Derek D. Bussan

Dr. Bussan oversees the operations of the newly constructed 92,500-square-foot USGS-owned HIF. Located near the University of Alabama campus, the HIF is the only facility of its kind in America. The HIF plays a crucial role in protecting America's inland water navigation systems, which are vital arteries for moving fuel and mineral resources that power the Nation. The facility includes a 350'x18'x10' tow tank, a separate test basin with a wave maker, a 200' tilting flume for controlled flow experiments, an Acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) tank for flow measurement studies, and a wind tunnel generator capable of producing winds up to 160 mph.

Dr. Bussan’s team supports uninterrupted maritime transport of clean coal, crude oil, LNG, and critical rare-earth elements required for advanced manufacturing, national defense, and grid-scale energy storage. These resources drive domestic prosperity and bolster America's strategic advantage in global supply chains. Their work at HIF keeps commercial navigation routes open during floods, droughts, and natural disasters, safeguarding jobs, industry, and trade while ensuring that the U.S. remains energy-dominant and globally competitive. This role is mission-critical to protecting the movement of domestic energy and strategic mineral commodities via inland waterways.

Prior to his current role, Dr. Bussan served as a Research Chemistry Manager at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Grand Forks, ND, from 2023 through 2024. There, he led the Nutritional Analytic Laboratory, managing its budget and equipment procurement. He directed complex research projects, developing strategies for method advancement, and conducted comprehensive analyses on environmental chemistry, focusing on reducing mercury contamination. He also implemented procedures to enhance lab operations, ensuring high data quality and compliance.

Dr. Bussan holds a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Mississippi, an MBA from Eastern Kentucky University, an M.S. in Inorganic Chemistry from Oklahoma State University, and a B.A. in General Chemistry with a minor in Mathematics from the University of Iowa. He is an active member of the American Society of Nutrition and the American Chemical Society and serves on the editorial boards of Biological Trace Element Research and the Journal of Distilling Science. His research interests include applying advanced analytical chemistry techniques in nutrition, especially in trace elemental and organic analysis in biological matrices. He has authored and co-authored numerous peer-reviewed articles on topics ranging from the authentication of Baijiu spirit samples by fluorescence spectroscopy to the quantification of trace elements in surgical and KN95 face masks and the global application landscape of ICP-OES.