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ICP-MS Lab
Geochemical and Hydrological Processes Lab
Valentina Brombin Melissa Kozhaya Alessandro Ghirotto Amrutha Suresh Mahla Tajari Alessandro Nardello Nicolo' Pasquali Erlinda Sallauka Gavin Barboza
Brian Caulfield
Dong Zhang was a Ph.D. student in Environmental Engineering. He joined the Department of Civil, Environmental and Ocean Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology in October 2016. He earned a B.S. degree in Environmental Science from Donghua University (Shanghai, China) in 2014, and graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology with a M.S. in Environmental Engineering in 2015. His Ph.D. research focused on the measuring and modeling of the transport of viruses and bacteria in porous media under variable salinity conditions. He graduated on June 24, 2021 and then joined a group at the University of Nebraska as a post-doc to work on transport of microorganisms in porous media. Currently Dong Zhang is an Assistant Professor in the College of Resources and Environment, at Fujian University (China) Dong Zhang Qingjian Li was a Ph.D. student in environmental engineering in Prigiobbe Group since Fall 2016 and he graduated on May 10, 2021. He obtianed a Bachelor degree in Petroleum Engineering (2013) and a Master degree in Oil Well Drilling Engineering (2016) from the China University of Petroleum (East China). His research is focused on the fluid flow in porous media and fluid-solid coupling experiments and numerical simulations. His current project is the study of the behavior of nanoparticle-stabilized foam transport in porous media for contaminated site remediation. Currently, he is a research at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and he works on numerical modeling for subsurface flow. Qingjian Li Xin Su Ting Liu Zi Ye Randi Gill Denise Celsan
Sofia Vigolo is a student of the third year of Science and Technology for the Environment at the University of Padua. She collaborates in the project on CO2 mineralization and mining of critical elements for renewable energy systems in the Geoscience Department at the University of Padua.
Sofia Vigolo Alberto MarcassaLaboratory technician
Valentina Brombin graduated in Geology and Technical Geology at the University of Padua (Italy) in 2014. In 2018, she completed her Ph.D. in Earth Sciences at the University of Ferrara (Italy). During her postdoc, she specialized in the elemental and isotopic geochemical characterization of rocks, sediments, soils, organic matter, agricultural products, and water. Her expertise includes managing EA-IRMS (Elemental Analyzer coupled to Mass Spectrometer), HA-IRMS (Headspace Analyzer coupled to Mass Spectrometer), and LWA (Liquid Water Analyzer) systems for stable isotope analysis (C, N, S, O, and H). Additionally, she is proficient in using instruments such as IC (Ion Chromatography) and portable UV-Vis spectrometers. Currently, Valentina works as a laboratory technician for the ICP-MS and Geochemical and Hydrological Processes Labs. Ph.D. students
Melissa Kozhaya is a PhD student of Prigiobbe Group. She graduated with a master degree in Petroleum Geosciences at the Lebanese University. She earned a Master in Environmental Geology and Earth Dynamics at the University of Padova in 2024. Currently, she is carrying out experimental and modeling research to study the co-transport of micro- and nano-plastics (M-NPs) and dissolved contaminants in soil and water. The aim is to create a model of M-NPs transport coupled with biogeochemistry to understand the effect of chemical gradient on M-NPs migration and the interaction of M-NPs with heavy metals or persistent organic contaminants.
Postdocs
Alessandro Ghirotto is currently a post-doc in Geophysics at the Department of Geosciences of the University of Padova. He works in Prigiobbe's group on the project funded by the Minister of Research focused on the modeling of microorganism transport in unsaturated porous media. He received both a BSc and MSc degree in Geological Sciences at the University of Genova. He earned a PhD at the University of Genova focusing on potential fields forward and inverse modeling methodologies. He was a post-doc at ETH Zurich in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.
Amrutha Suresh holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the Government College of Engineering Kannur (GCEK), India. She works in Prigiobbe's group on the project funded by USGS focused on compound modeling of coastal urban areas. She earned her master in Water Resources Engineering and a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati, India. Her Ph.D. dissertation significantly contributed to the process of quantifying the impacts of land use and climate change on urban flood characteristics and evaluating the effectiveness of low impact developments in mitigating urban runoff. Before joining Prigiobbe group, Amrutha worked as a Research Scientist at the National Remote Sensing Centre, Indian Space Research Organization. In Prigiobbe's group she is developing a model of sewer networks in coastal urban areas tightly coupled with groundwater modeling.
