Jacqueline Wilson

Postgraduate student

Telephone number: +44(0) 113 34 36473
Email address: j.m.wilson04@leeds.ac.uk
Room: 10.127/lab 10.134

Biography

Degree: MChem at University of Leeds (School of Chemistry), graduated 2007

Masters Project: "Flash photolysis measurements of reactions of methylene"

The rate of removal of singlet methylene ( 1 CH 2 ), a highly reactive carbene important in chemical combustion systems and the planetary atmospheres of the outer planets, by a number of reactive and inert gases was measured using laser induced fluorescence (LIF). H-atom yields were also monitored using vacuum-ultraviolet (VUV)-LIF.

Project details

Project title: Laboratory Studies of Atmospherically Relevant Gas and Particle Phase Processes

Supervisors: Dr Maria Teresa Baeza-Romero , Dr Jim McQuaid , Dr Barbara Brooks

Start date: October 2007

Funded by: EPSRC Doctoral Training Grant

Project description

Particles are generated through the combustion of different fossil fuels, biomass components and their pyrolysis products. The particle composition and size distribution is determined using an aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (ATOFMS). Analysis of ATOFMS data is carried out using a variety of specialist software and cluster algorithms.

This work aims to compare newly formed particles from fossil fuel combustion with those from biomass combustion, to investigate the mechanism of formation of particles from biomass combustion. This work has implications for health effects - both size and chemical composition are important for determining the danger to human health. The composition of newly formed particles also affects the reactivity of these particles and therefore affects the ageing of particles in the atmosphere. Number and composition of particles in the atmosphere has large climatic implications through direct, indirect and semi-direct effects.