Center for Environmental Research and Technology

Join us for this enlightening seminar and gain a deep understanding of how intermolecular and nanoscale forces shape the formation and properties of atmospheric aerosols. Dr. Petters' research promises to revolutionize our perspective on aerosols, paving the way for informed decisions on climate mitigation and environmental health.

Don't miss this opportunity to engage with a leading expert in the field. We look forward to your presence at the CE-CERT Researchers Seminar with Dr. Sarah Petters.

Event Details:

• Speaker: Dr. Sarah Petters
• Date: November 28, 2023
• Location: Room 105
• Time: 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
• RSVP: All are welcome and encouraged to join! Light snacks and refreshments will be provided- if you are interested in attending, please RSVP here: https://forms.gle/L9XTeDwgyaxGDs6Z

About Dr. Sarah Petters: Dr. Sarah Petters started at CE-CERT as an Assistant Research Engineer in September 2023. She studies the chemical and physical properties of aerosols, and her current projects focus on aerosol Laplace pressure and nanoplastics. She has been recognized for her contributions to establishing the range and complexity of cloud condensation nucleus (CCN) activity of atmospheric organic aerosols and for combining thermodynamics from aerosol-cloud microphysics with organic physical chemistry to propose how aerosol Laplace pressure influences reactions and microstructure. Prior to joining CE-CERT, she completed a 12-month postdoc at Aarhus University, working on the Green Transition project ‘Plastic in the Air’, funded by Independent Research Fund Denmark.

Presentation Title: "Emerging topics in atmospheric nanophysical chemistry: The pressure in aerosols, and nanoplastics in sea spray"

Abstract: Aerosols are ubiquitous and have broad relevance to climate and public health. Reactions in particles can alter their volatility, light absorption, toxicity, and hygroscopicity. These reactions are difficult to characterize, in part due to a limited understanding of how the condensed aerosol matrix and interfacial phenomena affect reaction rates and mechanisms. A better process-level description of aerosol composition, phase state, and aerosol-water interaction is essential for developing informed decisions on climate mitigation and environmental health. In this talk, Dr. Petters will show how her work investigating the aerosol phase led to an expression predicting changes in reaction rates and viscosity of nanoparticles. She will discuss how she is extending aerosol phase research to the study of nanoplastics in sea spray. Extending the same experimental techniques used to determine aerosol hygroscopicity and volatility, Dr. Petters will show how real-time aerosol separation coupled with aerosol mass spectrometry sheds light on the process of nanoplastic aerosolization from surface waters. In this ongoing work, a model of salt coating on nanoplastics is developed from experiments with varying surface water salinity. Combined, these studies introduce processes-level descriptions of how intermolecular and nanoscale forces can affect the formation and properties of atmospheric aerosols.