementing Meaningful NTA Quality Metrics for Commercial Laboratory Testing
Click here to watch the recording: BP4NTA Monthly Meeting-20240816_DaveSchiessel.mp4
Application Deadline: 11/22/2024 11:59:00 PM Eastern Time Zone
Reference Code: EPA-ORD-CEMM-ACESD-2024-01A
Research Project: Non-targeted analysis (NTA) has been increasingly used in recent years to elucidate structures of novel per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), however, the majority of PFAS NTA studies have applied this technology in water or soil matrices. NTA in biota is complicated by the presence of endogenous chemicals that may interfere with identification of environmental contaminants like PFAS. NTA workflows in biota need to be further developed, tested, and applied in order to be widely adopted and used in decision making.
The goal of the research project is to apply PFAS NTA techniques in biological samples of interest to state and regional partners to identify chemicals of interest and produce data processing workflows optimized for PFAS NTA in biota.
Learning Objectives: Under the guidance of a mentor, the research activities will include, but not limited to:
Applications of derived workflows will include identification of novel PFAS in biological samples originating near manufacturing facilities and from ambient offshore marine environments to test applicability of workflows across a range of exposure scenarios.
Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Anna Robuck (robuck.anna@epa.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor.
Anticipated Appointment Start Date: September 3, 2024. All start dates are flexible and vary depending on numerous factors. Click here for detailed information about start dates.
Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year and may be renewed upon EPA recommendation and subject to availability of funding.
Level of Participation: This appointment is full-time.
Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. Click here for detailed information about full-time stipends.
EPA Security Clearance: Completion of a successful background investigation by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is required for an applicant to be on-boarded at EPA.
EPA Office/Lab and Location: A research training opportunity is available at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Research and Development (ORD), Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Atlantic Coastal Environmental Sciences Division (ACESD) located in Narragansett, Rhode Island.
ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and EPA. Participants do not become employees of EPA, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.
ORISE offers all ORISE EPA graduate students and Postdocs a free 5 year membership to the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA).
The successful applicant(s) will be required to comply with Environmental, Safety and Health (ES&H) requirements of the hosting facility, including but not limited to, COVID-19 requirements (e.g. facial covering, physical distancing, testing, vaccination).
Questions: Please see the FAQ section of our website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email EPArpp@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.
See the application page for Qualifications and Application information.
Dr. Sarah Choyke (pronounced: Choy-key) will be speaking on the development of NTA products in a contract research environment. She is the Technical Director at Eurofins Environment Testing in Arvada, Colorado. She brings over 10 years of experience in analyzing emerging contaminants in the environment with expertise in field sampling, sample preparation, and mass spectrometry. She received her Ph.D from Duke University and her B.S. in Chemistry from Haverford College.
This meeting will occur on Tuesday, July 16th, from 12 pm – 1 pm EST.
Title: Knowing Known Unknowns: A Vision for Non-Targeted Analysis Product Offerings
Abstract: Current analytical methodologies typically quantify a predefined list of analytes using targeted methods. However, environmental field samples may contain additional analytes beyond this predefined list. Advances in high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) have significantly enhanced the analysis of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) through non-targeted analysis (NTA). For a commercial or contract laboratory, there is a heightened emphasis on meeting client objectives, turn-around-times, ensuring data quality metrics and adhering to specific report formatting requirements. To streamline these processes, we have adopted the Study Reporting Tool (SRT) framework as a template for clients to structure their projects and understand the workflow. The NTA workflow and report is designed to be adaptable to project-specific requirements, understandable to the clients, all while remaining manageable for laboratory staff. Due to the complex nature of NTA datasets, client input can drive the NTA to ensure data packages encompass pertinent data objectives while remaining comprehensible to all parties.
Click here to watch the recording: BP4NTA Monthly Meeting-20240716_164729-Meeting Recording.mp4
Application Deadline: 11/8/2024 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone
Reference Code: EPA-ORD-CEMM-ACESD-2024-01
Research Project: Non-targeted analysis (NTA) has been increasingly used in recent years to elucidate structures of novel per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), however, the majority of PFAS NTA studies have applied this technology in water or soil matrices. NTA in biota is complicated by the presence of endogenous chemicals that may interfere with identification of environmental contaminants like PFAS. NTA workflows in biota need to be further developed, tested, and applied in order to be widely adopted and used in decision making.
