Expert Details

Membrane Separation Processes, Water Purification, Waste Water Treatment, Processing, Evaluation

ID: 712443 Minnesota, USA

Expert feels that these techniques have an outstanding future in water purification, wastewater treatment, and food and chemical processing applications. Since 1974, his avocation has been to apply these technologies in industries where their advantages of continuous operation and low energy utilization can be exploited. Expert provides complete testing and all of the design engineering activities required to identify the optimum treatment technology and total system design for a specific application. For processing and wastewater applications, he has the necessary test equipment available, as well as knowledge of all competitive and complimentary technologies.

Expert is active in the engineering evaluation and design of water disinfection technologies, with particular emphasis on ozonation, ultraviolet irradiation, and other advanced oxidation technologies. He has test equipment available for demonstration and evaluation purposes.

He has extensive on-site experience in running wastewater treatment pilot tests, troubleshooting processes and equipment, and in presenting in-depth technical training.

Expert has a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Minnesota (1961) and is a registered Professional Engineer in that state.

He entered the water industry in 1974 as director of sales and marketing for a major manufacturer of membrane elements and systems. In 1980, Expert formed his consulting engineering business, Expert Consulting Co.

Expert specializes in both marketing and technical consulting in high technology separation processes for water purification, wastewater treatment, and food/chemical processing applications. With expertise encompassing virtually all treatment technologies, his clients include manufacturers desiring to produce complete treatment systems or components thereof. He provides total design, construction, installation, and operating services covering the entire spectrum of water purification, wastewater treatment, water recovery, reclamation and reuse, as well as environmentally conscious manufacturing. In addition, he offers market studies, comprehensive training, and educational programs in all areas of water treatment, including complete applications and pilot testing of wastewater streams, necessary for the design of total treatment systems.

Expert has provided consulting services to over 250 clients worldwide, and has extensive expert witness testimony experience.

He has authored more than 300 articles, written several book chapters, presented over 300 lectures in conferences around the world and has been awarded several patents related to water and wastewater treatment technologies.

He is a founding member of the Technical Review Committee for a prestigious magazine, is on the Editorial Advisory Committee of another prestigious magazine, and is on the Editorial Advisory Board for a News team.

Expert is a recipient of both the Award of Merit and Lifetime Member Award from the Water Quality Association and, was the Technical Employer to the Canadian Water Quality Association.

He was the McEllhiney Distinguished lecturer for the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation. In that role, he presented over 35 lectures on groundwater treatment technologies worldwide.

Expert is on the Board of Directors of the American Filtration and Separations Society and is a member of ASPE, NGWA, WQA and other related organizations.

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Education

Year	Degree	Subject	Institution
Year: 1961	Degree: B.S.	Subject: Chemical Engineering	Institution: University of Minnesota

Work History

Years	Employer	Title	Department
Years: 1980 to Present	Employer: Undisclosed	Title: President	Department: Self Employed
Responsibilities: Expert is active in the engineering evaluation and design of water disinfection technologies, with particular emphasis on ozonation, ultraviolet irradiation, and other advanced oxidation technologies. He has test equipment available for demonstration and evaluation purposes.

Government Experience

Years	Agency	Role	Description
Years: 1998 to 2001	Agency: EPA	Role: ETV Field Testing Organization	Description: Performed performance verification testing and report preparation under the requirements of the ETV Program.

International Experience

Years	Country / Region	Summary
Years: 1982 to Present	Country / Region: The Netherlands	Summary: He maintains an office near Amsterdam to better serve clients in most of the European countries. He has extensive overseas travel experience throughout the world.

Career Accomplishments

Associations / Societies
A member of the Water Quality Association and the International Ultraviolet Association. WQA, IO3

Licenses / Certifications
He is a Registered Professional Engineer in MN, VT, and PA.

Professional Appointments
He is a member of the Technical Review Committee for Water Conditioning & Purification magazine, the Editorial Advisory Committee for Industrial Water World, the Editorial Advisory Board of Filtration News and is on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering annual course, “Process Piping Systems Design and Operation.” He is also a peer reviewer for the Journal of Membrane Science. Technical Employer for the Canadian Water Quality Association.

Professional Appointments

He is a member of the Technical Review Committee for Water Conditioning & Purification magazine, the Editorial Advisory Committee for Industrial Water World, the Editorial Advisory Board of Filtration News and is on the faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering annual course, “Process Piping Systems Design and Operation.” He is also a peer reviewer for the Journal of Membrane Science. Technical Employer for the Canadian Water Quality Association.

Awards / Recognition
He is a 200X recipient of the WQA Award of Merit.

