Research

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Jeffrey T.F. Ashley 
Research Interests

I conduct the majority of my research through my appointment as research scientist at the Academy of Natural Sciences' Patrick Center for Environmental Research.  My research interests may be broadly defined as organic biogeochemistry.  Specifically, my past and current research interests are: 

-sources, transport, and fate of bioaccumulative, persistent organic contaminants in natural waters (particularly urbanized/industrialized estuaries); modeling the bioaccumulation of pollutants in aquatic food webs; the role of eutrophication in determining organic contaminant exposure to organisms; environmental analytical chemistry, contaminated fisheries.

Joe Perillo of the Fisheries Department of the Academy of Natural Sciences sections a striped bass fillet in preparation for organic contaminant analysis.

The analysis often includes the quantification of such analytes as: polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and organochlorinated pesticides (OCPs).
Philadelphia student Paul Szeglia prepares to Soxhlet extract homogenized fish samples.  Students taking C193 (Instrumental Methods of Analysis) spend three weeks conducting "inquiry based laboratory experiments" at my  laboratory at the Academy of Natural Sciences.

Some recently funded projects are:

Using sediment quality triad to characterize toxic conditions in the Chesapeake Bay. McGee, Fisher, Velinsky, and Ashley (1999-2000) USEPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program ($48, 871)

Assessing the magnitude of nonylphenol contamination adjacent to suspected sources in the Delaware Estuary. Ashley and Velinsky (1999-2001) Philadelphia Environmental Associates ($9,900)

A comparison of PCB congener accumulation in American eels and striped bass from the Hudson and Delaware Rivers. Ashley (2000-2001) Hudson River Foundation ($11,555)

Deposition and Spatial Distribution of Sediment-bound Contaminants in the Anacostia River, District of Columbia. Velinsky, Ashley, Church and Hussain (2000-2001) Anacostia Watershed Toxics Alliance ($93,972)

Delaware River Estuary Bioaccumulation Field Study. Ashley, Baker, Secor and Velinsky (2001-2002) Delaware River Basin Commission ($243,492).

Assessment of the Water Quality of the Tidal Anacostia River: Trace Metals and Organic Contaminants. Velinsky, Ashley, and Riedel (2001-2002) Bureau of Environmental Quality, Washington, D.C. Department of Health. ($187,872)

Spatial and Temporal Variability in Food Web Structures in the Delaware River Estuary. Ashley, Horwitz and Velinsky. (2001-2002). Environmental Associates of Philadelphia. ($40,300).

Using the Sediment Quality Triad and Integrative Water Sampling Devices to Characterize Chemical Contaminant Impacts in Chesapeake Bay Tributaries. McGee, Fisher, Velinsky, Ashley and Riedel. Chesapeake Bay Program. ($144,422).

Implementing Guided-Inquiry Laboratories Utilizing Gas-Chromatography Mass-Spectrometry in the Chemistry/Biochemistry Majors Sequence. Longfellow, Ashley and Bhat. National Science Foundation. ($65,000)

 
These pages maintained by ashleyj@philau.edu 
Last Updated 01/26/2010