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Kansas Geological Survey scientist emeritus receives Water Legacy Award
LAWRENCE — Donald Whittemore, scientist emeritus at the Kansas Geological Survey whose groundbreaking work toward understanding and addressing a wide range of water resources issues in Kansas has touched every corner of the state, is the recipient of the Water Legacy Award, presented by the Kansas Water Office. Whittemore received the award during the 2022 Governor’s Conference on the Future of Water in Kansas, which was Nov. 16 in Manhattan.
Petroleum engineering professor wins international ‘Breakthrough Research of the Year’ award
LAWRENCE — Masoud Kalantari, associate professor of chemical & petroleum engineering at the University of Kansas, leads a group that is developing a system to make hydraulic fracturing more efficient for energy producers. The project was honored in early November with the “Breakthrough Research of the Year” award at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference, sponsored by the Society of Petroleum Engineers.
KU Engineering student receives prestigious Boren Award
LAWRENCE — Anthony Moon, a University of Kansas junior in civil engineering from Overland Park, has been awarded a David L. Boren Scholarship for $25,000 to study in Seoul, South Korea. The scholarships are sponsored by the National Security Education Program, a federal initiative designed to build a broader and more qualified pool of U.S. citizens with foreign language and international skills. Moon is a member of KU Naval ROTC and graduate of Blue Valley Northwest High School.
Full stories below.
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Contact: Julie Tollefson, Kansas Geological Survey, 785-864-2114, [email protected]
Kansas Geological Survey scientist emeritus receives Water Legacy Award
LAWRENCE — Donald Whittemore, scientist emeritus at the Kansas Geological Survey whose groundbreaking work toward understanding and addressing a wide range of water resources issues in Kansas has touched every corner of the state, is the recipient of the Water Legacy Award, presented by the Kansas Water Office.
Whittemore received the award, which recognizes significant contributions and lasting impacts on the future of water in the state, during the 2022 Governor’s Conference on the Future of Water in Kansas, which was Nov. 16 in Manhattan.
“Don, more than any other individual in the last century, has significantly enhanced our knowledge of Kansas groundwater and surface water resources,” said KGS senior scientist Jim Butler, who worked closely with Whittemore for more than 30 years and nominated him for the award. “Odds are high that if there’s a water issue facing the state, Don has seen it, studied it and can accurately comment on it. The state is incredibly fortunate that he chose to devote his career to Kansas water issues.”
Among his accomplishments, Whittemore developed a saltwater “fingerprinting” method used by state agencies and consultants to differentiate natural saltwater from saltwater contamination originating in oilfield brines, a significant source of groundwater pollution in central Kansas.
“Don’s work has been central to helping identify and control that contamination, driving everything from remediation efforts to litigation,” Butler said.
Over four decades, Whittemore’s water chemistry work resulted in a better understanding of water quality in Kansas aquifers and surface water on multiple fronts — groundwater pollution in the Equus Beds aquifer, one of the primary sources of water for Wichita; potable water prospects for the Dakota aquifer in western and central Kansas; prospects for groundwater-fed irrigation in western and south-central Kansas; and bromide problems in the Kansas River, among others.
“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to conduct research and service of value related to the water resources of Kansas,” Whittemore said. “Receiving the award is special to me because it means that water information users in Kansas have recognized the value of the work, as well as acknowledging the importance of research and data contributions from scientists and engineers in the state in general.”
Connie Owen, director of the Kansas Water Office, presented the award and noted that Whittemore is the first scientist to receive it. Previous awards have recognized the roles of agency heads and policymakers. “He truly leaves a legacy of knowledge that will be relied upon for generations, at the state, national and global levels,” Owen said.
Whittemore retired in 2017 after 44 years, but he continues to work with the KGS on several projects, including continuing his long-term efforts to bring greater attention to uranium contamination in the Arkansas River and High Plains aquifer in western Kansas. The uranium is naturally derived but is concentrated by evapotranspiration associated with irrigation and shallow reservoirs. The result is that the concentration of uranium in the Arkansas River as it crosses into Kansas from Colorado is above the maximum contaminant level set by the Environmental Protection Agency, a concern when the water is then used to irrigate fields or seeps into the aquifer west of Garden City.
“Without his commitment, the state would still largely be in the dark about this important issue for the future of Garden City and the agricultural areas to its immediate west,” Butler said.
The Kansas Geological Survey is a nonregulatory research and service division of the University of Kansas. KGS researchers study and provide information about the state’s geologic resources and hazards, including groundwater, oil and natural gas, rocks and minerals, and earthquakes.
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Contact: Cody Howard, School of Engineering, 785-864-2936, [email protected], @kuengineering
Petroleum engineering professor wins international ‘Breakthrough Research of the Year’ award
LAWRENCE — A University of Kansas professor researcher has been honored with one of the energy industry’s most prestigious awards.
Masoud Kalantari, associate professor of chemical & petroleum engineering at KU, leads a group — which includes UCLA, MicroSilicon Inc. and EOG Resources Inc. — that is developing a system to make hydraulic fracturing more efficient for energy producers. The project was honored in early November with the “Breakthrough Research of the Year” award at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition & Conference (ADIPEC), sponsored by the Society of Petroleum Engineers.
