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Awards

Sl.No Name of Award Awardee Details
1 Certificate Of Merits for Scientists/Engineers 1526 Dr. S. Kaliraj, Scientist C, Crustal Dynamics Group.

 

BGG

Main Chemical Lab (MCL)

Main Chemical lab is equipped to carryout routine evaluation of chemical and physical parameters in water and wastewaters for both qualitative and quantitative determination of light metals and pesticides content.Consisting of LC-MS/MS, GC-MS/MS, MP-AES, GC, UHPLC, AAS, Continuous Flow Analyser (CFA), UV-Vis-NIR Spectrophotometer, Flame photometer, CHNS Analyser, TOC Analyser, Surface Area Analyser, Sedigraph, Mercury Analyser, IC.

Instruments available are:

  1. GC – Perkin Elmer (N651-9101 CLARUS 500)
  2. Bacteriological Incubator – Labline
  3. Laboratory oven – Labline
  4. Muffle Furnace – Bio-Technics India
  5. BOD Incubator – Calton
  6. UV Spectrophotometer – Shimadzu (UV-1800)
  7. Flame photometer – (CL-361)
  8. Flame photometer – (CL-378)
  9. Electronic weighing balance – Sartorius (BP221 S)
  10. Sediment Squeezer
  11. Rotary Vacuum Evaporator – Eyela (NVC 2100)

Download Water/Sediment Analysis Request Form

 

vivek

Vivek V R

Research Scholar,  Biogeochemistry group

Email :

Education:

MSc : Applied Geology, University of Mysore.
BSc : Geology,University of Kerala.

Professional Career:

2018 (Dec) - Present Project Assistant II, National Centre for Earth Science Studies.

Training programmes attended:

  • Attended course on “Overview of RS & GIS Application for Natural Resource Management” ( Conducted by IIRS).
  • Attended a course on “Hyperspectral Remote sensing and its Applications” (Conducted by IIRS).
  • Attended National seminar on “Recent advances in Research on Precambrian Terrains In India”( Organized by University Of Mysore).
  • Attended a workshop on “Field Techniques in Geological Mapping” (Organized by University of Kerala) .

Publications/Conferences/Seminars:

  • Vivek V. R., Sreelesh R., Syam Sunny, Silpa Mathew, K. Maya and D. Padmalal, Springs in the coastal lowlands Trivandrum block: Water discharge and hydro-geochemistry, INGWC 2020, 18-20 February 2020, CWRDM.
  • Maya K, Vivek V. R., Silpa Mathew, Sreelesh R, Syam Sunny and Padmalal D. Geothermal characteristics and hydrochemistry of ground water around a thermal spring in Southern Western Ghats, India, 36 th International Geological Congress.
  • Presenjit Das, Maya K , Vivek V. R, Silpa Mathew and Arya S.,2019. Hydrochemistry of the Thermal springs of the Southern Karnataka, India. AQUASEM -2019, National seminar on aquatic chemistry ( 21-23 March 2019),CUSAT.
  • Sreelesh R, Presenjit Das, Vivek V. R., Silpa Mathew ,K Maya and D Padmalal, Study on the Thermal and cold water Springs of Dakshina Kannada district, Southern Western Ghats, India. INGWC 2020, 18-20 February 2020, CWRDM.

 

Hydrology Group (HyG)

environmental science

Critical Zone Observatories

NCESS is setting up Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs) in South Peninsular India under the theme TERRAIN (Tropical Ecosystem Research Observatories in Peninsular India with an objective to understand the relative influence of natural perturbations (climate variability) and anthropogenic activities on the hydrological and biogeochemical cycles in different agroclimatic regions of India which will be elevated to the standards of global test bed for Critical Zone studies. In the first phase, CZOs has been set up in the Attappadi (Sub-Humid to Semi-Arid transition zone), Munnar (Humid - High altitude mountainous terrain) and Aduthurai (Tropical wet and dry deltaic region) representing different agroclimatic zones. These CZOs are being instrumented to monitor instantaneous and continuous soil moisture (surface and profile), groundwater level, streamflow, canopy characteristics (Leaf Area Index, Vegetation Water Content, Biomass), porewater geochemistry, hydrochemistry of surface and groundwater, soil properties (physical and hydraulic properties), meteorological variables, evaporation, soil water balance (Lysimeter) etc. These variables are monitored at different spatio-temporal scales and the data generated from these observatories will enable to understand the Critical Zone dynamics and its resilience in the context of natural and forced changes.

