Zachary Hopkins
Zack Hopkins, Ph.D. is a Physical Scientist at the Eastern Ecological Science Center, Leetown Research Laboratory.
He studies the fate, transport, and ecosystem exposure and effects of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). He develops analytical methods for targeted and non-targeted analysis of PFAS using liquid chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry. His work leverages these methods for the analysis of PFAS in biological matrices (e.g., plasma and tissue), water, and soil.
Professional Experience
2022 - present Physical Scientist, USGS-EESC, Kearneysville, WV
2021 - 2022 Postdoctoral researcher, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
2014 - 2021 Doctoral researcher, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC
2011 - 2014 Researcher, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD
Education and Certifications
Ph.D. Civil Engineering, North Carolina State University, 2021
M.S. Environmental Engineering, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 2014
B.S. Chemical Engineering, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 2012
Science and Products
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), volatile organic compounds, biogeochemical, and water quality data from seep samples, Lower Darby Creek Area Superfund Site, near Folcroft, Pennsylvania, 2024
This metadata record contains one table and one shapefile with results from field sampling at locations of groundwater discharge (seeps) identified by autonomous boat survey at the Lower Darby Creek Area (LDCA) Superfund Site, near Folcroft, Pennsylvania, in 2024. Included in the dataset are (1) PFAS concentrations, volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations, cations/trace metals...
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and volatile organic compounds measured in laboratory microcosm experiments with soil from Fort Drum, New York
Anaerobic microcosm experiments were conducted in April-May 2018 with PFAS-contaminated soil from a U.S. Army installation (Fort Drum, New York) and simulated groundwater. All microcosms, except for a live sediment control, were amended with perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), and 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FtS). Replicate treatments were prepared with and...
Anaerobic biodegradation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and microbial community composition in soil amended with a dechlorinating culture and chlorinated solvents
Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), one of the most frequently detected per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) occurring in soil, surface water, and groundwater near sites contaminated with aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), has proven to be recalcitrant to many destructive remedies, including chemical oxidation. We investigated the potential to utilize microbially mediated reduction...
Authors
Michelle M. Lorah, Ke He, Lee Blaney, Denise Akob, Cassandra Rashan Harris, Andrea K. Tokranov, Zachary Ryan Hopkins, Brian Shedd
Non-USGS Publications**
Pétré, M. A., Genereux, D. P., Koropeckyj-Cox, L., Knappe, D. R., Duboscq, S., Gilmore, T. E., & Hopkins, Z. R. (2021). Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) transport from groundwater to streams near a PFAS manufacturing facility in North Carolina, USA. Environmental science & technology, 55(9), 5848-5856. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.0c07978
Dodds, J. N., Alexander, N. L. M., Kirkwood, K. I., Foster, M. R., Hopkins, Z. R., Knappe, D. R., & Baker, E. S. (2020). From pesticides to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances: an evaluation of recent targeted and untargeted mass spectrometry methods for xenobiotics. Analytical chemistry, 93(1), 641-656. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04359
Dodds, J. N., Hopkins, Z. R., Knappe, D. R., & Baker, E. S. (2020). Rapid characterization of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by ion mobility spectrometry–mass spectrometry (IMS-MS). Analytical chemistry, 92(6), 4427-4435. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.9b05364
Zhang, C., Hopkins, Z. R., McCord, J., Strynar, M. J., & Knappe, D. R. (2019). Fate of per-and polyfluoroalkyl ether acids in the total oxidizable precursor assay and implications for the analysis of impacted water. Environmental science & technology letters, 6(11), 662-668. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.9b00525
Hopkins, Zachary R., et al. "Recently detected drinking water contaminants: GenX and other per‐and polyfluoroalkyl ether acids." Journal‐American Water Works Association 110.7 (2018): 13-28. https://doi.org/10.1002/awwa.1073
Hopkins, Zachary R., Sebastian Snowberger, and Lee Blaney. "Ozonation of the oxybenzone, octinoxate, and octocrylene UV-filters: Reaction kinetics, absorbance characteristics, and transformation products." Journal of hazardous materials 338 (2017): 23-32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2017.05.016
Knappe, Detlef, et al. Occurrence of 1, 4-dioxane in the cape fear river watershed and effectiveness of water treatment options for 1, 4-dioxane control. NC Water Resources Research Institute, 2016. https://repository.lib.ncsu.edu/bitstream/handle/1840.20/34331/UNC-WRRI-478.pdf
Hopkins, Zachary R., and Lee Blaney. "An aggregate analysis of personal care products in the environment: Identifying the distribution of environmentally-relevant concentrations." Environment international 92 (2016): 301-316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2016.04.026
Hopkins, Zachary R., and Lee Blaney. "A novel approach to modeling the reaction kinetics of tetracycline antibiotics with aqueous ozone." Science of the total environment 468 (2014): 337-344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.08.032
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
R scripts for the analysis of a predatory fish invasion on a riverine food web
Catfishes are opportunistic feeders that are among the world's worst invasive species. Flathead catfish Pylodictus olivaris -- a large predatory catfish -- were first detected in the Susquehanna River, Pennsylvania, USA in 2002. Since then, they established a viable and rapidly growing population that is expanding its range throughout the river system. Although the predatory effects of...
