Research Fellow in Atmospheric Chemistry

Are you an ambitious researcher looking for your next challenge? Do you have a background or interest in atmospheric chemistry? Do you want to further your career in one of the UKs leading research-intensive Universities?

We are looking for an exceptional researcher to work on the ALPACA-UK project (AerosoL heterogeneous Processing as a source of oxidants in Cold winter Atmospheres: application to Alaska and UK) which was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). The ALPACA-UK project brings together leading expertise in experimental atmospheric photochemistry and in tropospheric chemical modelling from the School of Chemistry and the School of Earth and Environment at the University of Leeds, together with international partners in field measurements, multi-phase chemistry, and in emissions modelling.

Air pollution is the leading environmental risk to human health. Wintertime pollution events lead to violations of air quality standards for particulate pollution in many regions of the world. Nitrous acid (HONO) is an important source of the chief atmospheric oxidant, OH, in polluted atmospheres. There is growing evidence that HONO produced via heterogeneous aerosol chemistry occurring on particle surfaces is important in wintertime conditions. The ALPACA-UK project will use aerosol filter samples and in situ data collected during the international ALPACA field experiment, which took place in January and February 2022 in Fairbanks, Alaska. 

The overall aim of ALPACA-UK is to characterise the source of heterogeneous aerosol production of HONO in cold, low light conditions in a polluted urban atmosphere and to quantify the impact of this source on radical and oxidant budgets in wintertime polluted environments. The project will deliver new parameterisations and capabilities for including a heterogeneous HONO source in air quality models, including dependencies on aerosol composition. Outcomes will enable improved understanding and forecasting of wintertime air pollution across many regions of the world, where cold, low sunlight conditions occur in wintertime.

There are collaborations with Project Partners who include The University of Alaska at Fairbanks; The Max Planck Institute for Chemistry Mainz; The UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, The University of California, Los Angeles; Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta and LATMOS-CNRS, Paris and other members of the IGAC PACES initiative. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to visit Project Partner institutions and will be expected to attend international ALPACA workshops.

You will also have opportunities for training in science and people management, science communication, and grant application writing, with the aim to develop a personal, independent career track.

We are open to discussing flexible working arrangements

To explore the post further or for any queries you may have, please contact: 

Professor Dwayne Heard, Professor of Atmospheric Chemistry

Tel: +44 (0)113 343 6471

Email: D.E.Heard@leeds.ac.uk

OR

Dr Lisa Whalley, Senior Research Fellow, National Centre for Atmospheric Science

Tel: +44 (0)113 343 6594

Email: L.K.Whalley@leeds.ac.uk

OR

Professor Steve Arnold, Professor of Atmospheric Composition

Tel: +44 (0)113 343 7245

Email: S.Arnold@leeds.ac.uk 

Please note that this post may be suitable for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker visa route but first-time applicants might need to qualify for salary concessions. For more information, please visit the Government’s Skilled Worker visa page.

For research and academic posts, we will consider eligibility under the Global Talent visa. For more information, please visit the Government’s page, Apply for the Global Talent visa.

What we offer in return 

• 26 days holiday plus approx.16 Bank Holidays/days that the University is closed by custom (including Christmas) – that’s 42 days a year! 
• Generous pension scheme plus life assurance– the University contributes 14.5% of salary 
• Health and Wellbeing: Discounted staff membership options at The Edge, our state-of-the-art Campus gym, with a pool, sauna, climbing wall, cycle circuit, and sports halls. 
• Personal Development: Access to courses run by our Organisational Development & Professional Learning team, and self-development courses including languages, Creative Writing, Wellbeing Therapies and much more. 
• Access to on-site childcare, shopping discounts and travel schemes are also available.

And much more! 

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