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Ruth Winkless

Biography

I am a first year PhD student working in WACL, and I also completed my undergraduate degree in York, where I did a final year project on cooking emissions. My current project on photolysis appeals to me by being all practical, environmental, and physical chemistry. So far I have enjoyed opportunities to help with public outreach about air quality and hope to do more during my project.

Qualifications

Integrated Masters in Natural Sciences specialising in Chemistry.

Project title

Photolysis Reaction Mechanisms by Emerging and New Technologies – PhoRMENT.

Supervisors

• Dr Andrew Rickard
• Dr Terry Dillon
• Professor Victor Chechik

Funding

Leeds-York NERC Panorama Doctoral Training Partnership (DTP).

Project outline

My project aims to determine absorption cross-sections and quantum yields of atmospherically relevant carbonyls to predict photolysis rates of understudied compounds with more accuracy. This will involve development and use of a flow reactor for UV photolysis studies of gaseous compounds, coupled to chemosensor radical traps and online mass spectrometry. The resulting data will then be used in models incorporating the MCM (master chemical mechanism) to assess their environmental impact.

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