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Jim A Nicell

Title: 
Professor
Academic title(s): 

Ph.D., P.Eng., FCAE, FCSSE

Jim A Nicell
Contact Information
Address: 

Department of Civil Engineering
平特五不中
817 Sherbrooke Street West
Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H3A 0C3

Phone: 
514-398-6675
Email address: 
jim.nicell [at] mcgill.ca
Biography: 

Professor James "Jim" Nicell is a registered professional engineer with a formal educational background as a chemical and environmental engineer. He joined the Department of Civil Engineering of 平特五不中聽as an Assistant Professor in 1992 and was promoted to Full Professor in 2004. His research, teaching, administrative and consulting activities are diverse. The main focus of his research has been on the development of enzymatic processes for the treatment of recalcitrant pollutants including industrial contaminants, endocrine disruptors, pharmaceuticals and other contaminants of emerging concern. Another facet of his work concerns the study of the fate and biodegradation of xenobiotic chemicals, including pharmaceutically active compounds, and their degradation products in the environment. This has led to much of his current work that is focussed on the application of the principles of green chemistry and engineering with the goal of creating alternative compounds replacing those traditionally used in the production of plastics, such as plasticizers. And, finally, he has developed methods for the assessment and prediction of the impacts of odorous emissions from industrial and agricultural sources on surrounding communities. In addition to being actively engaged in the professional and scholarly communities, he has also served in numerous administrative and leadership capacities at 平特五不中 including roles as Director of Gardner Hall Residence (1998-2003), Associate Dean (Student Affairs) of the Faculty of Engineering (2001-2006), Associate Vice-Principal (University Services) in 平特五不中's central adminstration (2007-2012), and two five-year terms as Dean of the Faculty of Engineering (2013-2023). He served as Vice-Chair (2017-2019), Chair (2019-2021), then Past-Chair (2021-2023) of (formerly National Council of Deans of Engineering & Applied Science).聽He has received multiple awards over his career including his election as a Fellow of the in 2018 and Fellow of the in 2024.

Link(s): 
Degree(s): 

B.A.Sc. (Chemical Engineering, 1985),聽M.A.Sc. (Chemical Engineering, 1986),聽Ph.D. (Environmental Engineering, 1991)

Areas of expertise: 

Environmental quality and health, green chemistry and engineering, sustainable infrastructure and operations,聽academic administration and leadership

Research areas: 
Environmental Engineering
Awards, honours, and fellowships: 
  • Fellow of the (2024)
  • Lifetime Honorary Member, Board of the (2023)
  • Fellow of the (2018)
  • Sustainability Catalyst Award (Special Career Achievement Award), Office of Sustainability, 平特五不中 (2012)
  • Honorary Life Membership Award, (2011)
  • Advocate of the Society Award, (2011)
  • James 平特五不中 Chair, 平特五不中 (2007-2013)
  • Engineering Class of '44 Award for Outstanding Teaching, Faculty of Engineering, 平特五不中 (2004)
  • William Dawson Scholar, 平特五不中 (2002-2006)
  • Outstanding Contribution Award, (1995)
  • Progressive Architecture Award for Architectural Research (1994)
  • Engineering Class of '51 Award for Outstanding Teaching, Faculty of Engineering, 平特五不中 (1994)
Selected publications: 

The following is a list of selected publications arranged by research areas of interest, with student names indicated in bold. Descriptions of these areas of interest are provided below.聽For a complete list of journal publications and links to articles, please visit Prof. Nicell's聽 and 飞别产蝉颈迟别蝉.听听

  • Environmental Applications of Enzymes

Nicell, J.A., J.K. Bewtra, N. Biswas and K.E. Taylor (1993) Reactor development for peroxidase catalyzed polymerization and precipitation of phenols from wastewater, Water Research, 27:11 1629鈥�1639.

Buchanan, I.D. and J.A. Nicell (1997) Model development for horseradish peroxidase-catalyzed removal of aqueous phenol, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 54:3 251-261.

Karam, J. and J.A. Nicell, (1997) Potential applications of enzymes in waste treatment, Journal of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, 69 141-153.聽

Nicell, J.A. and H. Wright (1997) A model of peroxidase activity with inhibition by hydrogen peroxide. Enzyme and Microbial Technology, 21:4 302-310.

Buchanan, I.D., J.A. Nicell and M. Wagner (1998) Reactor models for horseradish peroxidase-catalyzed aromatic removal, ASCE Journal of Environmental Engineering, 124:9, 794-802.

Khan, U. and J.A. Nicell (2007) Horseradish peroxidase-catalyzed oxidation of aqueous natural and synthetic estrogens. Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology. 82:818-830.

