- Ph.D., Chemical Engineering, Purdue University, 1991
- M.S., Chemical Engineering, Purdue University, 1989
- B.S., Chemical Engineering, Villanova University, 1984
- Professional Engineer, Colorado, #PE.0057198
- Professional Engineer Chemical, Louisiana, #PE.0044386
- Professional Engineer, Pennsylvania, #PE090875
- Professional Engineer Chemical, Texas, #100498
- Professional Engineer, Wyoming, #PE 16855
- 40-Hour Hazardous Waste Operation and Emergency Response Certification (HAZWOPER)
- Confined Space Entry (29 CFR 1910.146)
- Phi Lambda Upsilon
- Phi Kappa Phi
- Tau Beta Pi
- Magoon Award for Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Assistant, 1988
- American Chemical Society—ACS
- American Institute of Chemical Engineers—AIChE
- • Secretary, Fuels & Petrochemical Division, 2022 – 2024
- • Director, Fuels & Petrochemical Division, 2019 - 2022
- • Group Chair for the Petrochemicals Topical Conference at the 2024 Spring Meeting
- • Group Chair for Petrochemicals Programming at the 2023 Spring Meeting
- • Group Chair for Petrochemicals Programming at the 2022 Spring Meeting
- • Group Co-Chair for Petrochemicals Programming at the 2021 Spring Meeting
- • Group Co-Chair for Petrochemicals Programming at the 2020 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for Sustainability Developments for Refining and Petrochemicals I & II at the 2023 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for Feedstock Expansion for Energy Transition at the 2023 Spring Meeting
- • Session Co-Chair for LNG Safety I & II: 22nd Topical Conference on Gas Utilization at the 2022 Spring Meeting
- • Session Co-Chair for Sustainability Developments for Petrochemical Production at the 2022 Spring Meeting
- • Session Co-Chair for Revamps, Operability, Reliability I & II: 23rd Topical Conference on Refinery Processing at the 2020 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for LNG Safety: 20th Topical Conference on Gas Utilization at the 2020 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for LNG Safety: 19th Topical Conference on Gas Utilization at the 2019 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for LNG Safety: 18th Topical Conference on Gas Utilization at the 2018 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for Refining Process Safety I & II: 20th Topical Conference on Refinery Processing at the 2017 Spring Meeting
- • Session Co-Chair for Refinery Safety I & II: 19th Topical Conference on Refinery Processing at the 2016 Spring Meeting
- • Session Chair for Process Safety in Refineries: 18th Topical Conference on Refinery Processing at the 2015 Spring Meeting
- • Committee Member: Center for Chemical Process Safety - CCPS Project 270 responsible for the development of the CCPS book Guidelines for Process Safety in Upstream Oil, Gas and Shale Operations (Wiley 2021)
- • Committee Member: Center for Chemical Process Safety - CCPS Project 250 responsible for the development of the CCPS book Guidelines for Integrating Process Safety into Engineering Projects (Wiley 2018)
- • Committee Member: Center for Chemical Process Safety - CCPS Project 248 responsible for the development of the CCPS book Guide for Making Acute Risk Decisions (Wiley 2020)
- • Committee Member: Center for Chemical Process Safety – CCPS Project 224 responsible for the development of the e-Learning Course Hazard Identification for Operators and Maintenance Workers
- ASTM International—ASTM
- • Subcommittee Member: ASTM D18.26, Hydraulic Fracturing
- • Member of the D18.26.01 Site Investigation and Monitoring Section
- • Subcommittee Member: ASTM D22.03, Ambient Atmospheres and Source Emissions
- National Fire Protection Association—NFPA
- • Principal Member: Technical Committee on Gas Process Safety responsible for NFPA 56 Standard for Fire and Explosion Prevention During Cleaning and Purging of Flammable Gas Piping
- • Principal Member: Technical Committee on Confined Space Safe Work Practices responsible for NFPA 350 Guide for Safe Confined Space Entry and Work
Dr. Buehler specializes in the application of chemical engineering principles to the scientific investigation and analyses of problems involving the production, processing, storage, transport and use of both hazardous and non-hazardous materials such as chemicals, flammable and toxic gases, petroleum, and various wastes. His work includes investigation of fires, explosions, and process upsets; characterization of atmospheric releases and spills; evaluation of the stability, compatibility and hazard potential of chemicals and chemical mixtures; assessment of facility design, operation, and mechanical integrity practices with respect to their safety, health, and environmental impacts; and process hazards analyses (PHAs).
Dr. Buehler has investigated numerous fires and explosions at petroleum refineries, natural gas and chemical process facilities, and other locations where chemicals were involved such as warehouse storage and containerized transport. He has also investigated incidents involving self-heating or thermal runaway of chemicals and unintentional chemical reactions of incompatible materials. Dr. Buehler has developed chain-of-events scenarios from various sources of evidence including physical artifacts, process measurement data, sample analyses, electronic event logs, eyewitness accounts, surveillance video, and simulations. He has facilitated PHAs using industry accepted methods such as HAZOP, HAZID, and What-If, as well as performed HP/LP (high pressure/low pressure) interface analyses to verify adequate overpressure protection for the low pressure side.
The production and use of hydrogen, biogas, and other alternative sources of energy are also areas of expertise for Dr. Buehler. Of particular interest are gasification systems to convert materials such as coal or organic wastes into hydrogen, syngas, and synthetic fuels.
Prior to joining Ä¢¹½tv, Dr. Buehler has held research positions with academic institutions such as Villanova University and Purdue University and has also worked as a researcher for the ARCO Chemical Company.