This award is to support a cooperative research between Dr. Jay Meegoda, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), Newark, New Jersey and Dr. Samer Ezeldin, Construction Engineering Department, American University in Cairo (AUC), Cairo, Egypt. They plan to study the Management of Environmental Problems in Egypt. The proper management of municipal solid waste (MSW) and wastewater are major challenges to Egyptian communities. The investigators will develop a comprehensive environmental management program to address urban municipal solid waste and rural wastewater problems. Solutions developed from the environmental management program are expected to assess the different performance aspects in terms of their effectiveness as well as their economical benefits. These goals are to be achieved through mathematical models as well as extensive experimental simulations that are coupled with laboratory testing and subsequent field verifications. The proposed research is built upon the expertise and current research of the investigators in this arena from both New NJIT and the AUC. The facilities needed for successful completion of the project are available at both institutions. Research findings will be disseminated through publication in journals, conference proceedings, short courses and the Internet.
Scope and broad Impact: The proposed research is expected to provide cost effective, adaptable and sustainable solutions to municipal solid waste and wastewater problems of Egypt. The private sector and municipal authorities are the end users of this project. The project activities include the participation of graduate and undergraduate students. The undergraduates will be mainly recruited from underrepresented groups, through a research experience for undergraduates (REU) program at NJIT. International research opportunities are provided to a graduate student who will visit Egypt to meet AUC collaborators. One Egyptian Ph.D. student is to be trained at NJIT and a number of U.S. Masters students are to be trained at the AUC. This project is being supported under the US-Egypt Joint Fund Program, which provides grants to scientists and engineers in both countries to carry out these cooperative activities.
