John Heiser

Brookhaven National Laboratory

Environmental and Climate Sciences Department
Bldg. 815, Room 2-38
P.O. Box 5000
Upton, NY 11973-5000

(631) 344-4405
heiser@bnl.gov

Expertise | Education | Publications | Highlights

Expertise

• Large-scale, field operations including atmospheric dispersion studies, environmental remediation technology demonstrations and environmental monitoring.
• Tracer technologies including indoor and outdoor dispersion/transport studies. Designing low-power, high-quantity, equipment for remote locations (e.g., battery-powered low flow dispersion systems, rack-mounted release and sampling systems for use in the upper troposphere to lower stratosphere).
• Environmental investigation of hazardous material transport including air and water transport, in-situ treatment technologies for hazardous and radioactive contamination, verification and monitoring technologies for subsurface barriers and cap/cover systems and development of advanced engineering solutions for containment, solidification and stabilization of hazardous waste.

Education

• Adelphi University, M.S., Physical Chemistry
• Long Island University, B.S., Chemistry

Selected Publications

• Kalb PD, Heiser J, Huang D, McMahon A, Xu C (2019) Advanced Solar and Load Forecasting Incorporating HD Sky Imaging: BNL Phase II Activities (Final Report). doi: 10.2172/1514496
• Heiser J (2019) Meteorological services annual data report for 2018. doi: 10.2172/1492768
• Heiser J (2018) Meteorological services annual data report for 2017. doi: 10.2172/1424992
• Heiser J, Smith S (2017) Meteorological services annual data report for 2016. doi: 10.2172/1341709
• Heiser J, Smith S (2016) Meteorological services annual data report for 2015. doi: 10.2172/1335385
• Peng Z, Yu D, Huang D, Heiser J, Kalb P (2016) A hybrid approach to estimate the complex motions of clouds in sky images. Solar Energy 138:10–25. doi: 10.1016/j.solener.2016.09.002
• Haupt SE, Kosovic B, Jensen T, Lazo JK, Lee JA, Jiménez PA, Cowie J, Wiener G, McCandless TC, Rogers M, Miller S, Sengupta M, Xie Y, Hinkelman L, Kalb P, Heiser J (2018) Building the Sun4Cast System: Improvements in Solar Power Forecasting. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society 99:121–136. doi: 10.1175/bams-d-16-0221.1
• Heiser J, Smith S (2015) Meteorological Services Annual Data Report for 2014. doi: 10.2172/1176994
• Peng Z, Yu D, Huang D, Heiser J, Yoo S, Kalb P (2015) 3D cloud detection and tracking system for solar forecast using multiple sky imagers. Solar Energy 118:496–519. doi: 10.1016/j.solener.2015.05.037
• Heiser J (2013) Brookhaven National Laboratory meteorological services instrument calibration plan and procedures. doi: 10.2172/1122728
• Heiser J, Smith S (2013) Meteorological services annual data report for 2012. doi: 10.2172/1122730
• Heiser J, Furey M (2008) Application of Polymeric Agents for Improved Soil Decontamination. doi: 10.2172/973599

Research Highlights

• Head of BNL Meteorological Services, which operates and maintains the BNL meteorological network. This group provides data to the site and researchers. The data is used for emergency operations, in transport modeling for dose assessment, in local climatological research, etc. The group maintains a 100 meter tower, a 10 meter tower, the data acquisition building and database (both current and historical).
• Meteorological monitoring at the 32MW solar farm located in Upton, NY. The Meteorological Services group installed and maintains solar irradiance and meteorological sensors within the farm. The sensors include 64 SP-Lite2s distributed at 25 locations (near inverter boxes) as well as air temperature, panel temperature, relative humidity and soil temperatures (under array and walkway). In addition, we maintain a solar irradiance base station that includes a pyrheliometer (CHP-1), a pyrgeometer (CGR-4), shaded and unshaded research grade pyranometers (CMP-22), one reference solar panal (identical to the solar farm panels) and reference SP-Lite2s mounted horizontal and in-plane (matching the solar farm). The group also collects and maintains the database for these sensors.
• Principle Investigator for Lidar development effort in support of Office of Naval Research Program for the Encapsulated Perfluorocarbon Tracer Tag, Track and Location System. BNL is developing a mini-LIDAR for the effective stand-off detection of an enhanced duration Perfluorocarbon tracer (PFT) taggant. Based on a CO2 infrared laser, the goal of this project is the stand-off detection of a PFT, in air, at levels of 0.01ppb-m at 0.5 km.
• Principle Investigator for “Perfluorocarbon Tracer Support for AFTAC Atmospheric Studies”. In this program, BNL was tasked to give technical assistance in designing a 500 to 1000 km atmospheric tracer dispersion study and to design, build and test a complimentary tracer release system that was low power, compact and could be used in remote locations.
• Principle Investigator for “Tracer Studies – Urban Dispersion Program”. The objective of the New York City Urban Dispersion Program (UDP) [2004-2007] was to study air flow in an urban environment, which would allow validation of transport models. This was the largest urban atmospheric transport study completed to date. Data collected during these studies are being used to improve and validate computer models that simulate the atmospheric movement of contaminants within cities, and around, into and within building interiors. The first of the field studies occurred in March, 2005 and a second, larger field study was completed in August 2005. This second study also contained a subway dispersion test.
• Principle Investigator for “Using Mini-LIDAR for Verification and Long-term Monitoring of Cover Systems”. This project developed a LIDAR system that can be used for standoff detection of PFTs in the air.
• Principle Investigator for “Development of Perfluorocarbon Tracer Technology for Verification of Cover Performance”. This program successfully performed proof-of-concept testing of a cover verification technology that uses of gaseous perfluorocarbon tracers to measure cover performance. As a secondary objective, we also demonstrated a field-deployable PFT detection system
• Principal Investigator for "Stabilization/Containment Systems". The primary objective of this project was to develop and demonstrate at a field-scale, emplacement of a close-coupled barrier technology capable of containing waste forms within their existing subsurface disposal or storage structures. Engineering developments included dual-fluid jet grouting to allow the use of acrylic polymer grouts. The PFT technology was successfully deployed at a test site and at two subsurface barrier demonstrations.
• Provided technical assistance to DOE In Situ Stabilization projects in determining which grouts will be viable candidates for in situ stabilization.
• Joint research project with the Russian Research Center, "Kurchatov Institute" in Moscow, Russia, to gain a better understanding of the performance of waste packages in the Kara Sea.