Kurniawati, S. and J.A. Nicell (2007) Efficacy of laccase-mediator systems to enhance the transformation of aqueous phenol. Enzyme & Microbial Technology,聽41, 353-361.

Kurniawati, S. and J.A. Nicell (2009) A comprehensive kinetic model of laccase-catalyzed oxidation of aqueous phenol. Biotechnology Progress,聽25:3, 763-773.

Rangelov, S. and J. Nicell (2018) Modelling the transient kinetics of laccase-catalyzed oxidation of four aqueous phenolic substrates at low concentrations. Biochemical Engineering Journal,聽132, 233-243.

Rangelov, S. and J.A. Nicell (2019) Laccase-catalyzed oxidation of mixed aqueous phenolic substrates at low concentrations. 颁补迟补濒测蝉迟蝉,听9(4) 368 pp. 30.

  • Green Plastics & Plasticizers

Gartshore, J., D.G. Cooper and J.A. Nicell (2003) Biodegradation of plasticizers by Rhodotorula Rubra. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 22:6, 1244-1251.

Horn, O., S. Nalli, D. Cooper and J.A. Nicell (2004) Plasticizer metabolites in the environment. Water Research, 38, 3693-3698.

Nalli, S., D.G. Cooper and J.A. Nicell (2006) Metabolites from the biodegradation of di-ester plasticizers. The Science of the Total Environment, 366, 286-294.

Nalli, S., O.J. Horn, A.R. Grochowalski, D.G. Cooper and J.A. Nicell (2006) Origin of 2-ethylhexanol as a VOC. Environmental Pollution, 140:1, 181-185.

Barnab茅, S., I. Beauchesne, D.G. Cooper and J.A. Nicell (2008) Plasticizers and their degradation products in the process streams of a large urban physicochemical sewage treatment plant. Water Research,聽42, 153-162.

Firlotte, N., D. Cooper, M. Maric and J.A. Nicell (2009) Characterization of 1,5-pentanediol dibenzoate as a potential 鈥済reen鈥� plasticizer for poly(vinylchloride). Journal of Vinyl Additives and Technology,15, 99-107.

Kermanshahi pour, A., R. Roy, D.G. Cooper, M. Mari膰 and J.A. Nicell (2013) Biodegradation kinetics of dibenzoate plasticizers and their metabolites. Biochemical Engineering Journal,聽70, 35-45.

Erythropel, H.C., M. Maric, J.A. Nicell, R. Leask and V. Yargeau (2014) Leaching of the plasticizer di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) from plastic containers and the question of human exposure. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 98, 9967鈥�9981.

Jamarani, R., H. Erythropel; J. A. Nicell; R.L. Leask and M. Maric (2018) How green is your plasticizer? Polymers, 10(8) 834 pp 17.

Elsiwi, B., O. Garcia鈥怴aldez, H. Erythropel, R. Leask, J. Nicell and M. Maric (2020) Fully renewable, effective, and highly biodegradable plasticizer: di鈥恘鈥恏eptyl succinate. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering,聽8, 12409鈭�12418.

Jamarani, R., M.W. Halloran, K. Panchal, O. Garcia-Valdez, R. Mafi, J.A., Nicell, R.L. Leask, M. Mari膰 (2021) Additives to prevent the formation of surface defects during poly(vinyl chloride) calendering. Polymer Engineering & Science, V61 1209鈥�1219.

Halloran, M., J. Nicell, R. Leask, M. Mari膰 (2022) Bio鈥恇ased glycerol plasticizers for flexible poly(vinylchloride) blends. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, e52778, pp11.

Gabrielle Godbille-Cardona, G., J. Nicell, M. Mari膰, R. Leask (2023) Succinate-based plasticizers: Effect of plasticizer structure on the mechanical and thermal performance of poly(vinyl chloride) plastic formulations. Journal of Vinyl & Additive Technology, 29 283鈥�293.

Rideout, A., K. Panchal, M. Mari膰, R. Leask, J.A. Nicell (2024) Prevention of surface defects in calendered poly(vinyl chloride) sheets using a succinate-capped poly(caprolactone) additive. Journal of Vinyl & Additive Technology, 30 814鈥�824.

  • Impact, Risk & Fate of 聽Contaminants of Emerging Concern

Khan, U., and J.A. Nicell (2010) Assessing the risk of exogenously-consumed pharmaceuticals in land-applied human urine. Water Science & Technology, 62:6, 1335-1345.

Khan, U. and J.A. Nicell (2014) Contraceptive options and their associated estrogenic environmental loads: Relationships and trade-offs. Public Library of Science (PLoS One), 9:3, e92630 (pp. 13, plus supplementary material).