Science and Products
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), volatile organic compounds, biogeochemical, and water quality data from seep samples, Lower Darby Creek Area Superfund Site, near Folcroft, Pennsylvania, 2024
This metadata record contains one table and one shapefile with results from field sampling at locations of groundwater discharge (seeps) identified by autonomous boat survey at the Lower Darby Creek Area (LDCA) Superfund Site, near Folcroft, Pennsylvania, in 2024. Included in the dataset are (1) PFAS concentrations, volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations, cations/trace metals...
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and volatile organic compounds measured in laboratory microcosm experiments with soil from Fort Drum, New York
Anaerobic microcosm experiments were conducted in April-May 2018 with PFAS-contaminated soil from a U.S. Army installation (Fort Drum, New York) and simulated groundwater. All microcosms, except for a live sediment control, were amended with perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), perfluorooctanoate (PFOA), and 6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonate (6:2 FtS). Replicate treatments were prepared with and...
Anaerobic biodegradation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and microbial community composition in soil amended with a dechlorinating culture and chlorinated solvents
Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), one of the most frequently detected per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) occurring in soil, surface water, and groundwater near sites contaminated with aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), has proven to be recalcitrant to many destructive remedies, including chemical oxidation. We investigated the potential to utilize microbially mediated reduction...
Authors
Michelle M. Lorah, Ke He, Lee Blaney, Denise Akob, Cassandra Rashan Harris, Andrea K. Tokranov, Zachary Ryan Hopkins, Brian Shedd
Non-USGS Publications**
Pétré, M. A., Genereux, D. P., Koropeckyj-Cox, L., Knappe, D. R., Duboscq, S., Gilmore, T. E., & Hopkins, Z. R. (2021). Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substance (PFAS) transport from groundwater to streams near a PFAS manufacturing facility in North Carolina, USA. Environmental science & technology, 55(9), 5848-5856. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.0c07978
Dodds, J. N., Alexander, N. L. M., Kirkwood, K. I., Foster, M. R., Hopkins, Z. R., Knappe, D. R., & Baker, E. S. (2020). From pesticides to per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances: an evaluation of recent targeted and untargeted mass spectrometry methods for xenobiotics. Analytical chemistry, 93(1), 641-656. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.0c04359
Dodds, J. N., Hopkins, Z. R., Knappe, D. R., & Baker, E. S. (2020). Rapid characterization of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) by ion mobility spectrometry–mass spectrometry (IMS-MS). Analytical chemistry, 92(6), 4427-4435. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.analchem.9b05364
Zhang, C., Hopkins, Z. R., McCord, J., Strynar, M. J., & Knappe, D. R. (2019). Fate of per-and polyfluoroalkyl ether acids in the total oxidizable precursor assay and implications for the analysis of impacted water. Environmental science & technology letters, 6(11), 662-668. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.9b00525
Hopkins, Zachary R., et al. "Recently detected drinking water contaminants: GenX and other per‐and polyfluoroalkyl ether acids." Journal‐American Water Works Association 110.7 (2018): 13-28. https://doi.org/10.1002/awwa.1073
Hopkins, Zachary R., Sebastian Snowberger, and Lee Blaney. "Ozonation of the oxybenzone, octinoxate, and octocrylene UV-filters: Reaction kinetics, absorbance characteristics, and transformation products." Journal of hazardous materials 338 (2017): 23-32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2017.05.016
Knappe, Detlef, et al. Occurrence of 1, 4-dioxane in the cape fear river watershed and effectiveness of water treatment options for 1, 4-dioxane control. NC Water Resources Research Institute, 2016. https://repository.lib.ncsu.edu/bitstream/handle/1840.20/34331/UNC-WRRI-478.pdf
Hopkins, Zachary R., and Lee Blaney. "An aggregate analysis of personal care products in the environment: Identifying the distribution of environmentally-relevant concentrations." Environment international 92 (2016): 301-316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2016.04.026
Hopkins, Zachary R., and Lee Blaney. "A novel approach to modeling the reaction kinetics of tetracycline antibiotics with aqueous ozone." Science of the total environment 468 (2014): 337-344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.08.032
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
R scripts for the analysis of a predatory fish invasion on a riverine food web
Catfishes are opportunistic feeders that are among the world's worst invasive species. Flathead catfish Pylodictus olivaris -- a large predatory catfish -- were first detected in the Susquehanna River, Pennsylvania, USA in 2002. Since then, they established a viable and rapidly growing population that is expanding its range throughout the river system. Although the predatory effects of...