Dr. Muhammad Ashraf Ali

Email: ashraf@ce.buet.ac.bd
PABX No: 6826
Room No: 634
Personal web page

Dr. Muhammad Ashraf Ali

Professor
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

Specialization: Environmental Engineering

Dr. Muhammad Ashraf Ali is a Professor of Civil Engineering at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). Dr. Ali also serves as the Director of International Training Network Center (ITN-BUET). He received his B.Sc. degree in Civil Engineering from BUET in 1988. He received his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA) in 1991 and 1994, respectively. The main focus of his research and teaching is water quality and water treatment, sanitation and fecal sludge management (FSM). His current research is focused on disinfection of potable water, removal of arsenic and other contaminants from water, and fecal sludge management (FSM). Dr. Ali is Life Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Bangladesh (IEB).

Education

  • Ph. D., Civil and Environmental Engineering, December, 1994
    Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
  • M.S., Civil and Environmental Engineering, May, 1991
    Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
  • B.Sc., Civil Engineering, August, 1988
    Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Dhaka, Bangladesh

Research Interest

  • Water quality and water treatment; Arsenic contamination of groundwater; Sanitation and Fecal Sludge Management; (FSM); Air pollution and its impacts; Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA).

Research Collaboration

  1. UKRI (United Kingdom Research and Innovation) GCRF (Global Challenges Research Fund) Global Interdisciplinary Research Hubs: Living Deltas Hub (2019-2023); Co-Investigator from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET), Dhaka, Bangladesh.
  2. Collaboration with Simon Fraser University (SFU), Canada in a project titled “Providing sustainable potable water and greenhouse crop”, funded by Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Scholarships (QES) Advanced-Scholars grant awarded to Dr. Majid Bahrami and Dr. Zafar Adeel of SFU (2017 – 2020).
  3. Collaborative research: “Groundwater Dynamics and Arsenic Contamination in the Ganges Delta: Irrigated Agriculture, Subsurface Chemical Transport, and Aquifer Flushing” with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and the Tufts University, USA funded by the US National Science Foundation (Grant No. EAR-0510429); 2005-2008 (worked as Co-Researcher).
  4. Collaborative research: “Arsenic contaminated groundwater in Bangladesh: Characterizing the source, mobilization and transport” with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and the Tufts University, USA funded by the US National Science Foundation (Grant No. EAR-0001098); 2000-2003 (worked as Co-Researcher).
  5. Research project conducted on the Arsenic in Irrigated Land and in Food Chain, conducted jointly with the EAWAG, Switzerland, funded by the Swiss National Foundation (SNF), 2005-2007 (worked as Co-Principal Investigator).
  6. BUET-UNU Joint Research Project on Development of Household Arsenic Removal Unit, funded by the United Nations University (UNU), Tokyo, Japan, 1999-2001 [worked as Principal Investigator (PI)]
  7. BUET-UNU Joint Research Project on Fate of Arsenic in the Environment, funded by the United Nations University (UNU), Tokyo, Japan, 2002-2003 [worked as Principal Investigator (PI)].

Research Awards

  • [No info available]

Professional Work at National and International Levels

  • Dr. Ali has been providing expert services in major projects of national interest, including the Hatirjheel project, Dhaka Elevated Expressway Project, Dasherkandi Sewage Treatment Plant, EIA of Siddhirganj Power Plant, Saidabad Water Treatment Plant of DWAWSA, Karnaphuli Container Terminal (KCT) and Patenga Container Terminal (PCT) of Chittagong Port Authority, and Municipal Governance and Services Project of LGED. Dr. Ali has been involved in the development of the institutional and regulatory framework (IRF) for FSM, National Action Plan (NAP) for implementation of IRF, and national action plant for reduction of short lived climate pollutants (SLCPs).

