Around the world, more than three times the population of the United States lack access to safe drinking water and more than 2 million people–most of them children–die every year from water-borne illnesses. Tsunamis are both unpredictable and deadly.
At the University of Rhode Island, researchers are seeking better ways to provide potable water and stop pollution from contaminating water supplies.
Associate Professor Vinka Oyanedel-Craver is helping communities in remote villages in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, India, Jordan, and Kenya manufacture inexpensive ceramic water filters. Her students have developed a small, portable solar water treatment system for the rural city in the Dominican Republic.
Assistant Professor Ali Akanda and his expertise in computer modeling of water supplies, floods and droughts. He combines the models with research in water security, climate change and global health to create early warning systems to benefit public health.
Tsunamis are both unpredictable and deadly. 100,000 souls were lost during the Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami in 2004. Distinguished Engineering Professor Stephan Grilli is studying Tsunamis, and is considered one of the world experts on the topic.
US Navy names future ship for URI alumnus, professor Robert Ballard - The U.S. Navy has announced that a future Pathfinder-class oceanography survey ship will be named in honor of University of Rhode Island alumnus and Professor of Oceanography Robert Ballard.
Researchers Shed (Laser) Light on Emerging Water Treatment Technique - Assistant Professor Joseph Goodwill coauthored a study on a Ferrate-based water treatment purification system which uses a technique involving ultra-fast laser and X-ray pulses.
NSF Funds Student Research on Narragansett Bay - Mason Jacob ’24, an aspiring multidisciplinary engineer, did a fellowship in which he focused on the physical structure of buoy platforms that collect high-resolution data and send the data to the Narragansett Bay Campus for analysis.
Clean Water Wasn’t Always a Given for URI Graduate Student - Jacira Soares grew up in a poor community in Cape Verde. She had to walk a mile or more as often as three times a day to get drinkable water. As a graduate student at URI, Soares is studying how to make clean water accessible to rural communities around the world.
Engineering isn’t about doing research for the sake of doing research. It should be useful and make an impact in people's livesAssociate Professor, Vinka Oyanedel-Craver
Faculty
Associate Professor and Department Chair
Civil and Environmental Engineering
401.874.2693 – lt@uri.edu
Associate Professor and Graduate Director
Civil and Environmental Engineering
401.874.7050 – akanda@uri.edu
Professor & Associate Dean of Research
Civil and Environmental Engineering
401.874.2784 – craver@uri.edu
