Hans Chr. Bruun Hansen
Professor
Section for Environmental Chemistry and Physics
Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg C, 71 Højhus 71, Building: 71-6-T630
Member of:
Born 12 April 1959 (Denmark, Danish)
Higher education
PhD 1987 – 91 Chemistry Dept., Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Copenhagen
MSc 1981 – 87 Cand. silv., Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University, Copenhagen
Appointments
2007 - Professor in Environmental Chemistry, Dept. Plant and Environmental Sciences (previously Dept. Basic Sciences and Environment) , University of Copenhagen
1999 - 2007 Professor in Environmental Chemistry, Chemistry Department, Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University
1994 – 1998 Associate Professor, Chemistry Dept., Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University
1990 – 1994 Assistant Professor, Chemistry Dept., Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University
1989 – 1990 Teaching assistant, Chemistry Dept., Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University
Duties and positions of trust
2005 - Head, Section of Environmental Chemistry and Physics (40 persons)
2007 - 2009 Head of Water Research Initiative (VIVA)
2005 - 2007 Board of Danish Environmental Research Institute
2005 - 2008 Member of the Danish Water Research Platform
2004 – 2012 Member of Academic Council and Research Committee at Royal Veterinary and Agriculturual University, later University of Copenhagen
2003 - 2012 Head of PhD research school in Environmental Chemistry, Microbiology and Toxicology (RECETO)
2002 - 2005 Member of Research Council for Development Research
2002 – 2004 Øresund Environment Board
2001 - 2006 Member of Danish Research Councils (SJVF, FTP; vice head)
2000 - Referee for more than 20 journals, e.g. Environmental Science and Technology, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Nanoscale, Clays and Clay Minerals, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta,
2000 - 5 10 annual tasks in relation to assessment of proposals (5 countries), PhD theses (7 countries), and and job applications (4 countries) abroad.
Memberships
Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC), European Clay Groups Association (EGGA), Mineralogical Society, European Association of Geochemistry (EAG), International Soil Science Society (ISSS), and Danish Chemical Society
Research area
Research with focus on chemical reactions of inorganic and organic pollutants at solid-solution interfaces in geoenvironments with implications for soil and water quality: i) Reactions of metal hydroxide/oxide particles with particular emphasis on reduction/oxidation, hydrolysis, and photodegradation of priority pollutants, including synthesis of nanocomposites for remediation of polluted soils and groundwater, ii) Thermodynamics and kinetics of sorption processes important for applications in soil and water cleaning technology and with main focus on surface complexation reactions, and iii) Organic environmental chemistry with main focus on biotoxins and pesticides. In this field main focus has been on carcinogenic indanones, glucosinolates-isothiocyanates, and cyanogenic glucosides.
Current research projects
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Sustainable phosphorus remediation and recycling technologies in the landscape (SupremeTech). Danish Research Council for Strategic Research, 2010 – 2015, xx mill DKr.
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Iron hydroxide intercalates for degradation of halogenated solvents in sediment and groundwater (Iron-X). Danish Research Council for Technology and Production, 2011 – 2014, xx mill Dkr.
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Innovative cleaning technologies for production of drinking water during flooding episodes. DANIDA, 2012 – 2015, xx mill Dkr
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Sino-Danish Research Center Beijing – Water and Environment. Post Doc and PhD projects. Danish Ministery for Science, Technology and Innovation, 2011 - , 1 mill Dkr/year
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From soil to streamwater – fate and toxicity of insecticides in surfacewater. Danish Environmental Protection Agency, 2011 – 2013, 0.4 mill Dkr
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From surface to drinking water by combined filtration and electrochemical disinfection. Danish Environmental Protection Agency, 2013 – 2014, ??
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High-affinity double porous filter materials – from physical chemistry to industrial coating with iron oxides (Ultrasorb). Danish Research Council for Strategic Research, 2012 – 2013, 0.5 mill DKr.
Completed more than 15 projects within the last 10 years covering external funding of approximately 35 mill DKr.
Teaching
Since 1990 taught 19 different courses from BSc to PhD level, and supervised 69 MSc thesis projects and 25 PhD projects – all experimental. Current supervisor for 5 PhD students and 3 MSc students. Initiated (2005) a European MSc study programme: “Environmental Science: Soil, Water and Biodiversity (EnvEuro)” (3 European Universities), and co-initiator (2005) of international MSc programme in Environmental Chemistry and Health at University of Copenhagen. Partner (2000 – 2006) in SLUSE educational network with South Africa, Thailand and Malaysia. Partner (2011) in the Sino-Danish programme “Water and Environment”.
The following two lines of research have been pioneering and also have had significant impact : i) formation and reactivity of mixed-valence iron hydroxides (so called green rusts), and ii) analysis and fate of natural plant-produced toxins and other organic pollutants in soil.
Green rusts: Hansen et al. (1994) demonstrated that previously published data for mixed-valence iron hydroxides in soil were wrong and that the precipitate forming when amorphous iron(III)hydroxide reacts with iron(II) is an iron(II)iron(III) hydroxide-sulphate (green rust) with a distinct structure. This work was followed by Hansen et al. (1996) who for the first time showed that green rusts can reduce nitrate with stoichiometric formation of ammonium – a study which was followed by a suite of other studies. Three years later Erbs et al. (1999) showed that green rusts are also capable to dehalogenate chlorinated alkanes – an extremely interesting observation with huge perspectives. Green rusts can be engineered, and Ayala-Luis et al. (2012) showed that an organo-intercalated green rust reduced tetrachloremethane much faster and with complete dehalogenation compared with parent green rusts. Finally, Huang et al. (2013) made a fantastic observation: oxidation of organo-intercalated green rusts followed by delamination leads to formation of 1 nm thick single-sheets of iron oxide – with huge perspectives for sorption and catalysis and as templates for surface-chemical reactions.
Natural toxins: Rasmussen et al. (2003) for the first time documented the presence of carcinogenic ptquiloside in soil below bracken stands. This work was followed by many other works focusing on the kinetics of degradation in soil, in particular Ayala-Luis et al (2006) made a breakthrough. As for ptaquiloside glucosinolates was shown to be weakly sorbed, and rather quickly transformed (Gimsing et al., 2006), but generating high concentrations of toxic isothiocyanates. More than 30 publications have been made on fate and toxicity of natural toxins in soil environments – with significance for risk assessment of crop plants incl. GMO crops.
Other surprising observations have been made on other topics in environmental chemistry, and the work by Fang et al. (2010) is a classical and beautiful example of sorption of variable charged pollutant species sorb to variable charged surfaces and the modelling hereof.
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Articles (peer reviewed) |
Monographs |
Book chapters |
Proceedings |
Other |
Total: |
150 |
2 |
15 |
154 |
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ID: 4223660
Most downloads
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1025
downloads
Biogeochemistry of electron transfer at the iron oxide-solution interface in sediments
Research output: Contribution to journal › Conference abstract in journal
Published -
273
downloads
Layered double hydroxides: potential release-on-demand fertilizers for plant zinc nutrition
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › peer-review
Published -
250
downloads
Magnetizing of nano-materials on example of Degussa's P-25 TiO2 photocatalyst: synthesis of magnetic aggregates, characterization of possible use
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › peer-review
Published