Assistant Professor
161 Rich Laboratory
342 Computer Court
Anderson, SC 29625
864.656.5568
E-mail: spopat@clemson.edu
Ph.D., Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of California, Riverside, 2010
B.E., Chemical Engineering, Sardar Patel University, India, 2006
Classes | Publications | Honors | CV
Personal Homepage: http://www.popatlab.com/
Faculty Overview
Dr. Sudeep Popat joined the Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences at Clemson University in Fall 2016 as an Assistant Professor. Prior to his appointment at Clemson, Dr. Popat spent six years in the Swette Center for Environmental Biotechnology at the Biodesign Institute of Arizona State University, first as a postdoctoral research associate from 2010 to 2012, and most recently as Associate Research Scientist since 2014. Dr. Popat has a Ph.D. in Chemical and Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Riverside, in 2010.
Dr. Popat’s primary research interests lie in the field of environmental biotechnology, with a specific recent focus on anaerobic technologies for sustainable wastewater treatment. One of these technologies is the microbial electrochemical cell platform, within which Dr. Popat has focused on several fundamental and applied aspects in the past few years. Most notably, Dr. Popat uses a combination of Chemical and Process Engineering principles, knowledge of electrochemistry concepts and use of electroanalytical techniques, and the application of molecular microbial tools, to study and improve microbial electrochemical cells for energy and resource recovery from domestic and industrial wastewaters. Another area of active interest is anaerobic co-digestion of sludge with other organic waste. Dr. Popat’s prior work also includes research in the areas of reductive dehalogenation of chlorinated ethenes, anaerobic digestion of municipal sludge, and gas-phase bioreactors for waste gas treatment and air pollution control. Dr. Popat’s research has resulted in >20 peer-reviewed publications, including in reputed journals such as Environmental Science & Technology, Water Research, Bioresource Technology, Langmuir and ChemSusChem.
Class Information
For current syllabi, please search the Clemson University Syllabus Repository.
EES 3040 Wastewater Treatment Systems
EES 3050 Water and Wastewater Treatment Laboratory
Selected Publications
Lusk, B.G., Peraza, I., Albal, G., Marcus, A.K., Popat, S.C., Torres, C.I., 2018. pH Dependency in Anode Biofilms of Thermincola ferriacetica Suggests a Proton-Dependent Electrochemical Response. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 140, 5527–5534. doi:10.1021/jacs.8b01734
Ki, D., Popat, S.C., Rittmann, B.E., Torres, C.I. 2017. H2O2 production in microbial electrochemical cells fed with primary sludge. Environmental Science & Technology, in press.
Ki, D., Parameswaran, P., Popat, S.C., Rittmann, B.E., Torres, C.I., 2017. Maximizing Coulombic recovery and solids reduction from primary sludge by controlling retention time and pH in a flat-plate microbial electrolysis cell. Environ. Sci. Water Res. Technol. 3, 333–339. doi:10.1039/C6EW00305B
Madjarov, J., Popat, S.C., Erben, J., Götze, A., Zengerle, R., Kerzenmacher, S., 2017. Revisiting methods to characterize bioelectrochemical systems: The influence of uncompensated resistance (iRu-drop), double layer capacitance, and junction potential. J. Power Sources. doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2017.03.033
Young, M.N., Chowdhury, N., Garver, E., Evans, P.J., Popat, S.C., Rittmann, B.E., Torres, C.I., 2017. Understanding the impact of operational conditions on performance of microbial peroxide producing cells. J. Power Sources. doi:10.1016/j.jpowsour.2017.03.107
Patel, M.J., Popat, S.C., Deshusses, M.A., 2017. Determination and correlation of the partition coefficients of 48 volatile organic and environmentally relevant compounds between air and silicone oil. Chem. Eng. J. 310, 72–78. doi:10.1016/j.cej.2016.10.086
Young, M.N., Links, M.J., Popat, S.C., Rittmann, B.E., Torres, C.I., 2016. Tailoring Microbial Electrochemical Cells for Production of Hydrogen Peroxide at High Concentrations and Efficiencies. ChemSusChem 9, 3345–3352. doi:10.1002/cssc.201601182
Ki, D., Popat, S.C., Torres, C.I., 2016. Reduced overpotentials in microbial electrolysis cells through improved design, operation, and electrochemical characterization. Chem. Eng. J. 287, 181–188. doi:10.1016/j.cej.2015.11.022
Lusk, B.G., Parameswaran, P., Popat, S.C., Rittmann, B.E., Torres, C.I., 2016. The effect of pH and buffer concentration on anode biofilms of Thermincola ferriacetica. Bioelectrochemistry 112, 47–52. doi:10.1016/j.bioelechem.2016.07.007
Popat, S.C., Torres, C.I., 2016. Critical transport rates that limit the performance of microbial electrochemistry technologies. Bioresour. Technol. 215, 265–273. doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2016.04.136
Awards & Honors
Young Investigator Oral Presenter, American Society for Microbiology General Meeting, 2014
Discovery Award for Best Scientific Paper, International Society for Microbial Electrochemistry and Technology, 2012
Achievement Award for Contribution to Start-up Company, Arizona Technology Enterprises, 2012
Best Presentation, North American meeting of International Society for Microbial Electrochemistry and Technology, 2012
Air & Waste Management Association Student Scholarship, 2009
Kreiger & Stewart, Inc. Student Fellowship, 2009
Best Paper, Air & Waste Management Association West Coast Section, 2009
Best Poster (Sustainability Category), Air & Waste Management Association Annual Conference and Exhibition, 2008
Best Poster (Ph. D. Student Category), Air & Waste Management Association Annual Conference and Exhibition, 2008
Dean’s Distinguished Fellowship, University of California, Riverside , 2006