The goal of the research project is to apply PFAS NTA techniques in biological samples of interest to state and regional partners to identify chemicals of interest and produce data processing workflows optimized for PFAS NTA in biota.
Learning Objectives: Under the guidance of a mentor, the research activities will include, but not limited to:
Applications of derived workflows will include identification of novel PFAS in biological samples originating near manufacturing facilities and from ambient offshore marine environments to test applicability of workflows across a range of exposure scenarios.
Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Anna Robuck (robuck.anna@epa.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor.
Anticipated Appointment Start Date: September 3, 2024. All start dates are flexible and vary depending on numerous factors. Click here for detailed information about start dates.
Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year and may be renewed upon EPA recommendation and subject to availability of funding.
Level of Participation: This appointment is full-time.
Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. Click here for detailed information about full-time stipends.
EPA Security Clearance: Completion of a successful background investigation by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is required for an applicant to be on-boarded at EPA.
EPA Office/Lab and Location: A research training opportunity is available at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Office of Research and Development (ORD), Center for Environmental Measurement and Modeling (CEMM), Atlantic Coastal Environmental Sciences Division (ACESD) located in Narragansett, Rhode Island.
ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and EPA. Participants do not become employees of EPA, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.
ORISE offers all ORISE EPA graduate students and Postdocs a free 5 year membership to the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA).
The successful applicant(s) will be required to comply with Environmental, Safety and Health (ES&H) requirements of the hosting facility, including but not limited to, COVID-19 requirements (e.g. facial covering, physical distancing, testing, vaccination).
Questions: Please see the FAQ section of our website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process please email EPArpp@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.
See the application page for Qualifications and Application information
Dr. Erin Baker will present on the integration of ion mobility spectrometry with mass spectrometry to identify emerging PFAS contaminants. This meeting will occur Tuesday, June 18th, from 12 pm – 1 pm EST.
Title: An overview of fundamentals and applications of ion-mobility mass spectrometry for environmental non-targeted analysis.
Associated paper – Uncovering per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) with nontargeted ion mobility spectrometry–mass spectrometry analyses
You can find the recording here: BP4NTA Monthly Meeting-20240618_120020-Meeting Transcript.mp4
Claros Technologies is a venture backed, deep-tech company solving the worldwide challenge of destroying PFAS in the environment. PFAS remediation is rapidly becoming a multi-billion-dollar, global market and is at the center of regulatory action in the US, Europe and Asia that requires the removal of this carcinogen from drinking water, industrial processes and waste sites. Claros has developed a patented, scalable destruction technology proven to fully destroy 99.99% of PFAS in customers’ samples.
We are a diverse team of scientists, business-builders, and impact leaders committed to solving problems without creating new ones. The company has just closed a $20M financing round with leading environment venture capital firms, which provides the credibility and resources required to convert current pilot users into full scale commercial customers as well as to sell easy-to-identify prospects across the globe.
If you are a mission driven, highly motivated analytical scientist, join us as we solve one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time.
Position Summary: Claros Technologies is primarily focused on the research, development, scale-up, and commercialization of its PFAS destruction technology. We are seeking a collaborative, driven individual to join our Analytical Services Team as a Senior Scientist. The Senior Scientist will drive the research and development of analytical methods to support both internal and external customers of the Analytical Services Team. Reporting to the Director of Analytical Laboratory Services, this individual will be tasked with operating advanced analytical instruments independently, conducting critical research and analysis of data derived from the instruments, and acting as a subject matter expert to the team.
Essential Job Functions:
Competencies & Skills:
Qualifications:
Job Specifications:
Claros Technologies offers attractive salary and benefits including health, vision, and dental insurance, PTO as well as 401k plans and options.
For more information, please visit www.clarostech.com, or access the job posting here.
