Dibs Sarkar

Roles and Affiliations: Dibs Sarkar is a Professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology. He serves as the Founding Director of the Stevens Center for Sustainability and the Sustainability Management MS and dual-degree MS-MBA programs. He is also an Adjunct Research Professor at Michigan Technological University and has held prior positions at Montclair State University and the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Education:

• PhD (1997) in Geochemistry from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville
• MS (1991) and BS (1988) in Geology from the University of Calcutta

Research Interests: Dr. Sarkar’s work focuses on environmental sustainability through a multidisciplinary lens, including soil/water chemistry, green technology development, and risk assessment. His research integrates geochemical, biological, and engineering principles to address environmental contamination, sustainable remediation of PFAS, phytoremediation, and stormwater management. He emphasizes holistic approaches to environmental problems, such as using vetiver grass for lead and TNT cleanup and developing biochar-based solutions.

Grants and Funding: He has secured over $17 million in grants as PI/Co-PI for projects like PFAS remediation, sustainable stormwater management, and acid mine reclamation. Recent funding includes DOE projects on phytoextraction and NJDEP-supported studies on PFAS in wastewater.

Awards and Recognition:

• Fellow of the Geological Society of America (2011)
• Fellow of the Soil Science Society of America (2019)
• Research Excellence Award (2022)
• Top 40 Under 40 San Antonio Rising Star Award (2004)

Advisory and Editorial Roles: He chairs the Sustainability Minor at Stevens, edits multiple journals (e.g., Current Pollution Reports), and serves on panels for NSF, NIH, and professional societies like SETAC and AGU. He is a founding member of SIROM Scientific Solutions, an environmental R&D firm.

Labs and Teams: His research group collaborates on projects at the Stevens Center for Sustainability, focusing on green technologies, sustainable infrastructure, and environmental policy. The group emphasizes interdisciplinary innovation, from lab-scale studies to field demonstrations.