Selected Publications

  1. Dzombak, D. A., and Ali, M. A. (1993), “Hydrochemical Modeling of Metal Fate and Transport in Freshwater Environments”, Water Pollution Research Journal of Canada, 28(1), 7-50.
  2. Roy, S. B., Dzombak, D. A., and Ali, M. A. (1995), “Assessment of In Situ Solvent Extraction Process for Remediation of Coal Tar Sites: Column Studies”, Water Environment Research, 67, 4-15.
  3. Ali, M. A., Dzombak, D. A., and Roy, S. B. (1995), “Assessment of In Situ Solvent Extraction Process for Remediation of Coal Tar Sites: Process Modeling”, Water Environment Research, 67, 16-24.
  4. Ali, M. A., and Dzombak, D. A. (1996), “Effects of Simple Organic Acids on Sorption of Cu2+ and Ca2+ on Goethite”, Geochimica Cosmochimica Acta, 60(2), 291-304.
  5. Ali, M. A., and Dzombak, D. A. (1996), “Competitive Sorption of Simple Organic Acids and Sulfate on Goethite”, Environmental Science and Technology, 30(4), 1061-1071.
  6. Ali, M. A., and Dzombak, D. A. (1996), “Interactions of Copper, Organic Acids and Sulfate in Goethite Suspensions”, Geochimica Cosmochimica Acta, 60(24), 5045-5053.
  7. Ali, M. A., Rahman, M. M., and Amin, M. N. (1997), “Waste Characterization of Industrial Processes of Bleaching and Softening of Jute”, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 25(1), 21-31.
  8. Badruzzaman, A.B.M., Ahmed, M.F., Hossain, M.D., Jalil, M.A., and Ali, M.A. (1998), “Arsenic Contamination in Groundwater in North-Eastern Bangladesh”, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 26(2), 129-139.
  9. Ali, M. A., Ahsanuzzaman, A. N. M., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Rahman., M. M. (1998), “Lead Pollution of Dhanmondi Lake in Dhaka”, AQUA, 47(5), 289-296.
  10. Badruzzaman, A.B.M., Ahmad, H. and Ali, M.A. (1999), A Comparative Study of Copper Contamination in the Sediment Column of the Dhanmondi and Ramna Lakes, Res., 18(4), 347-351.
  11. Ali, M. A. and Chowdhury, N. (2000), “Removal of Arsenic from Groundwater by Ferric Chloride”, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 28(1), 35-49.
  12. Saha, G. C. and Ali, M. A. (2001), “Groundwater Contamination in Dhaka City from Tannery Waste”, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 29(2), 151-166.
  13. Harvey, C.F., Swartz, C.H, Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Keon-Blute, N., Yu, W., Ali, M. A., Jay, J., Beckie, R., Niedan, V., Brabander, D., Oates, P., Ashfaque, K. N., Islam, S., Hemond, H. F., and, Ahmed, M. F. (2002), Arsenic Mobility and Groundwater Extraction in Bangladesh, SCIENCE, Vol. 298, Issue 5598, pp 1602 – 1606, 2002.
  14. Hossain, M. A. and Ali, M. A. (2004), Floodplain sedimentation in nutrient and heavy metal transfer in Jamuna and Padma Rivers, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 32(2), 87-110.
  15. Swartz, C. H, Keon, N. E., Badruzzaman, B., Ali, A., Brabander D., Jay, J., Besancon, J., Islam, S., Hemond, H. F., Harvey, C. F. (2004), Mobility of arsenic in a Bangladesh aquifer: Inferences from geochemical profiles, leaching data, and mineralogical characterization, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 68(22), 4539-4557.
  16. Harvey, C.F., Swartz, C.H, Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Keon-Blute, N., Yu, W., Ali, M. A., Jay, J., Beckie, R., Niedan, V., Brabander, D., Oates, P., Ashfaque, K. N., Islam, S., Hemond, H. F., and Ahmed, M. F. Groundwater arsenic contamination on the Ganges delta: biogeochemistry, hydrology, human perturbations, and human suffering on a large scale. C. R. Geoscience. 337, 285-296.