Publications and Patents Summary
Expert is the author of numerous publications on fundamentals and applications of membrane technology. He holds three patents.

Additional Experience

Expert Witness Experience
He has participated as an expert witness in about 10 cases, most of which were settled out of court. The manufacturer of ballast water treatment systems sued the manufacturer of metallic wedge wire and screen filters regarding poor performance of the filters in several applications. Was retained to investigate these causes and to generate an expert witness report. A hearing was held in Copenhagen, Denmark on July 12, 2017. The outcome is that Bollfilter prevailed in all issues, and received the entire amount of their counter suit. An under sink reverse osmosis unit was installed in a home. One of the filter housings cracked and leaked water which damaged the house. The plaintiff claimed that the housing was poorly manufactured and cracked as a result. Upon inspection of the cracked housing, a grooved o-ring was identified, likely resulting from improper installation. Obviously, the groove caused leakage, which the installer assumed could be eliminated by tightening. This probably resulted in over tightening which cracked the housing. Prepared and submitted an Expert Report. This case was settled out of court. A senior living facility experienced corrosion in the galvanized piping of their hot water distribution system. The defendants attributed the corrosion to the fact that the plaintiff installed a water softener. Provided a report attesting to the fact that softened water, in and of itself, is not corrosive. The case was settled out of court. A Technician at a kidney dialysis facility in Lufkin, TX was indicted on charges of first degree murder. She was accused of injecting chlorine bleach into the bloodlines of patients undergoing treatment, resulting in two deaths. The water treatment system had had the permanent carbon tanks replaced with temporary ones, and I offered evidence that these were not effectively removing chlorine from the city water. In spite of this, she was convicted of first degree murder and is currently serving a life sentence. A couple sued the City of Paducah, Kentucky Water Department for health effects from bacterially contaminated water. I had designed a disinfection system for the residence, and was deposed by opposing counsel. The issue here hinges on a written performance guarantee provided by the wastewater treatment manufactured by Kemco and sold to Superior Linen. Expert reviewed the background and depositions and submitted an Expert Report. Everpure (Pentair) file a patent infringement lawsuit against Selecto, Inc. He was retained as an expert witness to testify with regard to the meanings of the claims of the patent. He was deposed and testified at a hearing. The judge ruled in favor of Everpure. William Green filed suit against a Culligan dealer as a result of alleged health issues resulting from a private well contaminated with benzene from a leak in a nearby pipeline. The dealer had installed a water softener in the residence and suggested to the homeowner that he rented a Culligan activated carbon system to remove the trace benzene contamination. The carbon filters became exhausted and the dealer was named in the lawsuit. Expert was retained as an expert witness to testify regarding the efficacy of activated carbon to remove benzene, as well as the monitoring and media replacement requirements. He was deposed and the case settled out of court. Internet obtained an injunction against Tom Brand (former employee of Internet) for selling trade secrets. Internet sued Tensar Polytechnologies because it was alleged that Mr. Brand provided trade secrets to them. Expert was an expert witness for Dorsey & Whitney, LLP, on behalf of Tensar. The case was settled out of court. Two employees of Sawyer (former employees of INNOVA) were being sued for patent infringement. INNOVA claimed that they had a patentable product and that the two employees had taken the information and believed they were going to produce the product at Sawyer. INNOVA was denied the patent on several occasions and the patent was never issued. He was hired as an expert witness for Glenn Rasmussen Fogarty & Hooker, P.A. to confirm that the features of the product design were not patentable. The case was settled out of court. A hemodialysis patient, Lawrence Lingo, died following treatment at a dialysis center in Youngstown, Ohio. It was alleged that the dialysis center and its suppliers did not meet the standard of care in water treatment system design, operation, and maintenance. He was retained as an expert witness representing the estate of Lawrence Lingo. The case was settled out of court. A hemodialysis patient, Mary Repasky, died following treatment at a dialysis center in Youngstown, Ohio. It was alleged that the center did not meet the standard of care in water treatment system design, operation, and maintenance. Expert was an expert witness for Steven M. Goldberg Co., representing the Repasky Estate. He provided review analysis and the case was settled in 2004. A Hemodialysis patient died following treatment at a dialysis center in Youngstown, Ohio. It was alleged that the dialysis center did not meet the standard of care in water treatment system design, operation, and maintenance. He was an expert witness for Greene & Eisen representing the estate of Ms. Payne. He provided review analysis and the case was settled in 2004. A homeowner had allegedly hired Roto Rooter to install an undersink carbon filter in his kitchen. Three years later, a fitting on the unit broke, flooding the kitchen floor during the night. A guest entered the kitchen shortly thereafter, slipped on the floor, striking her head. She subsequently died from the injury. Representing Roto Rooter and the system manufacturer, Omni Filter, Expert investigated materials of construction and reported his findings to the defense attorneys. The case was settled out of court. Hilton Davis Co. sued Warner-Jenkinson for patent infringement relating to dye manufacturing utilizing ultrafiltration. He was retained by the law firm representing the defendant. Expert provided technical information and his involvement ceased on April 26, 1992. ASLF had sued Universal Tool for repeated and ongoing violations of the Federal Clean Water Act and was granted Partial Summary Judgment. He was an expert witness for ASLF in a court trial to determine monetary damages. He testified on ultrafiltration technology used to remove oily waste. The case went to trial and Universal Tool was assessed a penalty of $450,000. A homeowner suffered fire damage to his home and the insurance company alleged that the fire was caused by the water softener. Expert testified in the trial for the plaintiff regarding the likelihood that a water softener could start a fire. The court subsequently found in favor of the defendant.

