Case Studies

Exposure to formaldehyde in ambient air poses one of the greatest risks for cancer among the air toxins. The current methods for measure carbonyls has limitations. Battelle investigated the method with the goal of updating guidance on how best to implement this critical air monitoring technique.

As scientists seek to further understand Earth’s natural systems and its interaction with human systems, a plethora of monitoring data have been produced. The GEO User Interface Committee approached Battelle to conduct a meta-analysis of existing documentation of users’ needs for Earth observations.

When it comes to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), traditional water sampling methods suffer from a high potential for cross-contamination and result in large volumes of investigation-derived waste (IDW), which is difficult and expensive to dispose of and can lead to stockpiled waste. Battelle has come up with a solution to this challenge with our PFAS Insight® technology.

Climate change is already having impacts on human health, infrastructure, ecosystems and security worldwide, serving as a threat or risk “magnifier” that compounds existing challenges in multiple sectors. As a key member of a team supporting USAID, Battelle staff helped pioneer the development and delivery of a climate change training course to USAID staff worldwide.

Battelle has been working with the U.S. Navy for more than 15 years to characterize, treat and monitor groundwater at the former Naval Air Warfare Center (NAWC) Warminster. Groundwater in fractured rock beneath the site is contaminated with chlorinated volatile organic compounds (CVOCs) from historic activities at the site.

Battelle, in a joint effort with EPA, developed a methodological approach to determine the Arctic climate impacts of BC and other SLCF emissions from various regions and source sectors.

The 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response generated hundreds of thousands of environmental data points over the course of several years. BP asked Battelle to collect all of the data generated from the response into a single database system: the Health, Safety and Environment Data Management System (HSE-DMS).

Battelle is working alongside the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of International and Tribal Affairs to provide capacity building to Central American countries, including Ministries of Environment and Health, academic institutions, and the private and non-profit sectors to improve their management of air quality.

A functioning laboratory proof-of-concept is needed in larger volumes, at lower cost, and with higher reliability. What's Battelle's solution? Autonomously deployed, high accuracy ocean-measuring partial pressure carbon dioxide sensor system. The partial pressure carbon dioxide sensor (pCO2) is another design that transitioned laboratory proof-of-concept functions to products that are currently deployed around the world.

During the production and disposal of products made with PFAS, these substances can be emitted into the air. In a first-of-its-kind assessment, Battelle evaluated the extent to which a full-scale waste water treatment plant with a collocated sewage sludge incinerator disperses PFAS and their degradation byproducts into watersheds and the downwind atmospheric environment.

NEON is a network of 81 field sites across the continental U.S. that gather sensor and field data from a diverse range of terrestrial and non-marine aquatic ecosystems. Battelle built a cyberinfrastructure to manage all the data collected from the NEON observatories and make it accessible for researchers.

A high-accuracy, high-reliability autonomous sensor system that measures ocean acidification. A functioning laboratory proof-of-concept developed by MBARI and NOAA was needed in larger volumes to meet market demands, needed at a lower cost, and with higher reliability.

Battelle supported the SERVIR program, a joint effort by NASA and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), by creating science applications for international development through the use of Earth observations. Focusing on air quality and health, this project involved a series of specific tasks related to air quality monitoring, analysis, forecasting and visualization for Latin America.

Battelle and AAFRF modified the SPU at AAFRF to produce 500-gallon plus lots of fuel surrogates with properties similar to next-generation bio-based aviation fuels. We used this surrogate fuel to run tests to assess the properties of the candidate alternative fuels, including physical properties, corrosion resistance, thermal stability and production quality.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security came to Battelle for help in identifying new analytical and statistical methods for characterization of Organophosphate pesticides (OPPs). OPPs are a highly toxic class of chemicals still used for agricultural purposes in many countries. Their high toxicity and wide availability could make them attractive to terrorists or criminals for use as chemical threat agents (CTAs)

An industrial packaging company planned to use laser ablation to prepare painted steel drums for recycling and reuse. However, they were concerned about possible human health or environmental risks associated with the laser ablation process. They needed fast answers to understand their potential risks and ensure that their process would meet regulatory emissions standards.

The CDC came to Battelle in 2008 for help in managing, implementing and improving the National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network, an online portal for environmental and public health data reporting, collection and dissemination.

Our advanced analytical methods were able to achieve detection limits 10 to 100 times lower than conventional U.S. EPA methods of analysis, while meeting the demanding data quality objectives of Green Book. Using our analysis, the U.S. ACE was able to make appropriate disposal recommendations for all of its dredged material.

During the 80s and 90s, Battelle performed physical and chemical modeling to characterize PCB transport patterns. These models helped to inform the creation of the initial cleanup plan in 1998. Since then, Battelle has continued to provide support for field collection, laboratory analysis, database management and strategic planning under four USACE-NAE contracts.

When traces of oil are found in water, sediments, or biological tissues, how can you identify the sources? Agencies and oil companies need rapid, accurate and objective data in order to determine where hydrocarbons are coming from and distinguish between an accidental release and natural sources.