James E. Atwater

James E. Atwater is a North American physical scientist with academic qualifications in biology, chemistry, and geophysics. He was awarded the 2006 Wright Brothers Medal [ [http://www.sae.org/servlets/awardInfo?OBJECT_TYPE=awardInfo&PAGE=awardRecipients&REQUEST_FROM=&BEGIN_YEAR=2006&END_YEAR=2006&Submit=submit List of 2006 Wright Brothers Medal recepients.] Society of Automotive Engineers. Accessed June 2, 2008. Award citation: "Development and Testing of a Microwave Powered Solid Waste Stabilization and Water Recovery System"] for his work on microwave powered methods for microbial stabilization and water recovery from solid waste. As manned spaceflight moves farther away from Earth orbit, the ability to recover useful resources from waste materials becomes a critical mission enabling requirement. Water is one of the essential resources needed to sustain human life. Using the unique properties of microwaves, which are absorbed relatively selectively by water, moisture contained within the solid waste is rapidly heated, forming steam, which produces a substantial 'thermal kill' of microorganisms contained within the waste. Water is subsequently collected by condensation. In this way, the solid waste is stabilized with respect to the prevention of microbial growth and water is remove from the waste and recovered for use elsewhere.

Atwater is president of UMPQUA Research Company (URC), an R&D firm located in Myrtle Creek, Oregon. He is also affiliated with the Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Departments at Oregon State University. Current research includes the recovery of hydrogen from methane (natural gas) using magnetically stabilized fluidized bed and microwave plasma reactors, the catalytic decomposition of hazardous gases produced by primary solid waste treatment technologies, and the production of superparamagnetic nanoparticles for use in Ferromagnetic Resonance (FMR) sensors.

Patents

# Sauer, R.L., Atwater, J.E., Dahl, R.W., Garmon, F.C., Lunsford, T.D., Michalek, W.F., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Microwave Powered Sterile Access Port, U.S. Patent 6,077, 478, June 2000.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., and DeHart, J., Process for Analyzing CO2 in Air and in Water, U.S. Patent 5,910,448, June 1999.
# Sauer, R.L., Akse, J.R., Atwater, J.E., and Thompson, J.O., Ammonia Monitor, U.S. Patent 5,882,937, March 1999.
# Versotko, C.E., Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., DeHart, J., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Fiber-Optic Chemiluminescent Biosensors for Monitoring Aqueous Alcohols and Other Water Quality Parameters, U.S. Patent 5,792,621, August 1998.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., and DeHart, J., Process for Analyzing CO2 in Seawater, U.S. Patent 5,643,799, July 1997.