The award is a “significant achievement,” Kalantari said. “It gives me and my team a great feeling in terms of being highly recognized in the international domain in presence of top oil and gas companies CEOs and energy ministers.”
“I am exceptionally proud of Dr. Kalantari and his team for being recognized for Breakthrough Research of the Year at the 2022 ADIPEC Awards,” said Susan Williams, chair of the Department of Chemical & Petroleum Engineering at KU. The research will have a significant impact on the economics and sustainability of the oil and gas industry, she said, and the partnership with UCLA, MicroSilicon and EOG Resources “provides an exceptional educational experience for our students at the University of Kansas.”
Hydraulic fracturing has been in widespread use for more than a decade to capture hard-to-reach oil in tricky geological formations, but it is an inefficient process: Energy companies rely on mostly indirect diagnostic methods to figure out where the fracks go and in mapping the fractures they’ve created to capture the most oil and gas at the smallest cost.
Kalantari’s $3.49 million project funded by the Department of Energy has been underway since 2019. It involves developing and field-testing wireless, battery-less, fine-size (as small as 250 micrometers, equal to 100 proppant size) smart microchip sensors coupled with a physics-informed, AI-based, iGeo-sensing platform that enables real-time, cost-efficient, continuous, high-resolution and “direct” fracture diagnostics.
The new technology will give engineers a better picture of complex subsurface fracture geometry, which means companies won’t have to drill so many unnecessary wells so they can minimize the environmental footprint and maximize profits to help achieve their net carbon zero goals.
ADIPEC is the world’s largest and most influential annual gathering of the energy industry. More than 160,000 people from 164 countries gathered in Abu Dhabi for the conference.
Kalantari’s project was chosen as a finalist — out of more than 1,000 entries for the 10 award categories — by a jury of experts that included executives and professionals from major energy companies, academics and members of other energy industry organizations. The awards jury included the ministers of energy and petroleum from the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, as well as the CEOs of several oil companies such as Occidental and Baker Hughes.
Among the attendees at the award ceremony was Linda Zarda Cook, a KU engineering alumna who now serves as CEO of Harbour Energy, a London-based oil and gas company.
“I was so happily surprised to see KU nominated for the first award presented that evening and then to be announced as the winner,” Cook said. “It made me very proud — and I was so pleased to be able to congratulate the recipient after he left the stage and share in his moment.”
Kalantari noted that the other two finalists for the award were both sponsored by Saudi Aramco, further demonstrating that KU researchers are innovating at the highest level. Aramco “has unlimited resources in terms of research and technology and money,” he said.
The award “opens up lots of opportunities for further implementation and deployment of this technology on a commercial scale,” Kalantari said. “But also it adds significant value to the entire research that I do at KU … whatever we do is at the highest possible quality and level and is pretty competitive.”
A trial run of Kalantari’s technology is expected next year in the Permian Basin (a field operated by EOG Resource), which covers much of the southwest United States.
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Contact: Angela Perryman, Office of Study Abroad, 785-864-3742, [email protected]
KU Engineering student receives prestigious Boren Award
LAWRENCE — A University of Kansas junior from Overland Park has been awarded a David L. Boren Scholarship for $25,000 to study at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, in 2023.
Anthony Moon, who is majoring in civil engineering, will complete courses in Korean language, East Asian languages and cultures, and civil engineering during his time abroad.
The David L. Boren Scholarships are sponsored by the National Security Education Program, a component of the Defense Language and National Security Education Office. NSEP is a federal initiative designed to build a broader and more qualified pool of U.S. citizens with foreign language and international skills.
Boren Awards provide U.S. undergraduate students with resources and encouragement to acquire language skills and experience in countries critical to the future security and stability of the United States. In exchange for funding, Boren Award recipients agree to work in the federal government for a period of at least one year.
Moon is the son of Joseph and Moonju Moon of Overland Park and a graduate of Blue Valley Northwest High School.
Moon has chosen to study in South Korea to further his academic studies and build his knowledge and understanding of the Korean language and culture. As a member of KU Naval ROTC, Moon took part in Project Global Office, an intensive language training program designed to support future military officers in the development of the linguistic and cross-cultural communication skills necessary for effective leadership across all branches of service.
During his year abroad at Yonsei University, Moon will continue to build his language capacities and immerse himself fully in Korean life. Additionally, as an individual of Korean descent, Moon hopes to learn more about himself, his heritage and how he can best support diplomatic relations between the U.S. and South Korea as a future naval officer.
This year, the Institute of International Education, which administers the awards on behalf of NSEP, received 458 applications from undergraduate students and awarded 208 Boren Scholarships. The selected Boren Scholars will study 38 languages in countries throughout Africa, Asia, Eurasia, Latin America and the Middle East. The most popular languages include Mandarin, Arabic, Russian, Portuguese, Korean, Swahili, Turkish, Japanese and Indonesian.
Since 1994, over 7,400 students have received Boren Awards and contributed their vital skills to careers in support of the critical agency missions throughout the federal government.
An independent not-for-profit founded in 1919, IIE is among the world’s largest and most experienced international education and exchange organizations. Undergraduate and graduate students interested in applying for the Boren Awards should contact IIE at [email protected] or visit borenawards.org.
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