Research in the Hydrology and Fluid dynamics track of Environmental Engineering covers some of the most modern open problems in Environmental Fluid Dynamics, Hydrology and, Water Resources. Main foci are hydrometeorology (rainfall dynamics, land-atmosphere interaction, remote sensing), eco-hydrology (impact of hydroclimatic variability on ecosystems and feedbacks on the hydrologic cycle and local climate), contaminant transport hydrology (surface-subsurface interactions), water cycle dynamics and human health, and stochastic hydrology).
Our approach to these complex problems is multifaceted and ranges from advanced theoretical computational analyses, to unique laboratory and field experiments (e.g., the long term Duke Forest experiment, and the Helicopter Observation Platform.
Duke's Environmental Engineering program addresses the consequences of society’s production and use of energy and materials, emphasizing approaches to predicting, monitoring and managing impacts on air and water, and global cycles. In addition to activities within the Pratt School of Engineering, the faculty working in Environmental Engineering Science extends to the Nicholas School of Environment and Earth Sciences.
Duke Center for Hydrologic Science
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Albertson Lab
Helicopter Observational Platform
Barros Group
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Graduate degrees & certificates
LATEST RESEARCHMicrobe Diet Key To Carbon Dioxide...
DURHAM, N.C. –- As microbes in the soil break down fallen plant matter, a diet "balanced" in nutrients appears to ...READ MORE
Laursen Named Chair of Mechanical...
Professor Tod Laursen has been named chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Dean Robert ...READ MORE
Smart Home Gets Top Environmental...
Residence hall/laboratory receives state's first platinum LEED rating DURHAM, NC -- The Home Depot Smart Home at Duke University, a 10-person ...READ MORE
John D Albertson, Professor - Environmental fluid mechanics, scaling in hydrology and boundary layer meteorology, use of computational fluid dynamics and field experiments to address issues of mass and energy exchange between the land and the atmosphere.
Roni Avissar, W. H. Gardner, Jr. Professor - All aspects of land-atmosphere and air-sea interactions (modeling and experiments) at all scales, including atmospheric dynamics, regional and global climate changes, hydroclimatology, soil-plant-atmosphere relationships, material dispersion and diffusion, and ecosystem modeling.
Ana Barros, Professor - Investigating the dynamics of water presence and water pathways in the environment. Understanding the physics of the hydrological cycle at all spatial and temporal scales, and applying this new knowledge to research and developing technologies for environmental assessment, prediction and control.
Zbigniew J. Kabala, Associate Professor - Deterministic and stochastic modeling of water flow and contaminant transport in saturated and unsaturated heterogeneous porous media, theory of related measurements.
Miguel A. Medina, Jr., Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies - Water resources, hydrologic and water quality mathematical modeling, integration of contaminant transport prediction models within a decision-analysis framework for risk assessment.
Roger A. Pielke, Sr., Research Professor - Mesoscale meteorology through numerical modeling of the sea breeze and interaction among the mountains, oceans, boundary layer, and the free atmosphere.
Amilcare Porporato, Associate Professor - Ecohydrology and coupled dynamics of the soil-plant-atmosphere system; environmental fluid mechanics and turbulence dynamics; dynamical system approach and stochastic modeling of hydrological and biogeophysical processes; nonlinear time series analysis; flood forecasting.