Attappadi Critical Zone Observatory

Attappadi Critical Zone Observatory                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 


The Attappadi CZO lies in the transition zone between the humid areas of Silent Valley National Park to sub-humid areas in the Nilgiri Plateau and extends to semi-arid region. The CZO is situated between E longitudes 76°25’to 76°50’and N latitudes 11°0” to 11°30’ and covers an area of 1225km2. Monitoring stations has been setup in the Palur watershed (8.5 km2 area). The river Bhavani, which is the tributary of east flowing Cauvery river, originates from the Nilgiri mountain ranges of southern Western Ghats. The river drains nearly 8% of the total area of the Cauvery Basin. The important tributaries of the Bhavani are the Siruvani, the Kundah, the Conoor and the Moyar. The river has a catchment area of 6,200 km2 which is spread essentially over Tamil Nadu (87%) and partly in Kerala (9%) and Karnataka (4%) states. The Bhavani basin is characterized by a considerable amount of tribal population and is predominantly an agricultural watershed. Characterization of soil physical, chemical and hydraulic properties is ongoing in the Attappadi CZO. Surface and groundwater hydrochemical characterization of the Attappadi CZO is progressing through continuous sampling.

Munnar Critical Zone Observatory

munnar

Munnar CZO is a tropical high altitude mountainous observatory, characterized by a highly heterogeneous terrain. The CZO encompasses the watersheds of Mutirapuzha, Idamalayar and Amaravati rivers. Monitoring stations has been setup in Matupetty and Vattavada regions of the Munnar CZO. Geologically the area forms a part of the Madurai granulite block (MGB) of the southern granulite terrain (SGT) and comprised essentially of charnockites, hornblende gneiss, granite etc. Geomorphologically the area forms a part of Munnar plateau whose elevation varies between 1460 and 1620 m above msl. The slope is generally steep (>30°) and the soil is mainly of lateritic type with appreciably high content of clay and organic matter. The hills of Munnar are home to different cash crops. Tea gardens and settlement with mixed cultivation are the major land use of this area. Eucalyptus and acacia, planted under the government’s social forestry scheme, occupy a major part of the forest plantation, whereas the upslope portions are occupied by degraded forests and shola grasslands. On the other hand, the Amaravati watershed are generally occupied by cold climate driven vegetation. The contrasting climatic conditions and agricultural activities makes the CZO unique in many aspects.

Aduthurai Critical Zone Observatory

 

Aduthurai CZO is located in the Cauvery delta in the eastern part of Tamil Nadu and experiences a tropical wet and dry climate. This CZO is predominantly an agricultural watershed with rice as the principal crop. The region experiences an average annual rainfall, of about 1000 mm with North East monsoon being the major contributor (550 mm) of the annual rainfall. The Cauvery delta region is generally known as the Rice Bowl of Tamil Nadu and is also the largest coconut producer in Tamil Nadu. The upper part of the Cauvery Delta is bordered by Cuddalore lateritic sandstones of pilo-miocene age and majority of the delta is covered by alluvium. The south eastern part of the delta constitutes the coastal lands. Aduthurai CZO will be augmented with monitoring stations shortly.

Critical Zone Laboratory at NCESS

crzNCESS

Critical Zone Laboratory has been setup at NCESS for carrying out laboratory scale experiments on soil, water and vegetation. The laboratory is equipped with

  • Soil Hydraulic Property Estimation setup – HYPROP, KSAT
  • Dual Head Infiltrometer, Mini Disk Infiltrometer
  • Automatic Soil Particle Size Analyzer – PARIO
  • Hydrometer, Sieve Shaker, Pore Water Sampler
  • Plant Canopy Analyzer, NDVI Meter

 

 

Sandhya

Sandhya Sudhakaran

Research Scholar,  Biogeochemistry Group

Email : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Phone(Off) : 0471-2511697

Fax : 0471-2442280

Education:

B.Ed : 2009, Physical Science, Providence Womens College, University of Calicut, Calicut, Kerala.
M.Sc. : 2008, Chemistry, St. Mary’s College, University of Calicut, Sulthan Bathery, Kerala.
B.Sc : 2006, Chemistry, Providence Womens College, University of Calicut, Calicut.

Professional Career:

2019(Nov) - Present      : CSIR- Senior Research Fellow, National centre for Earth Science .
2017(Oct) - 2019 (Oct) : CSIR- Junior Research Fellow, National Centre for Earth Science.
2015(Feb) - 2016 (Sep): Technical Assistant in IISER, Trivandrum, Kerala.
2011(Mar) - 2011 (May): NIIST , Trivandrum ,Kerala.

Honours/Awards:

  • CSIR-SRF : November 2019
  • CSIR–JRF : June 2016
  • Best paper Award (Second)- International conference on Innovations and Sustainable research in environment and Life sciences , Fatima Mata National College, Autonomous, Kollam
  • SET : June 2013

Research Interest:

 

Assessment of nutrient dynamics / flux and associated biogeochemical processes in various river basins of Western Ghats. To integrate nutrient monitoring studies in the river basins with possibilities of making feasible methodologies to remove nutrients especially phosphate and nitrate using natural clay/modified clay minerals.