Mahla Tajari earned her Ph.D. in Hydraulic Structures Engineering from the University of Tehran, Iran. She works in Prigiobbe's group on the project funded by USGS focused on compound modeling of coastal urban areas. During her doctoral studies, Mahla focused on the effects of in-stream structures and bed permeability modification on hyporheic flow. She also gained international research experience as a visiting scholar at Politecnico di Torino to work on seawater intrusion in urban coastal areas. In Prigiobbe's group she is developing a model of groundwater in coastal urban areas tightly coupled with sewer modeling.
Undergraduate and graduate students
Alessandro Nardello is a third-year student of the degree in environmental science and technology.
He is working in Prigiobbe's group on a project funded by Carbontech Development Initiative at Columbia University (NY, USA) on the integrated process of CO2 mineralization and sustainable mining of critical elements. In particular, he is focusing on dissolution and leaching tests and their kinetics.
Nicolo' Pasquali is a third-year student of the degree in environmental science and technology.
He is working in Prigiobbe's group on a project funded by Carbontech Development Initiative at Columbia University (NY, USA) on the integrated process of CO2 mineralization and sustainable mining of critical elements. In particular, he is focusing on dissolution and leaching tests of mining waste such as mine tailings and their kinetics.
Erlinda Sallauka is a master's student in Environmental Sustainability and Education at the University of Padova. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Ecology and Environmental Protection and has extensive experience working with local NGOs in Kosovo on environmental conservation and youth development initiatives. Through this work, she has gained valuable insights into effective project management, advocacy, and the importance of protecting natural resources.
Her interests lie in environmental policy, sustainability, and community engagement, with a focus on developing innovative pollution reduction strategies and integrating sustainable practices into industries and communities. Recently, she joined Prigiobbe's group, working on PFAS contamination and its impact on human health, a project that has further deepened her commitment to using both her academic background and field experience to develop practical solutions for positive environmental change.
Highschool students
Gavin Barboza is a senior at Bergen County Technical High School in Teterboro, New Jersey, in the Aerospace Engineering program. He is carrying out an internship in Prigiobbe's group on the transport of microorganisms through unsaturated porous media.
Alumni
Brian Caulfield has joined Prigiobbe Group as Ph.D. student in fall 2020. He worked on mineral carbonation for carbon utilization in microalgae harvesting for the production of biofuel and bio-plastic sponsored by the Department of Defense. Brian grew up on Long Island and went to Fordham University to study Engineering Physics. Then, he moved to California to work in Space Operations. Currently Brian is a faculty at the New Jersey City University where he teaches Physics and Chemistry. 
Xin Su was a Ph.D. student in civil engineering in Prigiobbe Group since Fall 2016 and she graduated on December 7, 2020. She obtained her bachelor degree from Liaoning Shihua University (China), majoring in water supply and sewerage engineering in 2012. She finished her master study from the University of California Irvine majoring in hydrology and water resource in 2015. Her Ph.D. research was on the interaction between groundwater and infrastructure in urban coastal areas and nuisance flooding due to groundwater emergence. Currently, she is a post-doc at the University of Arkansas working in a groundwater hydrology group. 
Ting Liu was a Ph.D. student in Prigiobbe group. He graduated on December 3, 2019. He worked on reactive transport in porous media and urban hydrology focusing on the modeling of sewer networks. Currently, he has been post-doc at Purdue University and has recently joined the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment at Arizona State University. 
Zi Ye was a Ph.D. student in Prigiobbe group. She graduated on August 2, 2019. She worked on reactive transport in porous media and CO2 utilization coupling mineral carbonation with microalgae growth. Currently she is working at Pitingaro & Doetsch Consulting Engineers.
Former members
Randi Gill is a senior at Bergen County Technical High School in Teterboro, New Jersey in the Aerospace Engineering program. She is passionate about computer science, engineering, and environmental conservation.
Denise Celsan is a third-year student of the degree in environmental science and technology.
She is interested in research regarding environmental sustainability and natural systems. Currently, she is working in Prigiobbe's group on CO2 mineralization and mining process for CO2 removal and recovery of valuable elements for the renewable energy transition. 
Alberto Marcassa is an undergraduate student in geosciences at the University of Padua. He is interested in structural geology, georesources, and hydrology. In spring 2024, he joined Prigiobbe's group to work on a thesis regarding urban hydrology in coastal areas with the goal to model the coastal urban aquifer in a town along the Adriatic sea named Lignano Sabbiadoro. The objective of his research is the data analysis and the modelling of the water quality of both coastal aquifer and surface water with focus on pathogens.
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