MSUEE PL - History

MOSCOW STATE UNIVERSITY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

PROBLEM LABORATORY

HISTORY

    Problem Research Laboratory for the development of theoretical bases of joint control and management of water, salt and heat regime of lands was organized under the supervision of the Academician of the Academy of Agricultural Sciences (VASHNIL) S. F. Averyanov in 1972. The main orientations of the Laboratory are:
- research and development of theoretical bases and methods of water management of irrigated and drained lands;
- development of theory and basic methods of control and management of salt regime of meliorated lands;
- development of theoretical bases and methods of control and management of the heat regime of meliorated lands.
    The structure of the Laboratory was developed by the Academician S. F. Averyanov, who was also its first scientific supervisor.
    After his death the supervision of the research was performed by Professor, DSc E. S. Markov (1973-1978), Prof. DSc A. A. Bogushevsky (1979-1983), Prof., DSc A. I. Golovanov (1985- 1989) and since 1989 - Professor, DSc. V. V. Shabanov. From 1972 to 1989 V. V. Shabanov was also the General Manager of the Laboratory. Currently this position is held by I. A. Deko.

Sectors and Groups of the Laboratory

1. Sector for Water Regime Management: Head of the Sector - DSc Yu. N. Nikolsky.
a) Water regime of meliorated lands: Senior Sc. Fellow, PhD N. P. Bunina, one Senior Engineer, two technicians.

2. Sector for Salt and Food Regime Management: Head of the Sector - DSc I. P. Aidarov
a) Salt regime: 3 Junior Sc. Fellows, 1 Senior Engineer, 2 laboratory staff, 1 technician;
b) Food regime: 1 Senior Sc. Fellow, 2 Junior Sc. Fellow, 4 laboratory staff

3. Sector for Biological Bases of control and management of water, salt and heat regime: Head of the Sector - Senior Sc. Fellow, PhD V. M. Lavrichenko, 1 Senior Sc. Fellow., 1 engineer, 1 technician, 1 laboratory staff

4. Sector for coordination, information and implementation: Head of the Sector - Senior Sc. Fellow, PhD L. F. Pestov, 1 Senior Sc. Fellow, 2 Junior Sc. Fellow, 1 technician

5. Sector for optimization of the processes of control and management of complex meliorations: Head of the Sector - Professor, DSc V. V. Shabanov, 1 Senior Sc. Fellow, 1 engineer, 1 technician.

R&D Groups

6. Group for control and management of the heat regime of meliorated lands: Head of the Group: Senior Sc. Fellow, PhD V. A. Shelgunov, 1 engineer, 1 technician

7. Microbiological Research Group: Head of the Group - Senior Sc. Fellow, PhD T. V. Pushkariova, 1 Junior Sc. Fellow, 1 PhD in Biology, laboratory staff 5

Technical Groups

8. IT Group: Head of the Group Yu. M. Zemlyanov, 1 Junior Sc. Fellow, 1 Senior Engineer, 2 programmers

9. Group for automatization and measuring devices: Head of the Group - V. S. Sosnovsky, 1 Senior Engineer

10. Field Group: Field Manager - Junior Sc. Fellow I. S. Kostyukov, 2 laboratory staff.

Overall staff of the Laboratory until 1989 was about 50 with 10 PhD, 10 Scientific Fellows etc. Two DSc and two Docents also participated in the research on a voluntary basis.

Equipment and experimental fields

    For the purposes of the experimental research two Experimental Fields (EF) were created in the zone of irrigation and draining:
1) the 500 hectares EF Lesnoe in Minsk region with an automated system of water regime control and management, and measuring equipment with automatic registration of the environmental factors on a daily basis
2) a 100 hectares EF in Georgia.

    In the EF and in the University Biochemical, Micro-biological and Agro-chemical laboratories are functioning. The laboratories are equipped with the latest imported technology. In EF Lesnoe a lisimetric ground with eight monolithic lisimeters automatically regulating the ground water level was established. A Mobile Chemical Laboratory was also established.
    Biochemical laboratories are fitted with domestic and imported equipment, including an Amino-Acid device, "CONTIFLO", illuminometer, chromatograph etc.
    This equipment together with our computer basis and scientific and technical information in our disposal allows successful theoretical research and experimental verification in natural conditions.