Publications

# Atwater, J.E., Spectrometric Gamma Ray Logging of Core, Can. Well Log. Soc. J., 13 (1), 1-11, 1984.
# Matiisen, A., and Atwater, J.E., An Overview of Computer-Enhanced Analyses of Core Data, J. Can. Petrol. Technol., 24 (3), 57-62, 1984.
# Atwater, J.E., and Holtsnider, J.T., Airborne Trace Organic Contaminant Removal Using Thermally Regenerable Multi-Media Layered Sorbents, SAE Trans.J. Aerosp., 100, 1726-1733, 1991.
# Atwater, J.E., Wheeler, R.R.,Jr., Olivadoti, J.T., Flanagan, D.T. and Sauer, R.L., Regenerable Microbial Check Valve: Life Cycle Tests Results, SAE Trans.J. Aerosp., 101, 1098-1107, 1992.
# Akse, J.R., Atwater, J.E., Schussel, L.J., and Verostko, C.E., Development and Fabrication of a Breadboard Electrochemical Water Recovery System, SAE Trans. J. Aerosp., 102 (1), 513-529, 1993.
# Jeffers, E.L., Dougherty, D.R., Paxton, T.A., and Atwater, J.E., New Technologies for On-Line Water Quality Monitoring, SAE Trans. J. Aerosp., 102 (1), 1141-1162, 1993.
# Atwater, J.E., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Sauer, R.L., and Schultz, J.R., A Multiplexed Four Channel On-Line Iodine Monitor, Instrum. Sci. Technol., 22 (3), 217-229, 1994.
# Schussel, L.J., and Atwater, J.E., A Urease Bioreactor for Water Reclamation Aboard Spacecraft, Chemosphere, 30 (5), 985-994, 1995.
# Atwater, J.E., Thermodynamics of the Oxidation of Dissolved Organic Contaminants in Shuttle Orbiter Humidity Condensates, J. Environ. Sci. Health, A30 (4), 817-830, 1995.
# Schussel, L.J., and Atwater, J.E., A Continuous Alcohol Oxidase Bioreactor for Regenerative Life Support, Enzyme Microb. Technol., 18 (3), 229-235, 1996.
# Atwater, J.E., and Holtsnider, J.T., Simple Models for the Breakthrough of Humidified Acetone and Ethyl Acetate on a Carbon Based Molecular Sieve, Carbon, 34 (6), 824-825, 1996.
# Atwater, J.E., Sauer, R.L., and Schultz, J.R., Numerical Simulation of Iodine Speciation in Relation to Water Disinfection Aboard Manned Spacecraft I. Equilibria, J. Environ. Sci. Health, A31, 1965-1979, 1996.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., McKinnis, J.A., and Thompson, J.O., Aqueous Phase Heterogeneous Catalytic Oxidation of Trichloroethylene, Appl. Catal. B., 11 (1), L11-L18, 1996.
# Akse, J.R., Atwater, J.E., Schussel, L.J., Thompson, J.O., Garmon, F.C., Flynn, M., and Verostko, C.E., In-Situ Hydrogen Peroxide Generation for Use as a Disinfectant and as an Oxidant for Water Recovery by Aqueous Phase Catalytic Oxidation, SAE Trans. J. Aerosp., 105 (1), 770-780, 1996.
# Atwater, J.E., Dahl, R., Garmon, F.C., Lunsford, T., Michalek, W.F., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., and Sauer, R.L., Development and Testing of the Microwave Sterilizable Access Port Prototype, SAE Trans. J. Aerosp., 105 (1), 911-923, 1996.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., DeHart, J., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., 'Reagentless ' Flow Analysis Determination of Hydrogen Peroxide by Electrocatalyzed Luminol Chemiluminescence, Anal. Lett., 30 (1), 21-31, 1997.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., McKinnis, J.A., and Thompson, J.O., Low Temperature Aqueous Phase Catalytic Oxidation of Phenol, Chemosphere, 34, 203-212, 1997.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., DeHart, J., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Enzymatic Determination of Ethanol using 'Reagentless' Electrocatalyzed Luminol Chemiluminescence, Anal. Lett., 30 (8), 1445-1453, 1997.
# Atwater, J.E., Garmon, F., Lunsford, T., Michalek, W.F., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., and Sauer, R.L., Miniature Microwave Powered Sterilization Chamber, Rev. Sci. Instrum., 68 (10), 3924-3925, 1997.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., Rodarte, J.M., Thompson, J.O., Wang, T.-C., and Hurley, J.A., Silicon Carbide Coated Granular Activated Carbon: A Robust Support for Low Temperature Aqueous Phase Oxidation Catalysts, Carbon, 35, (10-11), 1678-1679, 1997.
# Atwater, J.E., and Akse, J.R., Next Generation Physico-Chemical Systems for Water Reclamation Aboard Spacecraft, Lunar and Planetary Habitats, Life Support Biosphere Sci., 5 (1), 35-43, 1998.
# Atwater, J.E., DeHart, J., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Dissolved Oxygen Determination by Electrocatalyzed Chemiluminescence with In-Line Solid Phase Media, J. Biolumin. Chemilumin., 13, 125-130, 1998.
# Akse, J.R., Thompson, J.O., Sauer, R.L., and Atwater, J.E., 'Reagentless' Flow Injection Determination of Ammonia and Urea using Membrane Separation and Solid Phase Basification, Microchem. J., 59, 372-382, 1998.
# DeHart, J., Akse, J.R., and Atwater, J.E., CO2 Controller for Plant Growth Chambers, SAE Trans. J. Aerosp., 107 (1), 1005-1011, 1998.