Khan, U. and J.A. Nicell (2015) Human health relevance of pharmaceutically active compounds in drinking water. The AAPS Journal (American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists), 17:3, 558-585.

鈥�Grill, G., U. Khan, B. Lehner, J.A. Nicell and J. Ariwi (2016) Risk assessment of down-the-drain chemicals at large spatial scales: Model development and application to contaminants originating from urban areas in the Saint Lawrence River Basin. Science of the Total Environment, 541, 825-838.

Khan, U., R.A. Bloom, J.A. Nicell and J.P. Laurenson (2017) Risks associated with the environmental release of pharmaceuticals on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration 鈥渇lush list鈥�. Science of the Total Environment, 609, 1023-1040.

Grill, G. J. Li, U. Khan, Y. Zhong, B. Lehner, J. Nicell and J. Ariwi (2018) Estimating eco-toxicological risk of estrogens in China鈥檚 rivers using a high-resolution contaminant fate model. Water Research,聽145, 707-720.

Ehalt Macedo, H., B. Lehner, J.A. Nicell, G. Grill, J. Li, A. Limtong, R. Shakya (2022) Distribution and characteristics of wastewater treatment plants within the global river network. Earth Systems Science Data, V14 559鈥�577.

Ehalt Macedo, H., B. Lehner, J.A. Nicell, G. Grill (2024) HydroFATE (v1): A high-resolution contaminant fate model for the global river system. Geoscientific Model Development, 17:7 2877鈥�2899.

  • Sewer Epidemiology

Khan, U. and J.A. Nicell (2011) Refined sewer epidemiology mass balances and their application to heroin, cocaine and ecstasy. Environment International,聽37, 1236-1252, with supplementary material (62 pp.).

Khan, U. and J.A. Nicell (2012) Sewer epidemiology mass balances for assessing the illicit use of methamphetamine, amphetamine and tetrahydrocannabinol. Science of the Total Environment,聽421-422, 144-162, with supplementary material (32 pp).

  • Odour Impact Assessment

Nicell, J.A. (2003) Expressions to relate population responses to odour concentration. Atmospheric Environment, 37, 4955-4964.

Henshaw, P., J.A. Nicell and A. Sidkar (2006) Odour impact parameters for an industrial facility. Atmospheric Environment, 40, 1016-1029.

Lin, X.J., S. Barrington, J.A. Nicell, D. Choiniere and S. King (2007). Livestock odour dispersion as affected by natural windbreaks. Water, Air & Soil Pollution,聽182:1-4, 263-273.

Nicell, J.A. and P. Henshaw (2007) Odor impact assessments based on dose-response relationships and spatial analyses of population response. Water Practice, 1:2, 1-14.

Nicell, J.A. (2009) Approaches for assessing and regulating the impacts of odours on communities. Atmospheric Environment. 43:1, 196-206.

  • Other

Gehr, R. and J.A. Nicell (1996) Pilot studies and assessment of downstream effects of UV and ozone disinfection of a physicochemical wastewater, Water Quality Research Journal of Canada, 31:2 263-281.

McAlpine, L., T. Gandell, L. Winer, J. Gruzleski, L. Mydlarski, J. Nicell and R. Harris (2005) A collective approach towards enhancing undergraduate engineering education. European Journal of Engineering Education, 30(3): 377-384.

Cooper, V., V.T.V. Nguyen and J.A. Nicell (2007) Calibration of conceptual rainfall runoff models using global optimisation methods with hydrologic process-based parameter constraints. Journal of Hydrology, 334, 455-466.

Areas of interest: 
  • Environmental Applications of Enzymes - This research focusses on the study of aqeous reactions catalyzed by聽peroxidase and laccase enzymes and their application to the oxidation of phenolic pollutants in wastewater streams.
  • Green Plastics & Plasticizers - This research centres on the study of the biodegradation, fate and impacts of plasticizers in the environment and the development of alternatives聽produced from renewables that avoid聽the negative environmental and health impacts of traditional plasticizers聽
  • Impact, Risk & Fate of Contaminants of Emerging Concern - This research involves the development, validation and application of models of surface waters at regional and global scales in order to assess聽the fate of contaminants of emerging concern 聽that arise from the population's consumption of pharmaceuticals and other compounds聽(e.g., estrogens, antibiotics)
  • Sewer Epidemiology - This field is focussed on the development of methods for using measurements of the concentrations of聽selected metabolites in wastewater streams as an indicator of a community's habits or health (e.g., consumption of illicit drugs)
  • Odour Impact Assessment - This work focusses on the development of methods for the characterization of odours in terms of human response and their application, in conjunction with dispersion modelling, to predict or assess the impact of gaseous odourous emissions from stationary sources on communities.
Professional activities: 
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