Expert Witness Experience

He has participated as an expert witness in about 10 cases, most of which were settled out of court.

The manufacturer of ballast water treatment systems sued the manufacturer of metallic wedge wire and screen filters regarding poor performance of the filters in several applications. Was retained to investigate these causes and to generate an expert witness report. A hearing was held in Copenhagen, Denmark on July 12, 2017. The outcome is that Bollfilter prevailed in all issues, and received the entire amount of their counter suit.

An under sink reverse osmosis unit was installed in a home. One of the filter housings cracked and leaked water which damaged the house. The plaintiff claimed that the housing was poorly manufactured and cracked as a result. Upon inspection of the cracked housing, a grooved o-ring was identified, likely resulting from improper installation. Obviously, the groove caused leakage, which the installer assumed could be eliminated by tightening. This probably resulted in over tightening which cracked the housing. Prepared and submitted an Expert Report. This case was settled out of court.

A senior living facility experienced corrosion in the galvanized piping of their hot water distribution system. The defendants attributed the corrosion to the fact that the plaintiff installed a water softener. Provided a report attesting to the fact that softened water, in and of itself, is not corrosive. The case was settled out of court.

A Technician at a kidney dialysis facility in Lufkin, TX was indicted on charges of first degree murder. She was accused of injecting chlorine bleach into the bloodlines of patients undergoing treatment, resulting in two deaths. The water treatment system had had the permanent carbon tanks replaced with temporary ones, and I offered evidence that these were not effectively removing chlorine from the city water. In spite of this, she was convicted of first degree murder and is currently serving a life sentence.

A couple sued the City of Paducah, Kentucky Water Department for health effects from bacterially contaminated water. I had designed a disinfection system for the residence, and was deposed by opposing counsel.

The issue here hinges on a written performance guarantee provided by the wastewater treatment manufactured by Kemco and sold to Superior Linen. Expert reviewed the background and depositions and submitted an Expert Report.

Everpure (Pentair) file a patent infringement lawsuit against Selecto, Inc. He was retained as an expert witness to testify with regard to the meanings of the claims of the patent. He was deposed and testified at a hearing. The judge ruled in favor of Everpure.

William Green filed suit against a Culligan dealer as a result of alleged health issues resulting from a private well contaminated with benzene from a leak in a nearby pipeline. The dealer had installed a water softener in the residence and suggested to the homeowner that he rented a Culligan activated carbon system to remove the trace benzene contamination.
The carbon filters became exhausted and the dealer was named in the lawsuit. Expert was retained as an expert witness to testify regarding the efficacy of activated carbon to remove benzene, as well as the monitoring and media replacement requirements. He was deposed and the case settled out of court.

Internet obtained an injunction against Tom Brand (former employee of Internet) for selling trade secrets. Internet sued Tensar Polytechnologies because it was alleged that Mr. Brand provided trade secrets to them. Expert was an expert witness for Dorsey & Whitney, LLP, on behalf of Tensar. The case was settled out of court.

Two employees of Sawyer (former employees of INNOVA) were being sued for patent infringement. INNOVA claimed that they had a patentable product and that the two employees had taken the information and believed they were going to produce the product at Sawyer. INNOVA was denied the patent on several occasions and the patent was never issued.
He was hired as an expert witness for Glenn Rasmussen Fogarty & Hooker, P.A. to confirm that the features of the product design were not patentable. The case was settled out of court.

A hemodialysis patient, Lawrence Lingo, died following treatment at a dialysis center in Youngstown, Ohio. It was alleged that the dialysis center and its suppliers did not meet the standard of care in water treatment system design, operation, and maintenance. He was retained as an expert witness representing the estate of Lawrence Lingo. The case was settled out of court.

