Col. Timmes is a VMI graduate (Class of 1992) and a professional engineer who served for over 25 years in the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps. As an Army Environmental Engineer, he conducted extensive drinking water and wastewater system characterizations and public health threat assessments throughout the U.S. and overseas in Macedonia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Italy, Germany, and Norway. He commanded the Headquarters Detachment of the U.S. Army Chemical Activity-Pacific on Johnston Atoll during its closure as a chemical agent demilitarization site and served as a Jumpmaster with the 82d Airborne Division. He taught a variety of academic subjects on the faculty at the US Military Academy (West Point) for six years. Col. Timmes commanded the U.S. Army Center for Environmental Health Research in Fort Detrick, Maryland, and served as the Director for Environmental Health Sciences and Engineering at the Army Public Health Center before retiring from Active Duty to join the VMI Civil and Environmental Engineering Department.
Col. Thomas C. Timmes, Ph.D., P.E. (US Army, Ret.)
Director, Summer Transition Program (STP), Superintendent’s Representative to the Honor Court
Office: 619 Nichols Engineering Building
Phone: 540-464-7869
Email: timmestc@vmi.edu
Fields: Environmental Engineering, Water/Wastewater Quality and Treatment, Lead and Copper Corrosion Control, Membrane Filtration, Electrocoagulation, Military Field Drinking Water, Water System Vulnerability Assessments
Col. Thomas C. Timmes, Ph.D., P.E. (US Army, Ret.)
Director, Summer Transition Program (STP), Superintendent’s Representative to the Honor Court
Office: 619 Nichols Engineering Building
Phone: 540-464-7869
Email: timmestc@vmi.edu
Fields: Environmental Engineering, Water/Wastewater Quality and Treatment, Lead and Copper Corrosion Control, Membrane Filtration, Electrocoagulation, Military Field Drinking Water, Water System Vulnerability Assessments
Courses Taught
CE109 – Civil Engineering Fundamentals I
CE306L – Civil Engineering Labs II
CE309 – Fluid Mechanics
CE319W – Water Resources Laboratory
CE321W – Intro to Environmental Engineering
CE409 – Environmental Site Remediation
CE415 – Environmental Engineering Unit Process Design
CE416 – Fundamentals of Engineering
CE443 – Independent Research
CE447W – Civil Engineering Design Capstone I
CE448 – Civil Engineering Design Capstone II
CE451W – Civil Engineering Seminar
HN100 – Honors Forum
HNS375W – Environmental Honors Seminar
HN400 – Honors Thesis
Areas of Interest
Col. Timmes serves on the Faculty Advisory Council, as the faculty representative to the VMI Sting Ensemble, and as a Superintendent Representative to the Honor Court.
Academic Experience
- Virginia Military Institute (VMI), Professor, 2020- Present
- Virginia Military Institute (VMI), Associate Professor, 2017-2020
- US Military Academy (West Point), Assistant/Associate Professor, 2009 – 2012
- US Military Academy (West Point), Instructor/Assistant Professor, 2003 – 2006
- Uniformed Services University, Adjunct Assistant Professor, 2008-2024
- Pennsylvania State University, Adjunct Assistant Professor, 2009-2012, part time
Non-Academic Experience
- Director, Environmental Health Sciences and Engineering, U.S. Army Public Health Center, APG, MD, 2016-2017. Managed 150 scientists, engineers, and support staff with a $20M annual budget to consult/provide solutions to worldwide issues involving water, wastewater, hazardous waste, air pollution, entomology, and noise pollution.
- Commander, U.S. Army Center for Environmental Health Research, Ft. Detrick, MD, 2013-2016. Supervised over 50 scientific and support staff and an annual research budget over $18M. Planned, directed, and advanced medical research and product development for biomarker diagnostics, environmental health surveillance, and environmental health technologies in support of Force Health Protection.
- Environmental Science and Engineering Officer in the U.S Army Medical Service Corps, 1992-2017.
Publications
“Engineering Application Outreach Projects in a College Town in the United States of America”, 11th International Perspective on Water Resources and the Environment (IPWE), January 2023, Dhaka, Bangladesh. T. Afrin, R. Martin, T. Timmes, M. Swenty.
“Highlighting Cultures, Civilizations, and Diversity in Historical Civil Engineering Achievements”, Proceedings of the ASEE Southeastern Section Annual Conference, March 2022, T. Afrin, T. Timmes, R. Wilkins, R. Martin, M. Swenty.
“A novel approach for integrating the new ABET Student Outcomes (SOs) and early impacts on SOs during the COVID-19 Pandemic”, Proceedings of the ASEE Southeastern Section Annual Conference, March 2021, J. Jung, T. Afrin, T. Timmes.
“Algal softening followed by ozonation: the fate of persistent micropollutants and natural organic matter in groundwater”, The Journal of Hazardous Waste, DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123480, January 2021, H.C. Kim., T.C. Timmes, H. Ryu, H.S. Yang, H. Yoon, and S. Kim.
“Treatment of reverse osmosis concentrate using an algal-based MBR combined with ozone pretreatment”, Water Research, DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2019.05.003, August 2019,
H. Woo, H. S. Yang, T.C. Timmes, C. Han, J. Y. Nam, S. Byun, S. Kim, H. Ryu, H. C. Kim.
“Evaluating the impact of ambient benzene vapor concentrations on product water from condensation water from air technology”, Science of the Total Environment 590-591:60-68, DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.02.171, July 2017, K.M. Kinder, C.A. Gellasch, J.S. Dusenbury, T.C. Timmes, T.M. Hughes.
“Characteristics of flocs formed by polymer-only coagulation in water treatment and their impacts on the performance of downstream membrane separation”, Environmental Technology 38(20):2601-2610, DOI 10.1080/09593330.2016.1271460, October 2017,
S.K. Maeng, T.C. Timmes, H.C Kim.
“Electrocoagulation pretreatment of seawater prior to ultrafiltration: pilot-scale applications for military water purification systems”, Desalination 250(1):6-13, DOI: 10.1016/j.desal.2009.03.021, January 2010, T.C. Timmes, H.C. Kim, B.A. Dempsey.
“Electrocoagulation pretreatment of seawater prior to ultrafiltration: bench-scale applications for military water purification systems”, Desalination 249(3):895-901, DOI: 10.1016/j.desal.2009.07.002, December 2009, T.C. Timmes, H.C. Kim, B.A. Dempsey.
Professional Development
- Accreditation Board of Engineering Technologies (ABET) Program Evaluator (EAC), 2007
- Board Certified Environmental Engineer, AAEES, 2005
- Professional Engineer, Maryland, No. 25421, 2000
- Professional Engineer, Virginia, No. 059419, 2018