{"id":93933,"date":"2019-11-22T16:11:33","date_gmt":"2019-11-22T22:11:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/?p=93933"},"modified":"2019-12-02T10:03:54","modified_gmt":"2019-12-02T16:03:54","slug":"um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"UM Alumnus Leads ERDC’s Water Development Research Projects"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

UM chemical engineering alumnus John Brasher works for the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center in Vicksburg. Submitted photo<\/p><\/div>\n

From finding solutions for wastewater remediation to creating nanomaterials for use by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, John Brasher (BSChE 12) has proven to excel at research.<\/p>\n

\u201cA huge piece of process engineering is the idea of \u2018process improvement,\u2019\u201d said Brasher, a research chemical engineer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers\u2019 Engineer Research and Development Center<\/a> in Vicksburg. \u201cYou ask yourself the \u2018why\u2019 question over and over until you reach the true point of failure or core problem. I fell in love with this core mechanism\/philosophy, and it ultimately drove my professional interest to the field of research, the ultimate field of \u2018whys.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Over the past year, the University of Mississippi chemical engineering<\/a> alumnus has worked with various teams to help solve some of the Army\u2019s and Department of Defense\u2019s water-related issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve worked in wastewater remediation for Army ammunition plants as well as the removal of per- & polyfluoroalkyl substances from DOD water sources,\u201d he said. \u201cOutside of environmental work, I also perform research on the creation of advanced and composite nanomaterials for polyurethane applications within the DOD.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brasher said one of his most rewarding achievements was the removal of halogenated fire retardants from production-grade polyurethane foams.<\/p>\n

\u201cHalogenated fire retardants have been in consumer products for years,\u201d he said. \u201cHowever, these particular chemicals have been found to be carcinogenic. I was tasked with the removal of the company\u2019s formulations within our division while being able to maintain the required anti-flammability specifications.\u201d<\/p>\n

This particular project took over a year with a significant level of trial and error, but in the end Brasher said it was successful.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was the first project that really taught me the values of patience and perseverance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also has overseen various capital projects. Over his career thus far, Brasher has managed the process of identifying plant or facility problems; scoping out potential solutions; providing economic, safety or environmental justifications for the potential solutions; overseeing the construction of the solution; and eventually leading the implementation, startup and optimization of the solution.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve gone through this exercise several times, and each time has been rewarding in its own way,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Originally from Hernando, Brasher said he decided to attend UM for several reasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cOutside of the academic prestige that comes alongside being a graduate of the University of Mississippi<\/a>, one of the bigger influencers to my decision to attend Ole Miss was family history with the university,\u201d Brasher said. \u201cI have many members of my extended family that have attended and received at least a bachelor\u2019s degree from UM.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of Brasher\u2019s favorite undergraduate professors was John O\u2019Haver, chair and professor of chemical engineering.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy personal favorite (class) of his was Chemical Engineering Economics,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m not sure if that\u2019s still offered, but I found it to be incredibly entertaining. More importantly, though, was the direct impact it has had on my career managing large capital projects.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Haver remembers Brasher as \u201ca sharp, quiet, hardworking student.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe has been a great alumnus, working to get co-ops, internships and job placement for our graduates,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Brasher said he also enjoyed taking Peter Sukanek\u2019s plant design and fluids courses.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat may have to do with the long hours spent on project work for the classes, but I feel like those courses best prepared me for \u2018real-world\u2019 engineering,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Brasher is pursuing his Master of Science degree in polymer science and engineering at the University of Southern Mississippi. His anticipated graduation date is May 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy first seven years of experience upon graduation were spent in the field of process engineering in the plastics industry and the oil and gas industry,\u201d he said. \u201cI like to describe process engineering in chemical plants as the application of engineered solutions to large-scale thermodynamic systems.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brasher said that without the education and preparation he received through UM\u2019s chemical engineering program, he never would have been able to handle or understand any level of what he\u2019s done professionally.<\/p>\n

Brasher and his wife, Jordan, live in Clinton and have a daughter, Katherine. Brasher’s hobbies include playing electric guitar and designing\/building guitar effects.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From finding solutions for wastewater remediation to creating nanomaterials for use by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, John Brasher (BSChE 12) has proven to excel at research. \u201cA huge piece of process engineering is the idea of \u2018process improvement,\u2019\u201d said Brasher, a research chemical engineer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers\u2019 Engineer ResearchRead the story …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1388,178],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nUM Alumnus Leads ERDC's Water Development Research Projects - Ole Miss News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UM Alumnus Leads ERDC's Water Development Research Projects - Ole Miss News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"From finding solutions for wastewater remediation to creating nanomaterials for use by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, John Brasher (BSChE 12) has proven to excel at research. \u201cA huge piece of process engineering is the idea of \u2018process improvement,\u2019\u201d said Brasher, a research chemical engineer in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers\u2019 Engineer ResearchRead the story …\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Ole Miss News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-11-22T22:11:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2019-12-02T16:03:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/John-Brasher-1-2048x1150.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@OleMissRebels\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@OleMissRebels\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/\",\"name\":\"Ole Miss News\",\"description\":\"The official source for University of Mississippi news\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/?s={search_term_string}\",\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects\/#primaryimage\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/web20.olemiss.edu\/news\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/John-Brasher-1-2048x1150.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/news.olemiss.edu\/um-alumnus-leads-erdcs-water-development-research-projects\/\",\"name\":\"UM Alumnus Leads ERDC's Water Development Research Projects - 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