Chris Rehmann

Title(s):

Cerwick Faculty Professor
Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering

Office

476 Town Engineering Building
813 Bissell Rd
Ames, IA 50011-1066

Information

Dr. Rehmann’s research in environmental fluid mechanics has built on his initial focus of mixing and turbulence in stratified water bodies. His projects include experiments and modeling of differential mixing of salinity and temperature, the interaction of turbulence and double diffusion, mixing near bubble plumes and boundary mixing in lakes. His group has also worked on river mixing by assessing acoustic measurements of velocity, turbulence and discharge and used acoustic measurements to determine dispersion in streams. He has applied his knowledge of mixing and transport in interdisciplinary collaborations involving the fate and transport of zebra mussel larvae, pathogens, and antibiotic resistance genes in rivers. Recent work on contamination caused by flooding involves a strong focus on environmental justice. Dr. Rehmann teaches courses in engineering hydraulics, groundwater hydrology and environmental flows. He is the associate chair for undergraduate affairs for the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering. In that position, he works with faculty, staff and students on a wide range of issues to foster student success.

Recent Honors and Awards

  • College of Engineering Award for Outstanding Achievement in Teaching – Iowa State University, 2022
  • Board of Regents Award for Faculty Excellence – Iowa State University, 2020
  • Faculty-Staff Inspiration Award – Iowa State University Alumni Association, 2019

Research

  • Multi-scale spatio-temporal analysis of the U.S. water budget using CONUS 404, with A. Arenas (PI), L. Liu, I.-H. Cho, T.M. Over, and T.O. Hodson, supported by the U.S. Geological Survey/National Institutes for Water Resources.
  • Predicting fate and transport of antibiotic resistance genes in streams, PI with K. Ikuma, supported by the National Science Foundation.
  • Pathways to exposure to pathogens during floods, PI with K. Ikuma, P.R. Jackson, and P.L. Lenaker, supported by the U.S. Geological Survey/National Institutes for Water Resources.
  • Accelerating technical and community readiness for water reuse in small systems, with K. Ikuma (PI), A. Arenas, L. Liu, J. Charbonnet, J. Goodwill, V. Oyanedel-Cramer, T. Guilfoos, and M. Kiparsky, supported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
  • Building resilience in vulnerable older adult communities facing repeated flooding and increased exposure risks to untreated wastewater in Puerto Rico, with K. Ikuma (PI), C. Poleacovschi, C.F. Weems, and I. Garcia Zambrana, supported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Education

  • Ph.D. Civil Engineering – Stanford University, 1995
  • M.S. Civil Engineering – Stanford University, 1990
  • B.S. Civil Engineering – Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1989

Interest Areas

  • Mixing and transport of contaminants in natural flows
  • Environmental fluid mechanics
  • Environmental justice

Publications

  1. Schwab, L.E. and Rehmann, C.R. 2023 Estimating turbulent kinetic energy with an acoustic Doppler current profiler, Flow Measurement and Instrumentation, doi: 10.1016/j.flowmeasinst.2023.102435.
  2. Schwab, L.E. and Rehmann, C.R. 2023 Importance of turbulent diffusion in transverse mixing in rivers, Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, 61(2), 249-259, doi: 10.1080/00221686.2180441.
  3. Stone, T.F., Dickey, L.C., Summers, H., Thompson, J.R., Rehmann, C.R., Zimmerman, E., and Tyndall, J. 2023 A systematic review of social equity in FEWS analyses. Frontiers in Environmental Science. 11:1028306, doi: 10.3389/fewns.2023.1028036.
  4. McEachran, A.R., Dickey, L.C., Rehmann, C.R., Isenhart, T.M., Groh, T.A., Perez, M.A., and Rutherford, C.J. 2022 Groundwater flow in saturated riparian buffers and implications for nitrate removal. Journal of Environmental Quality, doi: 10.1002/jeq2.20428.
  5. Craig, A.J., Rehmann, C.R., Alt, L.M., Schulte-Moore, L.M., and Soupir, M.L. 2022 Prairie strips reduce fecal indicator bacteria concentrations in simulated runoff, Journal of the American Water Resources Association, doi: 10.1111/1752-1688.13082.
  6. Willard, I.P. and Rehmann, C.R. 2022 Interaction between double diffusion and differential diffusion in a stratified turbulent flow, Environmental Fluid Mechanics, doi: 10.1007/s10652-022-09900-2.
  7. Rehmann, C.R., Jackson, P.R., and Puglis, H.J. 2021 Predicting the spatiotemporal exposure of aquatic species to intrusions of fire retardant in streams with limited data. Science of the Total Environment, 782(3), doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146879.
  8. McEachran, A.R., Dickey, L.C., Rehmann, C.R., Groh, T.A., Isenhart, T.M., Perez, M.A., and Rutherford, C.J. 2020 Improving the effectiveness of saturated riparian buffers for removing nitrate from subsurface drainage. Journal of Environmental Quality, doi: 10.1002/jeq2.20160.
  9. Ikuma, K. and Rehmann, C.R. 2020 Importance of extracellular DNA in the fate and transport of antibiotic resistance genes downstream of a wastewater treatment plant. Environmental Engineering Science, doi: 10.1089/ees.2019.0319.

Primary Strategic Research Area

Resilient Infrastructures

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