A hemodialysis patient, Mary Repasky, died following treatment at a dialysis center in Youngstown, Ohio. It was alleged that the center did not meet the standard of care in water treatment system design, operation, and maintenance. Expert was an expert witness for Steven M. Goldberg Co., representing the Repasky Estate. He provided review analysis and the case was settled in 2004.

A Hemodialysis patient died following treatment at a dialysis center in Youngstown, Ohio. It was alleged that the dialysis center did not meet the standard of care in water treatment system design, operation, and maintenance. He was an expert witness for Greene & Eisen representing the estate of Ms. Payne. He provided review analysis and the case was settled in 2004.

A homeowner had allegedly hired Roto Rooter to install an undersink carbon filter in his kitchen. Three years later, a fitting on the unit broke, flooding the kitchen floor during the night. A guest entered the kitchen shortly thereafter, slipped on the floor, striking her head. She subsequently died from the injury. Representing Roto Rooter and the system manufacturer, Omni Filter, Expert investigated materials of construction and reported his findings to the defense attorneys. The case was settled out of court.

Hilton Davis Co. sued Warner-Jenkinson for patent infringement relating to dye manufacturing utilizing ultrafiltration. He was retained by the law firm representing the defendant. Expert provided technical information and his involvement ceased on April 26, 1992.

ASLF had sued Universal Tool for repeated and ongoing violations of the Federal Clean Water Act and was granted Partial Summary Judgment. He was an expert witness for ASLF in a court trial to determine monetary damages. He testified on ultrafiltration technology used to remove oily waste. The case went to trial and Universal Tool was assessed a penalty of $450,000.

A homeowner suffered fire damage to his home and the insurance company alleged that the fire was caused by the water softener. Expert testified in the trial for the plaintiff regarding the likelihood that a water softener could start a fire. The court subsequently found in favor of the defendant.

Training / Seminars
Expert has presented seminars and taught short courses relating to all aspects of water purification, waste treatment, food and chemical processing throughout the world.

Vendor Selection
Expert has experience locating membrane element manufacturers, membrane system manufacturers, qualified testing laboratories, water purification equipment, waste treatment equipment, and membrane separation system components. He has access to printed materials, databases, and personal contacts.

Marketing Experience
He works with many companies which have a new water treatment technology and need an assessment regarding its applicability and potential in the market.

Other Relevant Experience
He specializes in both marketing and technical consulting in high technology treatment processes for water purification, wastewater treatment and food/chemical processing applications. Typical applications range from point-of-use/point-of-entry drinking water units to ultra high purity water systems, to effluent treatment applications. He provides complete design, construction, installation and operating services covering the entire spectrum of water purification, wastewater treatment and environmentally conscious manufacturing. In addition, he offers comprehensive training and educational programs in all areas of water treatment.

Other Relevant Experience

He specializes in both marketing and technical consulting in high technology treatment processes for water purification, wastewater treatment and food/chemical processing applications. Typical applications range from point-of-use/point-of-entry drinking water units to ultra high purity water systems, to effluent treatment applications. He provides complete design, construction, installation and operating services covering the entire spectrum of water purification, wastewater treatment and environmentally conscious manufacturing. In addition, he offers comprehensive training and educational programs in all areas of water treatment.

Fields of Expertise

microfiltration, ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis, chemical industrial wastewater treatment, drinking water filtration, drinking water treatment, hollow fiber technology, industrial wastewater treatment, liquid flow through porous media, liquid-solid filtration, membrane filtration, membrane separation, osmotic membrane, osmotic pressure gradient, physical industrial wastewater treatment, plating wastewater treatment, point-of-use drinking water treatment, point-of-use filtration, process-engineering filtration, reverse osmosis industrial wastewater treatment, reverse osmosis water treatment, separation equipment, spiral wound filter, ultrafiltration membrane, wastewater, wastewater recycling, water desalination, water filtration equipment, water filtration system, water pretreatment, water purification, water treatment, water disinfection, water ultrafiltration, drinking water disinfection, drinking water purification, municipal wastewater disinfection, ozone water purification, ultraviolet oxidation water purification, ultra high purity, ion-selective membrane, water disinfectant, chloramination, microporous ceramic, protein concentration process, purified water, waterborne disease, water, continuous process, water microbial contamination, pulp-and-paper industry wastewater purification, trihalomethane, membrane process, water reuse, halogen stabilizer, biological virus, tertiary treatment, waste treatment, chemical precipitation process, filtration, pollution, energy-efficient food processing, chemical compound processing, drinking water chlorination, membrane, osmosis, dialysis, chloramine, drinking water, separation, liquid phase membrane, water filter, purification, halogen, water halogenation, chemical analysis extraction, electrodialysis, chlorine