The Speaker
James Ranville is Professor at the Department of Chemistry & Geochemistry, Colorado School of Mines, USA. He obtained his BS from Lake Superior State University and MS and PhD from Colorado School of Mines, USA. His postdoctoral study was conducted at Monash University, Australia. Part of James' research involves the role of colloids and particles in environmental processes. Environmental colloids can be described as particles smaller than one micrometer. They can make up a significant proportion of suspended sediments and are important in that they: effectively bind pollutants; do not readily settle out of surface waters; and are mobile in groundwaters. Consequently they can facilitate the transport of pollutants. Currently not much is known about the abundance and properties of environmental colloids. Much of his work has been involved in the development of methods to collect and analyze colloids from rivers, reservoirs, mountain streams, soil solutions, and groundwaters.