Student Development & Recruitment
Promoting Global-minded Professionals

Jennifer Weidhaas

Department: Civil Engineering

Education:
-Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering with a Designated Emphasis in Biotechnology, expected Spring 2005, University of California, Davis
-M.S. in Civil and Environmental Engineering, March 2002, University of California, Davis
-B.S. in Bio-Resource Civil Engineering, December 1999, Montana State University-Bozeman

Grants and Awards:
-Towards Outstanding Post Graduate Scholars (TOPS) fellowship, 2000-2001
-Ecotoxicology Lead Campus Program research (ELCP) assistantship, 2001-2003
-Air and Waste Management Association (AWMA) grant, Mother Lode Section, 2003
-Superfund Basic Research and Training Program traineeship, UC Davis, 2003-2004

Research:
Nitroaromatic and polynitroorganic explosives such as 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) were some of the most widely used high energy explosives worldwide in the 20th century. In the past TNT manufacture exceeded 1 million kg per year. Other explosives of historic significance such as 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP) have become important in various industrial operations. These polynitroorganic explosives have demonstrated toxic effects on terrestrial and aquatic animals and they have been shown to accumulate in the environment. Due to the large mass of these compounds in the environment and the potential for exposure of sensitive populations to these compounds there is a necessity for remediation technologies that will quickly and effectively reduce or remove these chemicals from the environment.
The objective of my research is to utilize bacteria isolated from contaminated environmental samples to examine the relationships between degradation pathways of these chemically related explosive compounds. Examination of these degradation pathways will enable future research and development of better biological treatment systems for these toxic and widely distributed compounds. In addition, I am examining the kinetics and metabolic products of TNP, TNT and potentially RDX degradation by these isolated bacteria. Further, I am studying the ability of these organisms to use the explosives as a sole source of carbon and nitrogen by labeling the compounds with radioisotopes and performing material balance studies. Finally, research will be conducted to determine the relative importance of these isolated bacteria in an enrichment culture taken from the same contaminated soil in degrading these explosives. Simultaneous studies will be conducted to measure the degradation rates and the robustness of the isolated bacteria versus a consortium of bacteria degrading these polynitroorganic compounds. An assessment will be performed to determine the relative abundance and activity of the isolates in the consortium during and after the degradation. This research could provide the basis for future designs of effective biological remediation systems.

Publications and Proceedings:
-Weidhaas, J.L., D.P.Y. Chang, E.D. Schroeder, 2001, "Biodegradation of Trinitrophenol Contaminated Soil," Toxic Substances Research and Teaching Program Symposium Proceedings, March, Long Beach, CA (poster)
-Weidhaas, J.L., D.P.Y. Chang, E.D. Schroeder, 2002, "Biodegradation of Trinitrophenol-Contaminated Soil," Air and Waste Management Association, 95th Annual Conference Proceedings, June, Baltimore, MD
- Weidhaas, J.L., D.P.Y. Chang, E.D. Schroeder, 2002, "Bioremediation of Trinitrophenol Contaminated Soil," Superfund Basic Research Program Annual Meeting, November, Tucson, AZ (poster)
-Weidhaas, J.L., D.P.Y. Chang, 2003, "Biodegradation of 2,4,6-Trinitrophenol," Toxic Substances Research and Teaching Program Symposium Proceedings, April, Oakland, CA (poster)

Professional Activities:
Research Assistant, University of California, Davis, CA
Sept 2000 - present: In addition to thesis research, I helped develop a community
directed website hosted by the TSR&TP that presents alternatives to soil vapor
extraction of chlorinated solvents and traditional vapor treatment methods.
Research Assistant, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), Idaho Falls, ID
Jan 2000 - Aug 2000: Developed the human health risk assessment for a
CERCLA site; Researched post CERCLA/RCRA remediation actions, operation and maintenance activities at Department of Energy sites; Performed ecological field sampling at various CERCLA sites
May 1999 - Aug1999: Developed an ecological risk assessment and performed field sampling at a CERCLA Site
May 1998 - Aug 1998: Reliability engineering and risk analysis of Army
Communications and command equipment
May 1997 - Aug 1997: Radioactive materials waste disposal projects

Contact Info: N/A