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Technical Tours

Expand your knowledge and attend on site tours of Raleigh facilities on the cutting-edge of technology and environmental practices.       
                                                      

Monday, June 9
UNC Human Studies Facility Tour
1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

The EPA Human Studies Facility, located on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is home to the EPA's Human Studies Division. This facility is distinguished by unique, state-of-the-art exposure systems designed for studying the health effects of airborne pollutants on volunteer human subjects or on cell cultures. The facility is primarily intended for research to support EPA standards and regulations, but other scientists may use it. On this tour, participants will see:

Rochester-style exposure chambers with the capability to deliver ozone, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, and volatile organic compounds (VOC’s). These stainless-steel chambers can be equipped with exercise treadmills, spirometers for measuring basic lung function, minute ventilation systems for determining breathing patterns and other respiratory parameters, and telemetry for recording the electrocardiogram.

Audiometric Isolation Rooms with the capability to deliver carbon monoxide and VOC’s. The rooms are used to investigate the effects of gaseous pollutants on activities requiring high levels of mental concentration. Each pair of chambers contains a clean air control room and an exposure room.

Concentrated Air Particle System (CAPS), which supports EPA’s particulate matter research program. It concentrates outside ambient air particles and separates them by size. The concentrated airstream is then diluted with clean, conditioned air and delivered to the human exposure chamber. The airstream can be monitored for particle mass and size, and samples can be collected for later analysis.

In Vitro Chamber Exposure Systems consisting of four small, paired exposure chambers housed in incubators. Each pair of chambers contains a clean air control chamber and an exposure chamber. Pollution generation and chamber control systems are computer-controlled and monitored using real-time analyzers.

Cost: $45 Includes transportation. 

Tuesday, June 10
Enthalpy Analytical Laboratory Tour
2:00 pm – 4:30 pm

Founded in 1993, Enthalpy Analytical is a national network of accredited environmental laboratories. This tour will explore the company's 25,000 sq. ft. facility in Durham, which focuses on air quality. Participants will see:

GC: 
  • EPA Methods 18, 24 and 15, NCASI A105 and 98.01, Karl Fischer titrations
  • Typically, ppm and % level quantification -Source
GCMS: 
  • EPA Methods TO-15 and 5021A, Radiello130 analysis
  • Typically, ppb or ppt level quantification -Ambient
325B Fenceline Group:
  • Sample analysis via Thermal Desorption-Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (TD-GCMS)
  • Benzene and other hazardous organic compounds
Metals Group:
  • EPA Methods 29, 306, 101A, for Stack and IO-3.1/3.5 and NIOSH 7303 for Ambient
  • Sample analysis via ICPMS or ICPOES for most metals, CVAAS for mercury
HPLC and Particulate Group:
  • Particulate–EPA Methods 5 and its varieties, 202, OTM-36, 201A and PM2.5/10
  • HPLC–EPA Methods 26/26A, CTM-027, TO-11A and various cation and anion scans
  • Typically, ppb or ppm level quantification
Cost: $45 Includes transportation. 
Wednesday, June 11
EPA Facility Tours 
9:00 am – 1:00 pm

EPA's campus in RTP, North Carolina, houses 15 EPA offices, including EPA's major center for research on air, climate, and energy. The RTP campus covers nearly 1.2 million square feet and is the largest facility ever built by the agency. This tour will visit the EPA RTP campus and three laboratory facilities: Household Energy Laboratory, Environmental Chamber Facility, and Fluid Modeling Facility.

EPA’s Household Energy Laboratory is used to conduct research on air pollutant emissions and fuel efficiency for cook stoves used in low-to-middle-income countries.
 
EPA’s Environmental Chamber Facility consists of a 14.5-m3 fixed-volume chamber used to simulate atmospheric photochemical processes. The chamber can be used for conventional batch experiments or operated in a steady-state mode to maximize sampling time. A suite of analytical instruments allows for the examination of gas and particle phase photochemical products.
 
The Fluid Modeling Facility houses the Meteorological Wind Tunnel and supporting offices. Experimental studies within the laboratory contribute directly to the development and improvement of EPA’s numerical models of pollutant transport and diffusion, which are critical to the development and enforcement of air quality standards and the evaluation of human exposures and associated risk assessments.

Long pants, closed-toe shoes, required. Safety glasses will be provided. The tour is open to U.S. citizens (maximum 40 visitors).  Cost: $45 Includes transportation. 
Wednesday, June 11
Lab Tour at North Carolina State University, Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering
1:00 pm – 4:30 pm

The Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering at NC State University will host a tour to highlight facilities and activities that enable our research and educational mission. The tour will include a short overview presentation on the department and NC State, tours of the new home of CCEE, Fitts-Woolard Hall and of cutting-edge research labs as well as opportunities to interact with researchers. Lab tours are expected to include: 

Air Quality Lab: facilities for air pollution, atmospheric chemistry and aerosol science research ranging from smog chamber studies to emission measurements from mobile and small combustion sources and personal exposure measurements. 
 
Environmental Engineering Research Lab: A cutting-edge facility including diverse instruments and facilities from mass spectrometers for analysis of PFAS and other micropollutants to microbiology and process engineering labs.

Hydraulics Lab: Used to study physical and chemical processes in aquatic systems, including demonstration of large-scale flume for simulation of environmental water flows and their interactions with sediment, vegetation and structures. 

Constructed Facilities Lab: Used to test full-scale structural members and subassemblies to failure to develop more durable and resilient infrastructure.

Transportation Lab:  Used to study traffic congestion and leverage emerging technologies to improve safety and reduce congestion, such as instrumented and autonomous vehicles and advanced driving simulators.

Multifunctional Composites Lab: develops and tests next-generation, structural fiber-composites that can sense, respond, and adapt to their environment via biomimetic behavior such as self-healing and thermal regulation.

Cost: $45 Includes transportation.