Jumana Aljafari (IntlAssoc)

Dr. Jumana Aljafari is a postdoctoral research engineer in the Heat Transfer and Alternative Energy Systems (HTAES) Group of the Energy and Environment Division (EED) of the Engineering Laboratory (EL) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Jumana joined the HTAES group in October of 2023 following her postdoctoral work at the Biodesign Center for Environmental Health Engineering at Arizona State University. Her research experience involves the microbial, chemical, and physical characterization and treatment of alternative water resources including stormwater, roof runoff (roof-harvested rainwater), and gray water. She also has experience in Quantitative Microbial Risk Assessment (QMRA). 

Dr. Aljafari works on the Premise Plumbing in High-Performance Buildings (PPHPB) project at NIST.  She is currently designing a lab-scale study to evaluate the efficiency of several intervention measures for the control of opportunistic pathogens growth in residential plumbing systems. Potential measures under investigation include point-of-use filtration, UV disinfection, and thermal disinfection. She is also working on developing guidance for sampling different components of residential premise plumbing for the detection and quantification of opportunistic pathogens in bulk water samples. 

Dr. Aljafari received a B.Sc. degree in civil engineering and M.Sc. degree in water and environmental engineering from the University of Jordan. She received a PhD degree in environmental engineering from Colorado State University. Her dissertation was entitled Addressing Barriers to the Wide-Scale Implementation of Roof Runoff and Stormwater Collection and Use Projects for Non-Potable End Uses in the U.S. Dr. Aljafari worked on projects funded by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), World Health Organization (WHO), Water Research Foundation (WRF), and National Science Foundation (NSF). 

Publications 

Characterization of Roof Runoff Microbial Quality in Four U.S. Cities with Varying Climate and Land Use Characteristics, September 14, 2022

Authors: Jumana Alja’fari, Sybil Sharvelle, Nichole E. Brinkman, Michael Jahne, Scott Keely, Emily A. Wheaton, Jay Garland, Claire Welty, Michael C. Sukop, Thomas Meixner

Summary and Synthesis of Literature on Stormwater Microbial Quality for Stormwater Capture and Use, 2023

Authors: Jumana Alja’fari, Sybil Sharvelle, Amos Branch, Jim Rasmus 

Assessing the Microbial Risks and Impacts from Stormwater Capture and Use to Establish Appropriate Best Management Practices, 2023

Authors: Sybil Sharvelle, Jumana Alja’fari, Amos Branch, Jim Rasmus