  17. Saha, G. C. and Ali, M. A. (2005), Estimation of arsenic accumulation in irrigated soil and paddy plant, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 33(2), 75-90.
  18. Harvey, C.F., Ashfaque, K.N., Yu, W, Badruzzaman, A.B.M, Ali, M.A., Oates, P.M., Michael, H.A., Neumann, R.B., Beckie, R., Islam, S. and Ahmed, M.F. (2006), Groundwater dynamics and arsenic contamination in Bangladesh, Chemical Geology, 228 (2006), 112-136.
  19. Polizzotto, M.L., Harvey, C.F., Li, G., Badruzzaman, B., Ali, A., Newville, M., Sutton, S. and Fendorf, S. (2006), Solid-phases and desorption processes of arsenic within Bangladesh sediments, Chemical Geology, 228 (2006), 97-111.
  20. Ali, M. A. (2006), Arsenic Contamination of Groundwater in Bangladesh, International Reviews for Environmental Strategies, 6(2), 329-360.
  21. Saha, G. C., Akhter, S. R. and Ali, M. A. (2006), Mobilization of arsenic from paddy field soil through adsorption-desorption and reductive dissolution processes, Journal of Civil Engineering, The Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh, 34(1), 25-41.
  22. Saha, G. C. and Ali, M. A. (2007), Dynamics of Arsenic in Agricultural Soils Irrigated with Arsenic Contaminated Groundwater in Bangladesh, Science of the Total Environment, 379, 180-189.
  23. Roberts, L. C., Hug, S. J., Dittmar, J., Voegelin, A., Saha, G. C.,Ali, M. A., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Kretzschmar, R. (2007), Spatial Distribution and Temporal Variability of Arsenic in Irrigated Rice Fields in Bangladesh. 1. Irrigation Water”, Sci. Technol.; 41, 5960-5966.
  24. Dittmar, J., Voegelin, A., Roberts, L. C., Hug, S. J., Saha, G. C.,Ali, M. A., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Kretzschmar, R. (2007), Spatial Distribution and Temporal Variability of Arsenic in Irrigated Rice Fields in Bangladesh. 2. Paddy Soil”, Sci. Technol.; 41, 5967-5972.
  25. Chowdhury, M. A. I., Ahmed, M. F. and Ali, M. A. (2009), Arsenic in water and sediments of major rivers in Bangladesh, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 37(1) (2009) 31-41.
  26. Neumann, RB., Polizzotto, ML., Badruzzaman, ABM., Ali, MA., Zhang, Z., and Harvey, CF. (2009), Hydrology of a groundwater-irrigated rice field in Bangladesh: Seasonal and daily mechanisms of infiltration. Water Resources Research 45, W09412, doi:10.1029/2008WR007542.
  27. Neumann, R. B., Ashfaque, K. N., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Ali, M. A., Shoemaker, J. K. and Harvey, C. F. (2010), Anthropogenic influences on groundwater arsenic concentrations in Bangladesh, Nature Geoscience, 3, pp. 46-52.
  28. Roberts, L. C., Hug, S. J., Dittmar J., Voegelin, A., Kretzschmar, R., Wehrli, B., Cirpka O. A., Saha, G. C., Ali, M. A. and Badruzzaman, A. B. M. (2010), Arsenic release from paddy soils during monsoon flooding, Nature Geoscience, 3(1), pp. 53-59.
  29. Dittmar, J., Voegelin, A., Roberts, L. C., Hug, S. J., Saha, G. C., Ali, M. A.; Badruzzaman, A. B. M.; Kretzschmar, R., (2010), Arsenic accumulation in a paddy field in Bangladesh: Seasonal dynamics and trends over a three-year monitoring period, Sci. Technol.; 44, 2925-2931.
  30. Dittmar, J.; Voegelin, A.; Maurer, F.; Roberts, L. C.; Hug, S. J.; Saha, G. C.; Ali, M. A.; Badruzzaman, A. B. M.; Kretzschmar, R., (2010), Arsenic in Soil and Irrigation Water Affects Uptake by Rice: Complementary Insights from Field and Pot Studies, Sci. Technol.; 44, 8842-8848.
