Honors and Awards
- 2016-2019 Advisory Board, Directorate for Engineering of the National Science Foundation
- 2015 Best paper award, ES&T Letters, (1), 26-30, 2014
- 2015 Thompson Reuter’s Highly Cited Researcher (top 1% in Chemistry and in Environment Ecology)
- 2014 AAEES Grand Prize, Excellence in Env. Eng. And Science University Research Award
- 2014 Thompson Reuter’s Highly Cited Researcher (top 1% in Environment/Ecology)
- 2014 Honorary Professor, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing
- 2014 Most downloaded paper in Water Research (Wat. Res. 47, (12), 3931–3946).
- 2013 Most cited paper in Water Research in the last 5 years (Wat. Res. 44:2894-2900)
- 2012 The Athalie Richardson Irvine Clarke Prize
- 2012 South Texas Section AIChE’s Best Fundamental Paper Award
- 2011 Science Advisory Board to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- 2011 Dean of Engineering’s Lecture, Columbia University
- 2010 Most cited paper in the past 5 year, Water Research (Wat. Res. 40(19):3527-3532
- 2010 Top-10 most read paper, ACS nano (ACS Nano, 2010, 4 (7), pp 3580–3590).
- 2010 Honorary Professor, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, China
- 2009 Professor of the Year, ASCE & Chi Epsilon Student Chapters, Rice University
- 2008 Frontier in Research Award, Assoc. of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors
- 2008 Founding Member, Nicaraguan National Academy of Sciences
- 2008 John Henske Distinguished Lecture, Yale University
- 2007 McKee Medal for Groundwater Protection, Restoration or Sustainable Use (WEF)
- 2006 Board of Directors, Strake Jesuit College Preparatory
- 2006 Honorary Professor, Nankai University, Tianjin, China
- 2005-2006 President, Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors
- 2005 Fellow, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE)
- 2004 Reviewer Award, Environmental Science and Technology
- 2003-2006 Board of Directors, Nicaragua’s Water Management Agency (ENACAL)
- 2003 Consul of Nicaragua for Iowa (ad honorem)
- 2003 Best Poster Award, EPA International Applied Phytotechnologies Conference. Chicago, IL
- 2002 Research project of the year award, SERDP cleanup division, Department of Defense.
- 2002-2006 Board of Directors, Assoc. Env. Engrg. and Science Professors (AEESP)
- 2002 Editorial Board Member of Bioremediation and Bioavailability, The Scientific World
- 2000 Awarded the Button of the City of Valencia, Venezuela, by the Mayor of the City
- 2000 Best Student Paper Award, Battelle 6th Bioremediation Symposium, San Diego, CA
- 1998 The UI Collegiate Excellence in Teaching Award, University of Iowa
- 1997 Participant, National Academy of Engineering’s Symposium: Frontiers of Engrg.
- 1997 Best Student Paper Award, WEF 70th Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL
- 1997 Listed in Who’s Who in Science and Engineering
- 1997 Appointed Adjunct Professor, Universidad Autónoma de México, Mexico, D.F.
- 1996 Honored Member, Strathmore’s Who’s Who Register of Business Leaders
- 1996 Listed in Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers and Who’s Who in Environ. Engrg.
- 1996 Awarded the Alejo Zuloaga Medal by the Universidad de Carabobo, Venezuela
- 1995 Inducted into the American Academy of Environmental Engineers, Diplomate Status
- 1995 Career Award, National Science Foundation.
- 1995 Best Paper Award, EPA Hazardous Substance Research Center for Regions 7 and 8
- 1995 Appointed Adjunct Professor, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Brasil
- 1995 Old Gold Summer Fellowship, University of Iowa
- 1994, 2002 Elected to The University of Iowa Faculty Senate
- 1994 Old Gold Summer Fellowship, University of Iowa
- 1992 Outstanding Presentation Award, AIChE Summer Meeting, Minneapolis, MN
- 1992 The Rackham Predoctoral Fellowship, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
- 1991 The Outstanding Achievement Award in Environmental Engineering, U. of Michigan