UF Water Institute: Water Systems Collaboratory

The UF Water Institute has proposed the long-term development of a Water Systems Collaboratory, which will consist of a suite of distributed, common-use, interdisciplinary labs, field facilities, and computer facilities that will allow integrated efforts of diverse researchers addressing common water problems across disciplines and locations. In 2007-08 the Water Institute received $500,000 from the Florida Legislature to initiate development of this concept.

With this first phase of funding, the following facilities will be developed and hosted by UF Departments in the Colleges of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Engineering, and Liberal Arts and Sciences. These facilities are available for use by all UF Water Institute Affiliate Faculty.

Organic Contaminants Analytical Research Laboratory
A High Pressure Liquid Chromatograph coupled to a Mass Spectrometer (ThermoFisher Quantum Discovery MS with the ThermoFisher Surveyor HPLC, LS/MS/MS - LC-Triple Quad MS) was purchased for the Organic Contaminants Analytical Research Laboratory that is hosted by the Soil and Water Sciences Department. Additional matching funds to purchase this equipment were provided by the IFAS Dean for Research, and the Soil and Water Science Department.

This equipment is capable of measuring emerging contaminants such as endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs); pharmaceuticals and personal care products; degradation metabolites of nonionic surfactants used in household and industrial detergents, petroleum refining, plastics and textiles manufacturing, pulp and paper production; and crop protection chemicals. The instrument will be housed in Room G176 McCarty Hall A, and should be available for use by January 1, 2008. Water Institute faculty may obtain information on access, scheduling and fees associated with the use of this instrument by contacting Dr. John Thomas, thomas@ufl.edu.

Aquifer Characterization and Geomaterials Analysis Laboratory
A variable pressure (environmental) scanning electron microscope (SEM) was purchased as one of several instruments that will ultimately compose the Aquifer Characterization and Geomaterials Analysis Laboratory that is hosted by the Geological Sciences Department. Additional matching funds to purchase this equipment were provided by the Geological Sciences Department.

Initially this instrument will be capable of providing multiple images (e.g., electron, backscattered electron, and cathodoluminescence) at the 2-3 nm scale as well as qualitative and quantitative elemental analyses at the same spatial resolution. Ultimately, the instrument's capabilities will extend to providing these analyses for volatile-rich samples, including hydrated compounds with low dehydration temperatures and vapor pressures. The instrument will be housed in Room 120 Williamson Hall and should be available for use by the first quarter of 2008. Water Institute faculty may obtain information on access, scheduling and fees associated with the use of this instrument by contacting Dr. Ann Heatherington, aheath@geology.ufl.edu. Information regarding access and scheduling will also be on the Geological Sciences web site once the instrument is certified for use.

Dynamic Environmental Control Test Bed-DECTB
The Dynamic Environmental Control Test Bed, hosted by the Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences, provides Unit Operation and Process (UOP) testing to support computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling and parameter estimation for drinking water, wastewater, urban stormwater and agricultural stormwater treatment and control.

The major equipment being designed and built for this laboratory includes a pumping system for water and slurry injections, a scalable clarifier that can operate under variable hydrodynamics and a data acquisition system to control the coupling of the pumping system and clarifier. The Dynamic Environmental Control Test Bed is located about 250 feet northwest of Black Hall (EES Building). The equipment should be operational by 31 December 2007. Water Institute faculty may obtain information on access, scheduling and fees associated with the use of equipment in this Test Bed by contacting Dr.John Sansalone, mailto: jsansal@ufl.edu..

Florida Geographic Water Observations Data Server
The Florida Geographic Water Observations data server, hosted by the Water Institute, provides map-based data discovery, as well as data delivery, publication and curation via web services in a standardized relational database schema using the NSF-sponsored Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Sciences (CUAHSI) Hydrologic Information Systems (HIS) software.

HIS is a geographically distributed national network of hydrologic data sources and functions that are integrated using web services. It enables users to query networks of observation sites and to extract observation data in the form of time series of data at individual sites or collections of time series data. It provides a geographic, consistent, efficient way for investigators to share research data and related metadata to enable the synthesis, visualization and evaluation of the behavior of water systems.

The system is currently being developed and demonstrated for selected USGS, EPA, FDEP, Suwannee River Water Management District and individual PI research data and associated metadata, for North Central Florida to support research projects in the Santa Fe Basin. Access to data stored in federated databases around the world including the Florida data maintained by the Water Institute is available to anyone with access to the web by using tools such as Hydrodesktop (https://www.cuahsi.org/quickstartHD) and HydroClient (https://www.cuahsi.org/gettingstartedwithhydroclient).