Dr Toby Carter
Research Associate in Indoor Air Chemistry

Profile

Biography

Toby is a postdoctoral research associate in indoor air chemistry, working under research fellow, Dr. Helen Davies, on the Wellcome Trust funded LungCHEM-Py project. His work focuses on the development and evaluation of a computational model (LungCHEM-Py), which can help to predict potential asthma exacerbation triggers, arising from indoor air pollutants. The project involves utilising experimental techniques and instrumentation, including SIFT-MS, and computational modelling across many interdisciplinary areas spanning environmental science, biology, chemistry and physics to better understand how volatile organic compounds behave in lungs and how this might transition into asthma exacerbation.

Former to his postdoctoral position, Toby completed a PhD in Environmental Science at the University of York (2021 – 2024) under the supervision of Professor Nicola Carslaw. His PhD, funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, focused on the development and applications of the detailed indoor air chemistry model, INCHEM-Py. This entailed the development of surface chemistry, indoor-outdoor air exchange and far-UVC photochemistry to ascertain the chemical processes and transformations that occur in various indoor microenvironments. Toby is also a member of the Sloan funded, US-based, Modelling Consortium for Chemistry of Indoor Environments (MOCCIE).

Prior to his PhD, Toby completed an integrated Masters degree in Chemistry (MChem) at the University of Hull (2016 – 2020), developing chiral-at-metal organometallic anticancer compounds for his Masters project. During his degree, he completed a year in industry at Eurofins UK Ltd where he developed and validated various analytical testing methods including the determination of nitrite and nitrate in foodstuffs using ion-exchange chromatography and the determination of chloride in foodstuffs using a potentiometric chloride analyser.

Career

• 2021-2024: PhD Environmental Science - University of York
• 2016-2020: MChem (Hons) Chemistry with Industrial Experience (First Class) - University of Hull
• 2018-2019: Laboratory Analyst (Year in Industry) - Eurofins UK Ltd

Publications

Selected publications

• Carter, T. J., Poppendieck, D. G., Shaw, D. and Carslaw, N. (2023), ‘A Modelling Study of Indoor Air Chemistry: The Surface Interactions of Ozone and Hydrogen Peroxide’, Atmospheric Environment, 297, 119598. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2023.119598
• Carter, T. J., Shaw, D. R., Carslaw, D. C., and Carslaw, N. (2024), 'Indoor cooking and cleaning as a source of outdoor air pollution in urban environments', Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts, 26, 975–990. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D3EM00512G
• Shaw, D. R., Carter, T. J., Davies, H. L., Harding-Smith, E., Crocker, E. C., Beel, G., Wang, Z., and Carslaw, N. (2023), 'INCHEM-Py v1.2:a community box model for indoor air chemistry', Geoscientific Model Development, 16, 7411–7431. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-7411-2023