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Bonnie McDevitt

Bonnie McDevitt is a Mendenhall Postdoctoral Research Engineer with the U.S. Geological Survey Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center in Reston, VA.

Bonnie is a Mendenhall Fellow working within the Research Opportunity “Reuse and treatment of high salinity waters produced from hydrocarbon wells.” Her current research focuses on radium removal from produced waters utilizing optimized barite seeding and AMD-sourced iron and manganese oxide sorption. Bonnie obtained her B.S. from the University of Delaware in 2012 and her Ph.D. from the Pennsylvania State University Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering in 2020. She worked for 3 years in the drinking water and domestic wastewater treatment industry prior to starting her Ph.D.

Professional Experience

  • 2016-2020: Graduate teaching and research assistant, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA

  • 2015-2016: Apprentice Water/Wastewater Operator & Lab technician, Wrightstown Municipal Utilities Authority, Wrightstown, NJ

  • 2013-2016: Source Water Protection Specialist, New Jersey Water Association, Waretown, NJ

Education and Certifications

  • Ph.D. Environmental Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, 2020

  • B.S. Wildlife Conservation, Agriculture & Natural Resources, University of Delaware, 2012

Science and Products

Dissolved organic matter within oil and gas associated wastewaters from U.S. unconventional petroleum plays: Comparisons and consequences for disposal and reuse

Wastewater generated during petroleum extraction (produced water) may contain high concentrations of dissolved organics due to their intimate association with organic-rich source rocks, expelled petroleum, and organic additives to fluids used for hydraulic fracturing of unconventional (e.g., shale) reservoirs. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) within produced water represents a challenge for treatmen
Authors
Bonnie McDevitt, Aaron M. Jubb, Matthew S. Varonka, Madalyn S. Blondes, Mark A Engle, Tanya J. Gallegos, Jenna L. Shelton
By
Energy Resources Program, Mineral Resources Program, National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Brine Research Instrumentation and Experimental (BRInE) Laboratory

Absorbance and Fluorescence Excitation-Emission Matrix Data for Produced Waters from Oil and Gas Producing Basins in the United States

Waters co-produced during petroleum extraction are normally considered wastes but are also possible resources, especially in water-stressed regions. Produced waters can be chemically complex. High salinity, naturally occurring radioactive materials, and organic substances derived from the producing formation can complicate treatment processes. Rapid screening methods to characterize produced water
By
Energy Resources Program, Geology, Energy & Minerals Science Center, Brine Research Instrumentation and Experimental (BRInE) Laboratory

Science and Products