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Dr. Kristofer Isaacson

Assistant Professor

Environmental

Email: krisaacs@calpoly.edu

Faculty Office Hours

Education

  • Ph.D. in Environmental & Ecological Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana

  • M.S. in Chemical Engineering, University of Minnesota-Duluth

  • B.S. in Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Bio

Kristofer Isaacson’s research is focused on uncovering the mechanisms behind nitrogenous disinfection byproduct formation during advanced oxidation processes in water reuse treatment trains. He received his Ph.D. from Purdue University in Environmental and Ecological Engineering where he studied the vulnerability of plastic components within drinking water infrastructure during environmental disasters. During his time as a graduate student he assisted in the recovery of water systems following three environmental disasters, including two chemical spills and one wildfire.

  • Wildfires
  • Water Resources
  • Coelho, P.B., Fitzgerald, G., Isaacson, K., Diop, R., Prabhakar, G., Heffner, S., Verma, A., Youngblood, J.P.,
    Choi, Y., Surdyka S., Spears, S.A., Frisbee, M.D., Del Real, K.F., Gustafson, L.A., Torrez, A., Proctor, C., Lee,
    L., Whitehead, H.D., Doudrick, H.D., Harpur, B.A., Whelton, A.J. (Accepted September 2024). Environmental
    and private property contamination following the Norfolk Southern chemical spill and chemical fires in Ohio.
    Environmental Science: Water Research and Technology.
  • Isaacson, K. P., Le, H., Verma, A., Youngblood, J. Shah, A. D., Whelton A. J. (2024). Plastic water supply
    connectors: Leaching, hydrocarbon contamination, and decontamination. AWWA Water Science.
    https://doi.org/10.1002/aws2.1382
  • Ra, K., Proctor, C., Ley C., Angert, D., Noh, Y., Isaacson, K., Shah, A., & Whelton A. J. (2023). Investigating
    water safety in an elementary school building water system and remediation effectiveness. PLOS Water
    https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pwat.0000141 
  • Matthew, C.L., Wasel, O., Isaacson, K. P., Proctor, C.R., Tariq, M., Shah, A.D., Freeman, J.L., Whelton, A.J.
    (2023). Crosslinked polyethylene (PEX) drinking water pipe: Carbon leaching, impacts on microbial growth,
    and developmental toxicity to zebrafish. Environmental Advances.
    https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envadv.2023.100386
  • Jankowski, C., Gustafson, L., Del Real, K., Isaacson, K. P., Larsen, M., Ehde, A., Proctor, C. R., & Whelton,
    A. J. (2023). Residential water softeners release carbon, consume chlorine, and require remediation after
    hydrocarbon contamination. Environmental Science and Technology. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c00700
  •  *Jankowski, C., *Isaacson, K., Larsen, M., Ley, C., Cook, M., & Whelton, A. J. (2023). Wildfire damage and
    contamination to private drinking water wells. AWWA Water Science, 5(1), e1319.
    https://doi.org/10.1002/aws2.1319 (* indicates equal contribution, co-first authors)
  • Whelton, A. J., Seidel, C., Wham, B. P., Fischer, E. C., Isaacson, K., Jankowski, C., MacArthur, N., McKenna,
    E., & Ley, C. (2023). The Marshall Fire: Scientific and policy needs for water system disaster response. AWWA
    Water Science, 5(1), e1318. https://doi.org/10.1002/aws2.1318
  • Isaacson, K. P., Proctor, C. R., Wang, Q. E., Edwards, E. Y., Noh, Y., Shah, A. D., & Whelton, A. J. (2021).
    Drinking water contamination from the thermal degradation of plastics: implications for wildfire and structure
    fire response. Environmental Science: Water Research and Technology, 7(2), 274-284.
    https://doi.org/10.1039/D0EW00836B
  • Jiang, J., Ding, X., Isaacson, K. P., Tasoglou, A., Huber, H., Shah, A. D., Jung, N., & Boor, B. E. (2021).
    Ethanol-based disinfectant sprays drive rapid changes in the chemical composition of indoor air in residential
    buildings. Journal of Hazardous Materials Letters, 2(1), 100042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hazl.2021.100042