Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry

Professor of Atmospheric Science

Observational studies of atmospheric structure and photochemistry: from climate change to air pollution and human health

In our group we use a wide range of measurement and modelling techniques to study the chemical composition and physical structure of the earth’s atmosphere.

The atmosphere controls much of the complex environment in which we live. Ozone in the stratosphere protects us from harmful shortwave solar radiation, while changes in CO₂ and other greenhouse gases are influencing the world’s changing climate. In the troposphere, chemical processes act to remove many unwanted species, while at the same time contributing to poor air quality, impacting the health of many, and leading to millions of premature deaths, particularly in the developing world.

Low cost sensors for monitoring urban pollution

We develop low cost air quality sensors which allow us to probe urban pollution in unprecedented detail. You can find out more by watching our short video above.

NO and NO2 levels in Cambridge on one afternoon, illustrating how complex urban air pollution can be.

As part of our research we are demonstrating how these low cost air quality sensor networks can be used to address important scientific and political questions. Studies include low cost sensor network deployments at Heathrow airport, in Beijing and in Delhi.

Results from a recent sensor network deployment at Heathrow Airport, used to both quantify airport emissions and provide a prediction of the likely impact of an airport expansion.

Air quality and human health

We use portable air quality sensors to test the linkages between exposure to pollution and health impacts. These units allow us to develop activity models which we can use to predict air pollution dose far more accurately than before. They are now used for studies of Chronic Obsructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) in London, and wider health impacts (Beijing and elsewhere).

A portable air quality sensor used by the group, which includes GPS and accelerometers, with illustration of measurements.

Other projects

Other projects within the group range from using cavity ringdown spectroscopy and its variants for making ultrasensitive (sub-ppt level) airborne and ground based measurements of radical species (using the FAAM aircraft), balloon borne measurements of GHGs, volcanic emissions and many more.

Selected Presentations

AAMG Presentation 2016

Further information

If you are interested in joining us as a graduate student or postdoctoral researcher, please contact me at rlj1001@cam.ac.uk.

Publications

An ozone monitoring instrument based on the tungsten trioxide (WO3) semiconductor

SR Utembe, GM Hansford, MG Sanderson, RA Freshwater, KFE Pratt, DE Williams, RA Cox, RL Jones

– Sensors and Actuators, B: Chemical

(2006)

114,

507

(doi: 10.1016/j.snb.2005.04.049)

Modelling molecular iodine emissions in a coastal marine environment: the link to new particle formation

A Saiz-Lopez, JMC Plane, G McFiggans, PI Williams, SM Ball, M Bitter, RL Jones, C Hongwei, T Hoffmann

– Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

(2006)

883

(doi: 10.5194/acp-6-883-2006)

Lightweight dew-/frost-point hygrometer based on a surface-acoustic-wave sensor for balloon-borne atmospheric water vapor profile sounding

GM Hansford, RA Freshwater, L Eden, KFV Turnbull, DE Hadaway, VP Ostanin, RL Jones

– Review of Scientific Instruments

(2006)

77,

014502

(doi: 10.1063/1.2140275)

A broadband cavity ringdown spectrometer for in-situ measurements of atmospheric trace gases

M Bitter, SM Ball, IM Povey, RL Jones

– Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

(2005)

2547

(doi: 10.5194/acp-5-2547-2005)

Small scale structure in the atmosphere: implications for chemical composition and observational methods

RL Jones, SM Ball, DE Shallcross

– Faraday Discuss

(2005)

130,

165

(doi: 10.1039/b502633b)

A low cost instrument based on a solid state sensor for balloon-borne atmospheric O3 profile sounding

GM Hansford, RA Freshwater, RA Bosch, RA Cox, RL Jones, KFE Pratt, DE Williams

– Journal of environmental monitoring : JEM

(2004)

158

(doi: 10.1039/b412184h)

Broadband cavity enhanced absorption spectroscopy using light emitting diodes

SM Ball, JM Langridge, RL Jones

– Chemical Physics Letters

(2004)

398,

(doi: 10.1016/j.cplett.2004.08.144)

Trace gas transport in the 1999/2000 Arctic winter:: comparison of nudged GCM runs with observations

MK van Aalst, MMP van den Broek, A Bregman, C Bruhl, B Steil, GC Toon, S Garcelon, GM Hansford, RL Jones, TD Gardiner, GJ Roelofs, J Lelieveld, PJ Crutzen

– Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

(2004)

(doi: 10.5194/acp-4-81-2004)

Broad-band cavity ring-down spectroscopy.

SM Ball, RL Jones

– Chemical Reviews

(2003)

103,

5239

(doi: 10.1021/cr020523k)

The impact of model grid zooming on tracer transport in the 1999/2000 Arctic polar vortex

MMP van den Broek, MK van Aalst, A Bregman, M Krol, J Lelieveld, GC Toon, S Garcelon, GM Hansford, RL Jones, TD Gardiner