Premier Event: Cape Cod Science Cafe Sneak Peek

Here's a Sneak Peek of the Scheduled Presentations at the upcoming Cape Cod Science Cafe POSTPONED TO Tuesday March 1, 2011 at the Hyannis Golf Club 6:30pm-9pm.


Introduction to the International Year of Chemistry? Presentation by Dr. Morton Hoffman, Councilor, NESACS and IYC Chair, presented by Jennifer Maclachlan:
IYC Presentation Excerpt:

United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) are partners for the International Year of Chemistry. The mission of the International Year of Chemistry (IYC 2011) is to increase the public appreciation of chemistry in meeting world needs and generating enthusiasm for the creative future of chemistry by engaging school age children grades K-12. IYC celebrates the 100th anniversary of Mme. Curie's Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the 100th anniversary of the founding of the International Association of Chemical Societies (the precursor to IUPAC). 

A Scientific Perspective of  the Waters of Cape Cod Excerpt:

Krista Longnecker, Ph.D. of WHOI 


"What are we (and others) looking for in the groundwater and why?
Organic carbon: can lead to low oxygen levels
Nutrients: can cause excessive plant growth
Pharmaceuticals: from people
Chlorine containing compounds: can be toxic
Bacteria and viruses: good vs. bad
Metals: can negatively impact aquatic organisms


The Barnstable County Water Quality Lab is amazing!!! And truly deserving  of the triple exclamation mark. The lab has all state-of-the-art equipment and runs water samples for the entire Cape. Here are a couple of our favorite systems that the Barnstable County Water Labs employs:

This is Jack's favorite: Would you look at that GC/MS!

Presentation: It's up to us to keep Cape Cod Waters Beautiful

Susan Rask, M.S., R.S.

 

"Why is Nitrogen in wastewater such a big issue on Cape Cod?
85% of Cape buildings use on site septic systems, rapid population growth is adding more septic systems and Nitrogen from the septic systems is degrading the water quality".

Tweet live from the event: Tweetup at the Cape Cod Science Cafe

Reaching out to the Cape Cod Twitter Community, Meet and Tweet with us.

#ccscicafe

You'll need to attend the Cape Cod Science Cafe or follow the after event wrap-up if this teaser makes you want more...

What is a Science Cafe?

Cape Cod Science Cafe-An International Year of Chemistry Kick-Off Event - Activities - IYC 2011

Cape Cod Science Cafe-An International Year of Chemistry Kick-Off Event

Activity by Jennifer Maclachlan   |   added on Jan 07, 2011   |   United States

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What is a Science Cafe?

The mission of a science cafe is to create a social and educational forum where chemists and the general public can meet in a relaxed atmosphere with food and drink and offer an educational presentation that engages the public and teaches them about critical issues involving the chemistry, science and technology that impact the local community.

Sponsor(s): NESACS, The Town of Barnstable, The Cape Cod Commission, Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment and PID Analyzers, LLC

 

Come to the Cape Cod Science Cafe-An Official International Year of Chemistry Kick-Off Event.

Socialize with neighbors, ACS members, local Twitter folks and learn from a Chemist's perspective how to Protect the Cape Cod Water Supply. 

Light appetizers and soft drinks are provided. Cash bar.

Cape Cod Science Cafe: Protecting the Cape Cod Water Supply
At The Hyannis Golf Club, Route 132, Hyannis, MA 02601

POSTPONED DUE TO WEATHER UNTIL:

Tuesday Evening March 1, 2011

6:30pm-9pm

Soft drinks and light appetizers will be provided. Cash bar.

Introduction and Overview of IYC by Dr. Morton Hoffman
Speaker:   Krista Longnecker, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute will present: "A scientific perspective of water on Cape Cod"

Additional speakers include:
 Gongmin Lei, Laboratory Director, Barnstable County Department of Health and Environment will present "Inside Barnstable County Water Labs: An Overview of their State-of-the-Art laboratory equipment-what it is and what it does"
Susan Rask, M.S., R.S., Barnstable County Dept. of Health and Environment will present on the subject of Nitrogen and the Cape Cod coastal water quality.

This event is open to the public and the purpose is to have the speakers, who are chemists or use chemistry in their jobs to educate the audience about this critical issue: protecting the water supply here on Cape Cod.