# Atwater, J.E., Complex Permittivities of Cyclomaltooligosaccharides (Cyclodextrins) over Microwave Frequencies to 26 GHz, Carbohydr. Res., 327 (3), 219-221, 2000.
# Atwater, J.E., DeHart, J.L., and Akse, J.R., A Chemical Amplification System for Conductiometric Monitoring of Airborne CO2 Partial Pressures, Instrum. Sci. Technol., 28 (4), 269-280, 2000.
# Atwater, J.E., Oxidation of Benzene in the Aqueous Phase over a Bimetallic Carbon Supported Catalyst, React. Kinet. Catal. Lett., 71 (2), 319-323, 2000.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., Wang, T.-C., Kimura, S., and Johnson, D.C., Preparation of Silicon Carbide Coated Activated Carbon Using a High Temperature Fluidized Bed Reactor, Chem. Eng. Sci., 56 (8), 2685-2693, 2001.
# Atwater, J.E., On-Line Electrocatalyzed Luminol Chemiluminescence Determination of D-Glucose and Dissolved Oxygen in Simulated Mammalian Cell Bioreactor Perfusion Fluid using Solid Phase Reagent Modules, Biotechnol. Lett., 23 (8), 621-625, 2001.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., Jovanovic, G.N., and Sornchamni, T., Preparation of Metallic Cobalt and Cobalt-Barium Titanate Spheres as High Temperature Media for Magnetically Stabilized Fluidized Bed Reactors, J. Mater. Sci. Lett., 20 (6), 487-488, 2001.
# Atwater, J.E., Michalek, W.F., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Dahl, R., Lunsford, T.D., Garmon, F.C., and Sauer, R.L., A Microwave Powered Sterilizable Interface for Aseptic Access to Bioreactors which are Vulnerable to Microbial Contamination, Biotechnol. Prog., 17 (5), 847-851, 2001.
# Akse, J.R., Atwater, J.E., and Holtsnider, J.T., Development of Microgravity Compatible Reagentless Instrumentation for Detection of Dissolved Organic Acids and Alcohols in Water, Life Support Biosphere Sci., 8 (1), 55 - 63, 2001.
# Atwater, J.E., Complex Dielectric Permittivities of the Ag2O – Ag2CO3 System at Microwave Frequencies and Temperatures between 22*C and 189*C, Appl. Phys. A, 75, 555-558, 2002.
# Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., Jovanovic, G.N., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., and Sornchamni, T., Porous Cobalt Spheres for High Temperature Gradient Magnetically Assisted Fluidized Beds, Mater. Res. Bull., 38, 395-407, 2003.
# Atwater, J.E., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Complex Permittivities and Dielectric Relaxation of Granular Activated Carbons at Microwave Frequencies between 0.2 and 26 GHz, Carbon, 41 (9), 1801-1807, 2003.
# Atwater, J.E., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Temperature Dependent Complex Permittivities of Graphitized Carbon Blacks at Microwave Frequencies Between 0.2 and 26 GHz, J. Mater. Sci., 39 (1), 151-157, 2004.
# Atwater, J.E., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Microwave Permittivity and Dielectric Relaxation of a High Surface Area Activated Carbon, Appl. Phys. A, 79, 125-129, 2004.
# Sornchamni, T., Jovanovic, G.N., Reed, B.P., Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Operation of Magnetically Assisted Fluidized Beds in Microgravity and Variable Gravity: Experiment and Theory, Adv. Space Res., 34, 1494-1498, 2004.
# Jovanovic, G.N., Sornchamni, T., Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., and Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Magnetically Assisted Liquid-Solid Fluidization in Normal and Microgravity Conditions: Experiment and Theory, Powder Technol., 148, 80-91, 2004.
# Akse, J.R., and Atwater, J.E., Deep Oxidation of Aqueous Organics over a Silicon Carbide – Activated Carbon Supported Platinum – Ruthenium Bimetallic Catalyst, Topics Catal., 33, 51-57, 2005.
# Sornchamni, T., Atwater, J.E., Akse, J.R., Wheeler, R.R., Jr., and Jovanovic, G.N., Magnetically Assisted Filtration for Solid Waste Separation and Concentration in Microgravity and Hypogravity, Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 44 (24), 9199-9207, 2005.
# Graham, L.J., Atwater, J.E., and Jovanovic, G.N., Chlorophenol Dehalogenation in a Magnetically Stabilized Fluidized Bed Reactor, AIChE J., 52 (3), 1083-1093, 2006.
# Atwater, J.E., and Akse, J.R., Amplification of the Potentiometric Response to Inorganic Carbon by Membrane Mediated Absorption into Aqueous Alkanolamine Solutions: an Equilibrium Model, Sens. Actuators B, 115 (1), 330-337, 2006.
# Wheeler, R.R., Jr., Hadley, N.M., Dahl, R.W., Williams, T.W., Garmon, F.C., Akse, J.R., Atwater, J.E., and Fisher, J.W., Development and Testing of a Microwave Powered Solid Waste Stabilization and Water Recovery System, SAE Trans. J. Aerosp. 115, 431-447, 2006.
# Atwater, J.E., and Akse, J.R., Oxygen Permeation through Functionalized Hydrophobic Tubular Ceramic Membranes, J. Membr. Sci. 301, 76-84, 2007.

References

External links

* http://oregonstate.edu/~atwaterj