  31. Saha, G. C. and Ali, M. A. (2010), Arsenic Concentrations in Irrigation Water, Soil and Selected Vegetables in Bangladesh, paper accepted for publication in Int. J. of Environmental Engineering, Vol. 2(4), pp. 383-400.
  32. Hasan, S. and Ali, M. A. (2010), Occurrence of Manganese in Groundwater of Bangladesh and its Implications on Safe Water Supply, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 38(2), 121-128.
  33. Basak, J. K., Ali, M. A., Islam, Md. N., and Rashid, Md. A. (2010), Assessment of the effect of climate change on boro rice production in Bangladesh using DSSAT model, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 38(2), 95-108.
  34. Saha, G. C. and Ali, M. A. (2010), Spatial and temporal variation of arsenic concentration in paddy field soils irrigated with arsenic contaminated water, DUET Journal, 1(1), 1-11.
  35. Neumann, R. B., Vincent, A. P. St., Roberts, L. C., Badruzzaman A. B. M., Ali, M. A., and Harvey, C. F. (2011), Rice Field Geochemistry and Hydrology: An Explanation for Why Groundwater Irrigated Fields in Bangladesh are Net Sinks of Arsenic from Groundwater, Sci. Technol. 2011, 45, 2072–2078.
  36. Hug, S.J., D. Gaertner, L.C. Roberts, M. Schirmer, T. Ruettimann, T.M. Rosenberg, A.B.M. Badruzzaman and A. Ali. (2011) Avoiding high concentrations of arsenic, manganese and salinity in deep tubewells in Munshiganj District, Bangladesh, Applied Geochemistry 26(7), 1077-1085.
  37. Roberts, L. C.; Hug, S. J.; Voegelin, A.; Dittmar, J.; Kretzschmar, R; Wehrli, B.; Saha, G. C.; Badruzzaman, A. B. M.; and Ali, M. A., (2011) “Arsenic Dynamics in Porewater of an intermittently Irrigated Paddy Field in Bangladesh”, Environ. Sci. Technol.; 45(3), 971-976.
  38. Alam, M.A., Badruzzaman, A.B.M. and Ali, M.A. (2012), Water quality response to reductions in waste loading of Sitalakhya river, Bangladesh, Journal of Water and Environment Technology, Japan Society on Water Environment ISSN: 1348-2165, Vol. 10, No: 01, 31- 46.
  39. Basak, J. K., Ali, M. A., Biswas, J. K., and Islam, Md. N. (2012), Assessment of the effect of climate change on Boro rice yield and yield gap using DSSAT model, Bangladesh Rice Journal, 16, 67-75.
  40. Alam, M. A., Badruzzaman, A. B. M. and Ali, M. A. (2012), Spatiotemporal assessment of water quality of the Sitalakhya River, Bangladesh, International Journal of Engineering and Technology, 2(6), 946-955.
  41. Ahmed, S. and Ali, M. A. (2013), Removal of COD, color and heavy metal from wastewater using electro-chemical technique, Int. J. Global Environmental Issues, 13(1), 1-13.
  42. Polizzotto, M. L., E. M. Lineberger, A. R. Matteson, R. B. Neumann, A.B.M. Badruzzaman, Ali, M. A. (2013) Arsenic transport in irrigation water across rice-field soils in Bangladesh. Environmental Pollution.179: 210 – 217.
  43. Lineberger, EM., Badruzzaman, ABM., Ali, MA., and Polizzotto, ML. (2013) Arsenic removal from flowing irrigation water in Bangladesh: impacts of channel properties. Journal of Environmental Quality 42(6), 1733-1742.
  44. Alam, M. A., Badruzzaman, A. B. M. and Ali, M. A. (2013), Assessing effect of climate change on the water quality of the Sitalakhya River using WASP model, Journal of Civil Engineering IEB, 41(1), 21-30.