Do Cape Codders Tweet-up? Come find out and meet with us and tweet with us from the Cape Cod Science Cafe. Follow the conversation: @pidgirl and the hashtag: #ccsciencecafe

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Topic:

celebrating chemistry, networking

Audience:

general public, professional chemists, educators, industrial chemists

Cape Cod Science Cafe :: Cape Cod Today :: Cape Cod News and Information

Cape Cod Science Cafe :: Cape Cod Today :: Cape Cod News and Information

Cape Cod Twitter Community: Here is your opportunity to Tweet-up from the Cape Cod Science Cafe. 

CONTINUOUS MONITORING OF NITROGEN COMPOUNDS IN WASTEWATER WITH WIRELESS DATA TRANSMISSION

PRESENTED AT PITTCON 2008 in New Orleans, LA

John N. Driscoll, Walter Johnson, Pol Perov, Patricia Hogan, Nicholas Hennigan, Brian Muccioli, John Hamm, George Heufelder, and Keith Mroczka

Denitrification of wastewater on Cape Cod is an important process because of the nitrogen problems in this area. As a result, there are a number of denitrification systems in use and are being tested at Otis Air Force Base on Cape Cod.

The continuous measurement of nitrogen compounds in wastewater is important in determining the long-term effectiveness of control techniques. It is difficult to judge the long-term performance of any system with only grab samples (weekly/biweekly). The continuous systems will send a signal wirelessly to a PC in a nearby trailer that is connected to the internet. The data will be available to Suffolk University, the Town of Barnstable, and the vendor of the wastewater system. The advantage of the wireless system is that built-in diagnostics (calibration, pump, etc.) will improve the uptime as well as the quality and quantity of the data. We will be adding MODBUS (bidirectional RS232) communications to the analyzer to further enhance the diagnostics. If MODBUS was added to the control system, remote tuning of the control system would be possible.

The analyzer will be a PID Model 610 that uses ion-selective electrodes for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. Each of the sensors will have a separate pump for the addition of ionic strength adjustment buffers prior to the measurement. A single meter will be used to display the results and convert the output to a linear voltage proportional to concentration. Samples of wastewater (24-hour integrated) will be collected daily and run by standard methods at the Barnstable County water labs. We will compare the 24-hour integrated sample results with the results from the continuous analyzers, and determine the effectiveness of these electrochemical techniques for continuous monitoring of wastewater.

Fast GC Analysis with PID & FUV Detectors for Industrial Hygiene Monitoring at Low ppb Levels

Fast GC Analysis with PID and FUV Detectors for Industrial Hygiene Monitoring at Low ppb Levels by John N. Driscoll, D. Walsh of PID Analyzers and Phil Smith of USDOL OSHA, has been accepted for podium presentation during the 2011 American Industrial Hygiene Conference & Expo (AIHce), May 14-May 19 in Portland, OR. 

Topic:Air Sampling Instrument Performance   

Presentation #:PO 111-1  

This  podium presentation is scheduled in the session titled Field Detection, Sampling and Analysis: Real Time Detection Systems, scheduled for Tuesday May 17, 2011 10:30 AM - 10-50 AM.

Featured product #AIHCE booth #718

Abstract:
Objective: Fast Analysis of Gases and Solvents- Industrial Hygienists are typically pushed to provide rapid solutions involving a variety of complex mixtures that threaten workers health.
Methods: Portable Gas chromatography with a photoionization detector (PID),one of the most sensitive detectors for organic compounds, and a Far UV detector (nearly universal detector with ppb detection capability). The detection limits for benzene with these two detectors on a conventional capillary column (0. 32 mm id X 15M wax with an 0.5 μ film) were 0.5 ppb for the PID and 30 ppb for the FUV.

Results-Our approach involves using a 25m x 0.32 mm packed with Haysep P (for analysis of solvents) that is restively heated and can be programmed at a high rate. It can also be cooled faster since it has a very small thermal mass. A sample of 50 ppb of benzene was run on the PID & FUV. Note that the peak heights (counts) were improved by 5-9 times for these two detectors. The analysis times were similar because of the stronger retention of benzene on the porous polymer column. The advantage here is that the porous polymer column can be used for gases or solvents whereas the capillary column is designed only for solvents.
Conclusions- The precision (coefficient of variation) at 50 ppb was +/- 5% for the PID and +/- 15% for the FUV. No significant difference in precision was observed between the two types of columns. The main advantage was that the fast GC (with porous polymer column) could analyze a much wider range of compounds than the capillary column.

JOIN US AT A RECEPTION AT #AIHCE:

in honor of AIHA Real-Time Detection Systems Committee Member, Jack Driscoll on Sunday May 15, 2011 from 6pm-7pm at the Hilton Portland & Exec Towers, 23rd Floor. Please register by emailing me or using the registration link here.