Erickson's research has involved the applications of chemical engineering to chemical, environmental, biochemical and food engineering problems. Transport phenomena, reaction engineering, process analysis and optimization, and systems design have been applied to a number of applications, including desalination, biological waste treatment, stream water quality, feedlot runoff, single cell protein production, yoghurt fermentations, frozen soy yoghurt, and nanoscale catalysts. Research with a Russian team on the applications of mass and energy balance regularities in the analysis of fermentation processes has been recognized for its historical importance. Research on the fate and transport of contaminants in plants and the beneficial effects of vegetation in contaminated soil was significant in the development of the field of phytotechnology and the organization of the International Phytotechnology Society and founding of the International Journal of Phytoremediation.