  45. Neumann, RB., Pracht, LE., Polizzotto, ML., Badruzzaman, ABM., and Ali, MA. (2014) Biodegradable organic carbon in sediments of an arsenic-contaminated aquifer in Bangladesh. Environmental Science & Technology Letters 1, 221-225.
  46. Neumann, RB., Pracht, LE., Polizzotto, ML., Badruzzaman, ABM., and Ali, MA. (2014) Sealing rice field boundaries in Bangladesh: a pilot study demonstrating reductions in water use, arsenic loading to field soils, and methane emissions from irrigation water. Environmental Science Technology 48 (16), 9632-9640.
  47. Polizzotto, M. L., Birgand, F., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., and Ali, M. A. (2014), Amending irrigation channels with jute-mesh structures to decrease arsenic loading to rice fields in Bangladesh, Ecological Engineering, 74, 101-106.
  48. Rahman, M. A., Jalil, Md. A., and Ali, M. A. (2014), Transformation of arsenic in the presence of cow dung and arsenic sludge disposal and management strategy in Bangladesh, Journal of Hydrology, 518, Part C, 486-492.
  49. Sabit, Md. I. and Ali, M. A. (2015), Pollution of water bodies within and around Dhaka city: the Case of Gulshan Lake, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 43(1), 29-39.
  50. Islam, M. M., Afrin, S., Ahmed, T., and Ali, M. A. (2015), Meteorological and seasonal influences in ambient air quality parameters of Dhaka city, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 43(1), 67-77.
  51. Ali, M. A., Hoque, A., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., Ahmed, F., Habib, Md. E. and Johnston, R. B. (2015), Assessment of the performance of community iron removal plants in selected rural aras of Bangladesh, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 43(2), 157-167.
  52. Ali, P., Alam, M. F. and Ali, M. A. (2017), Effectiveness of UV disinfection for contaminated surface water, International Journal of Environmental Science and Development, 8(1), 6-9.
  53. Khan, S. T., Baksh, A. A., Papon, M. T. I. and Ali, M. A. (2017), Rainwater harvesting system: An approach for optimum tank size design and assessment efficiency, International Journal of Environmental Science and Development, 8(1), 37-43.
  54. Paul, S. Khan, Md. A. I., Hossain, M., and Ali, M. A. (2017), Assessment of disinfection of water containing high concentration of ammonia by chlorination, Desalination and Water Treatment, 100 (2017), 340-346.
  55. Ramim, S. S., Sultana, H., Akter, T., and Ali, M. A. (2017), Removal of arsenic from groundwater using iron-coated jute-mesh structure, Desalination and Water Treatment, 100 (2017), 347-353.
  56. Sikder, Md. K. U., Choudhury, M. R. and Ali, M. A. (2017), Influence of different operational and water quality parameters on the ultraviolet (UV) disinfection efficiencies in household or community based water storage units used in small water supply systems, Journal of Civil Engineering (IEB), 45 (2) (2017) 117-132.
  57. Tareq, S. M., Rahman, T. U., Islam, A. Z. M. Z., Badruzzaman, A. B. M., and Ali, M. A. (2018), Evaluation of climate-induced waterlogging hazards in the south-west coast of Bangladesh using Geoinformatics, Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 190:230.
  58. Aziz, S., Jahin, A., Tasnim, Z. and Ali, M. A. (2018), Effect of bicarbonate on arsenic removal by coagulation, Global Science and Technology Journal, 6(2), 107-122.
  59. Ali, Md. A., Saiful, S., and Ali, M. A. (2018), Quantification of condensate water generated from air conditioning system, Global Science and Technology Journal, 6(3), 44-56.