Publications/ Conference Proceedings:

  • Sandhya Sudhakaran, Harsha Mahadevan, Vijayan Arun, Appukuttan Pillai Krishnakumar, Krishnan Anoop Krishnan (2020); “A multivariate statistical approach in assessing the quality of potable and irrigation water environs of the Netravati River basin (India)” Groundwater for Sustainable Development , Volume 11, October 2020.
  • Harsha Mahadevan, A.R. Nayana, V. Viswadas , Sibin Antony , Vinu V. Dev, Sandhya Sudhakaran , Helan Priya Pious, K. Anoop Krishnan (2018); “A pilot level approach to remove anionic species from industrial effluents using a novel carbonate-steam pyrolysed activated charcoal system” Advanced Powder Technology , October 2018.
  • Harsha Mahadevan, K. Anoop Krishnan, Renjith R. Pillai, Sandhya Sudhakaran (2020); “Assessment of urban river water quality and developing strategies for phosphate removal from water and wastewaters: Integrated monitoring and mitigation studies” SN Applied Sciences, March 2020.
  • Harsha Mahadevan, K. Anoop Krishnan, Renjith R. Pillai & Sandhya Sudhakaran (2020); “Stirring-ageing technique to develop zirconium-pillared bentonite clay along with its surface profiling using various spectroscopic techniques” Research on Chemical Intermediates , Volume 39, September 2019.
  • Sandhya Sudhakaran, Elezabeth V. Abraham, P. R. Amrutha, Harsha Mahadevan, K. Anoop Krishnan.” Encapsulation of iron by chitosan-montmorillonite nanocomposite for phosphate adsorption”. International conference on Recent Trends in Material Science and Technology organized by Indian Institute of Science and Technology, Trivandrum , Kerala from 10th-12th October , 2018. (Poster Presentation)
  • Sandhya Sudhakaran, Elezabeth V. Abraham, Harsha Mahadevan, Sibin Antony, Vinu V . Dev, A. Krishna kumar, K. Anoop Krishnan.”Fate and transport of nutrients in the paddy fields of Netravati river basin, India along with phosphate removal studies ”International conference on Innovations and Sustainable Research in Environment and Life Sciences” organized by Fatima Mata National college Kollam , Kerala from 7th-9th August , 2018. (Oral Presentation) (Best Paper Award- second)
  • Midhu P. Alex, Harsha Mahadevan, Sandhya Sudhakaran , Helan Priya Pious , K. Anoop Krishnan. “Adsorptive removal of methyl red from aqueous solution using kaolinite : Kinetics and Isotherm studies”. State Level Seminar on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology ,sponsored by the Kerala State Council for Science , Technology and Environment on 16/1/2019.
  • V.Arun , Sibin Antony , Vinu V.Dev,Harsha Mahadevan ,Sandhya Sudhakaran ,K.Anoop Krishnan.”Evironmental monitoring of water and sediment quality parameters in the backwaters around willington island.” Environmental Status of Estuarine and Coastal Ecosystems in India ECEI” organized by Department of Environmental Science , University of Kerala,Thiruvananthapuram,Kerala from 14th – 15th ,March, 2019.
  • Gayatri Vastrad, Sandhya Sudhakaran, Helan Priya Pious ,Jeenu Jose, V. Arun, A. KrishnaKumar ,K. AnoopKrishnan.”Hydrological Assessment of ground water quality in Netravati river basibn,Karnataka,India.” Environmental Status of Estuarine and Coastal Ecosystems in India ECEI” organized by Department of Environmental Science , University of Kerala,Thiruvananthapuram,Kerala from 14th – 15th ,March, 2019.
  • Helan Priya Pious, Sandhya Sudhakaran, V.Arun, Sibin Antony, Vinu.V.Dev , Harsha Mahadevan, A.Krishnakumar ,K.Anoop Krishnan.”Hydrogeochemistry of Netravati river along with phosphate adsorption studies using the river bed clay: Monitoring and Mitigation approach.”International conference on Water : From Pollution to purification , December 7th – 10th ,2018, organized by Advanced centre of environmental studies and sustainable development (ACESSD) & School of environmental sciences ,Mahatna Gandhi University ,Kottayam, Kerala.
  • V. Arun, Harsha Mahadevan, Sandhya Sudhakaran, Helan Priya Pious ,Athira .M.Nair, Sibin Antony , K. Anoop Krishnan.”Nutrient and microbial behaviour at upper and lower kuttanad region , Kerala ,India in view of post flood- 2018”. International conference on Water : From Pollution to purification , December 7th – 10th ,2018, organized by Advanced centre of environmental studies and sustainable development (ACESSD) & School of environmental sciences ,Mahatna Gandhi University ,Kottayam, Kerala.

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