Imma Ferrer
Research Associate • Co-Director, Laboratory for Environmental Mass Spectrometry
Environmental Engineering
Imma.Ferrer@colorado.edu
303-735-6819

Office: SEEC S297

Education:

  • B.S. in Analytical Chemistry, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain, 1994.
  • M.S. in Environmental Analytical Chemistry, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain, 1995.
  • Ph.D. in Environmental Analytical Chemistry, CSIC, Barcelona, 1999.
  • Post-doc Associate in Chemistry, U.S. Geological Survey, Denver, CO, 2000-2003.
  • Post-doc Associate in Chemistry, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO, 2000-2003.

Honors and Distinctions:

  • Author of >100 peer reviewed publications.  Hirsch Factor: 45.
  • Associate Editor, Trends in Environmental Analytical Chemistry, Jan 2016-
  • Organized symposia, Advances in Mass Spectrometry, Pittsburgh Conference, 2002-2017.
  • 3 Invited Key Note lectures and 30 invited lectures at International Symposia.  Total of 55 oral presentations.
  • Editor of 3 books related to Mass Spectrometry (2003, 2009 and 2013).
  • Member of the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) and chairman of the Environmental Interest Group.
  • Patent: Determination of chemical empirical formulas of unknown compounds using accurate ion mass measurement of all isotopes, 2007, US 20070114373.

Professional Affiliations:

  • Assistant Professor at Department of Analaytical Chemistry, University of Almeria, Almeria, Spain, 2003-2008.

Interests:

  • LC/Q-TOF-MS analytical method development for the accurate mass analysis of pesticides and pharmaceuticals in water samples.
  • LC/MS-MS analytical method development for low ng/L level quantitation of contaminants.
  • Analysis of groundwater, drinking water and wastewater.
  • Identification of unknowns in environmental samples by LC/Q-TOF-MS.
  • Food Analysis (soy milk, fruits and vegetables, soft drinks, etc.).
  • Expertise: interpretation of mass spectra data using LC/MS-MS and LC/Q-TOF-MS techniques.
  • Analysis of organic compounds in hydraulic fracturing waters

Recent Publications:

  1. Campos-Mañas, M.C.; Ferrer, I.; Thurman, E.M.; Agüera, A., 2018, Opioid Occurrence in Environmental Water Samples – A Review, Trends in Environmental Analytical Chemistry, in press.
  2. Sitterley, K.A.; Linden, K.G; Ferrer, I.; Thurman, E.M., 2018, Identification of Proprietary Amino Ethoxylates in Hydraulic Fracturing Wastewater using Liquid Chromatography/Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometry with Solid-Phase Extraction, Analytical Chemistry, 90, 10927-10934.
  3. Rosenblum, J.S.; Thurman, E.M.; Ferrer, I.; Aiken, G.; Linden, K.G., 2017, Organic Chemical Characterization and Mass Balance of a Hydraulically Fracture Well: from Fracturing Fluid to Produced Water over 405 Days, Environmental Science and Technology, 51, 14006-14015.
  4. Rogers, J.D.; Ferrer, I.; Tummings, S.S.; Bielefeldt, A.R.; Ryan, J.N., 2017, Inhibition of biodegradation of hydraulic fracturing compounds by glutaraldehyde: groundwater column and microcosm experiments, Environmental Science and Technology, 51, 10251-10261.
  5. Hanigan, D.; Ferrer, I.; Thurman, E.M.; Herckes, P.; Westerhoff, P., 2017, LC/QTOF-MS fragmentation of N-nitrosodimethylamine precursors in drinking water supplies is predictable and aids their identification, Journal of Hazardous Materials, 323, 18-25.
  6. Thurman, E.M.; Ferrer, I.; Rosenblum, J.; Linden, K.; Ryan, J.N., 2017, Identification of propyleneglycols and polyethylene glycol carboxylates in flowback and produced water from hydraulic fracturing, Journal of Hazardous Materials, 323, 11-17.
  7. Rosenblum, J.S.; Sitterley, K.A.; Thurman, E.M.; Ferrer, I.; Linden, K.G., 2016, Hydraulic fracturing wastewater treatment by coagulation-adsorption for removal of organic compounds and turbidity, Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering,4, 1978-1984.
  8. Strynar, M.; Dagnino, S.; McMahen, R.; Liang, S.; Lindstrom, A.; Andersen, E.; McMillan, L.; Thurman, E.M.; Ferrer, I.; Ball, C., 2015, Identification of Novel Perfluoroalkyl Ether Carboxylic Acids (PFECAs) and Sulfonic Acids (PFESAs) in Natural Waters Using Accurate Mass Time-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry (TOFMS), Environmental Science and Technology, 49, 11622-11630.
  9. Ferrer, I.; Thurman, E.M., 2015, Analysis of Hydraulic Fracturing Additives by LC/Q-TOF-MS, Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 407, 6417-6428.
  10. Ferrer, I.; Thurman, E.M., 2015, Chemical Constituents and Analytical Approaches for hydraulic fracturing waters, Trends in Environmental Analytical Chemistry, v. 5, 18-25.