Ernest (Chip) Blatchley, Lee A. Rieth Professor in Environmental Engineering and Professor in Environmental and Ecological Engineering has started a 2-year term as President-Elect of the International Ultraviolet Association (IUVA). This will be followed by a 2-year term as President.

IUVA is a professional organization that focuses on UV radiation and its various applications, providing a forum for the discussion of all scientific and technological issues that relate to the use of ultraviolet radiation. The members of IUVA strive to make the use of Ultraviolet Technology a leading technology for public health and environmental applications.

Professor Blatchley teaches and conducts research in the area of physico/chemical processes of environmental engineering. Specific foci within this area include theory, methods, and applications of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, disinfection byproduct (DBP) dynamics, water and air quality in indoor swimming pools, and water supply in developing countries.

Blatchley has published widely, including a 2022 textbook titled, Photochemical Reactors: Theory, Methods, and Applications of Ultraviolet Radiation, which describes the history of photochemistry and photochemical reactions, the dynamic behavior of UV-based reactor systems, and the physical concepts that govern natural and man-made sources of UV radiation.