Application Deadline: 9/13/2024 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone
Reference Code: EPA-ORD-CESER-BIL-2024-03
Research Project: Consumption of contaminated drinking water is one of the most common routes of human exposure to environmental pollutants. As a result, evaluating the effective removal and/or degradation of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) – which include perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), pesticides, cyanobacterial toxins – in water treatment processes is of great interest to the EPA. In practice, this entails interest in monitoring for disappearance of known CECs, potential formation of new transformation by-products, or identification of novel contaminants which are not being removed through treatment processes. This is a challenge for targeted analytical workflows, because while monitoring for disappearance of known contaminants is straightforward, identifying either unknown contaminants or formation of novel by-products is not feasible. The use of non-targeted chemical analysis (NTA) enabled by high resolution mass spectrometric (HRMS) instrumentation is an ideal tool for this application, as it collects data without a need for specific standards or structural knowledge in advance. For PFAS characterization, in addition to NTA, other analytical techniques include targeted analysis, suspect screening, and novel methodologies such as the total oxidizable precursor (TOP) assay and total organofluorine (TOF). The research participant will be part of a team within EPA and one or more drinking water utilities aimed at using non-targeted analysis to evaluate the effect of various drinking water treatment processes on the removal and/or transformation of PFAS and other CECs.
Under the guidance of the mentor, research activities may include:
Learning Objectives: A variety of skills will be developed and used in the pursuit of the overall research objectives in this project. Because of the complexity of non-targeted data, identification of chemical features of interest in analytical outputs is extremely complex and predicated on the use of a wide range of tools, including predictive models, machine learning techniques, statistical analysis, and fragmentation analysis to better characterize species being identified. There will also be opportunities to explore the use of theoretical modeling techniques including quantum chemical simulations to explore the underlying mechanisms and pathways for treatability/transformation of chemicals of interest in conjunction with experimentally obtained data. Further, the research participant will collaborate with an interdisciplinary team of scientists to obtain a more holistic understanding of the underlying challenges and solutions to complex environmental problems. Under the guidance of a mentor, the research participant will have also freedom to pursue additional research objectives within the study areas as their own interests direct.
Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Toby Sanan (sanan.toby@epa.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor.
Anticipated Appointment Start Date: July 1, 2024. All start dates are flexible and vary depending on numerous factors. Click here for detailed information about start dates.
Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year and may be renewed three to four additional years upon EPA recommendation and subject to availability of funding.
Level of Participation: The appointment is full-time.
Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. Click here for detailed information about full-time stipends.
EPA Security Clearance: Completion of a successful background investigation by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is required for an applicant to be on-boarded at EPA.
ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and EPA. Participants do not become employees of EPA, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.
ORISE offers all ORISE EPA graduate students and Postdocs a free 5-year membership to the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA).
The successful applicant(s) will be required to comply with Environmental, Safety and Health (ES&H) requirements of the hosting facility, including but not limited to, COVID-19 requirements (e.g. facial covering, physical distancing, testing, vaccination).
Questions: Please see the FAQ section of our website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process, please email ORISE.EPA.ORD@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.
See the application page for Qualifications and Application information
Dr. Sin Urban, the Chief of Environmental Sciences at the Maryland Public Health Laboratory, will discuss the use (and challenges) of NTA to drive regulatory actions, with a specific application related to a recent “diet nut” poisoning case investigation as a paradigm.
The meeting will occur on Tuesday, May 21st, from 12 pm – 1 pm EST.
Dr Sin Urban is Chief of Environmental Sciences at the Maryland public health laboratory. With 72 scientists and 15 analytical sections, the Division of Environmental Sciences is the largest and most scientifically diverse of any Maryland laboratory. Dr Urban earned his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge (UK), and held faculty appointments at Harvard University and Johns Hopkins University before being recruited to the state lab in January 2020. Under Dr Urban’s direction, the Lab has implemented PFAS testing, brought on a large-scale food safety testing program, and is modernizing its emergency response capabilities and electronic data reporting.
You can access the recording here: BP4NTA Monthly Meeting-20240521_174241-Meeting Recording.mp4
