We invite you to follow our adventures in (and outside!) the lab. For the inside scoop, check out our blog here!
The Pratt Lab will deploy the ATOFMS aboard the NCAR C-130 aircraft for Jul. - Aug. 2023 flights out of Long Island, NY.
NSF, Atmospheric Chemistry
Lead PI: John Mak (Stony Brook Univ.); 12 co-PIs, including Kerri Pratt.
The Pratt Lab will deploy the quad-CIMS, PILS, and DRUM on the Univ. of Wyoming King Air for Feb. - Apr. 2022 flights out of Utqiaġvik, AK.
NSF, Arctic Natural Sciences & Atmospheric Chemistry
Lead PI: Paul Shepson (Stony Brook Univ.); 4 co-PIs, including Kerri Pratt.
PhD students Judy Wu and Andrew Holen deployed the ATOFMS, SMPS, APS, and MOUDI to Fairbanks, AK in Jan. - Feb. 2022.
Prof. Pratt is on the ALPACA organizing committee
and an International Global Atmospheric Chemistry (IGAC) Project
PACES (air Pollution in the Arctic: Climate, Environment, and Societies)
working group co-chair leading the international effort to understand high latitude urban air pollution.
NSF, Navigating the New Arctic 2020-2024
Lead PI: William Simpson (Univ. of Alaska, Fairbanks); 8 co-PIs, including Kerri Pratt.
Pratt Lab PhD students Kathryn Kulju and Nikki Perkins, supported at home by postdoc Daun Jeong, deployed two chemical ionization mass spectrometers
to the DOE ARM Oliktok Point site from Feb. - Mar. 2020 (cut short by COVID-19!) as part of a collaboration with Dr. Andy Lambe at Aerodyne Research.
Our goal is to study atmospheric chlorine chemistry within the North Slope of Alaska oilfields.
NSF RAPID, 2020
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt, co-PI: Andrew Lambe (Aerodyne Research)
The Pratt Lab is deploying an automated multi-stage aerosol (DRUM) impactor as part of the DOE ARM deployment aboard the German icebreaker Polarstern during its’ year-round expedition in the central Arctic from Sep. 2019 – Oct. 2020.
MOSAIC
DOE Early Career, 2018 – 2023
DOE ARM, 2018-2020
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt
Pratt Lab post-doc Qianjie Chen deployed our chemical ionization mass spectrometer (CIMS), SMPS, OPS, and aerosol impactors to the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences in East Boothbay, Maine for January 2019. Our goal is to study halogen chemistry in the mid-latitude coastal wintertime environment.
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellowship in Chemistry, 2017-2019
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt
Pratt Lab post-doc Jun Liu and PhD student Jamy Lee deployed our aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (ATOFMS), APS, SMPS, and MOUDI to Utqiaġvik, Alaska from Oct. 28 – Dec. 22, 2018 for our Aerosols in the Polar Utqiagvik Night (APUN – ‘snow on ground’ in Iñupiaq) ARM field campaign. We are studying wintertime atmospheric aerosol sources and chemical composition during the Polar Night (starting in mid-Nov.) and during sea ice freeze-up. This field campaign addresses the observational gap of Arctic aerosol observations, which have previously been made primarily through intensive spring/summer field campaigns. This work contributes to international efforts focused on improving understanding and prediction of the Polar Regions (e.g., Year of Polar Prediction (YOPP), International Global Atmospheric Chemistry Project activity CATCH (Cryosphere and Atmospheric Chemistry)).
DOE Early Career, 2018 – 2023, DOE ARM, 2018-2020
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt
Pratt Lab PhD student Rachel Kirpes spent July – September 2018 aboard the Swedish Icebreaker Oden for our collaborative Arctic sea spray aerosol project in the high Arctic.
Swedish Polar Research Secretariat
UM News
NSF, 2017-2020
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt, co-PIs: Patricia Matrai (Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences), Amanda Grannas (Villanova University), Andrew Ault (University of Michigan)
Pratt Lab PhD student Stephen McNamara and visiting PhD student Jacinta Edebeli (ETH Zurich) deployed our chemical ionization mass spectrometer (CIMS), ambient ion monitor ion chromatography (AIM-IC) system, APS, SMPS, and MOUDI to Kalamazoo, Michigan for Jan. – Feb. 2018. Our goal is to study air-snow interactions in the urban wintertime environment.
NSF, 2017-2020
PI: Kerri Pratt
In October 2017, the Pratt Lab collaborated with Aerodyne Research to deploy the aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer to UMBS to sample smoke from the historic prescribed burn. Pratt Lab PhD students Nate May and Nick Ellsworth collected thousands of individual particle mass spectra while the truck was driving through the smoke!
Continuing our collaboration with the University of California-Irvine (Prof. Saewung Kim) and the Korea Polar Research Institute (Dr. Keyhong Park), we deployed our micro-orifice uniform-deposit impactor (MOUDI) aboard the Korean Icebreaker Araon for its August 2017 cruise to the Chukchi Sea in the Arctic! Pratt Lab PhD student Rachel Kirpes flew to Nome, AK to install the instrument on the icebreaker after being helicoptered on! We collected atmospheric particle samples for computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray (CCSEM-EDX) analysis.
National Academy of Sciences Gulf Research Early Career Fellows Program (2016-2018)
Continuing our collaboration with Prof. Rebecca Sheesley at Baylor University, Pratt Lab PhD student Matt Gunsch deployed our aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (ATOFMS), aerodynamic particle sizer (APS), scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS), and micro-orifice, uniform-deposit impactor (MOUDI, for particle collection) to the Department of Energy (DOE) Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Oliktok Point field site in the Prudhoe Bay Oilfields. Our goal is to study how oilfield emissions impact the aerosol population on the North Slope of Alaska.
NOAA, 2014-2017
DOE ARM, 2015-2016
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt, co-I: Rebecca Sheesley (Baylor Univ.)
Through a collaboration with the University of California-Irvine (Prof. Saewung Kim) and the Korea Polar Research Institute (Dr. Keyhong Park), we deployed our microanalysis particle sampler aboard the Korean Icebreaker Araon for its August 2016 cruise to the Chukchi Sea in the Arctic! We collected atmospheric particle samples for computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray (CCSEM-EDX) analysis.
The Pratt and Ault Labs joined 20+ other research groups from around the country and Europe at the University of Michigan Biological Station in July 2016 for the PROPHET-AMOS campaign. Pratt Lab PhD students Ryan Cook and Megan Connor deployed the aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (ATOFMS), ambient ion monitor-ion chromatography system (AIM-IC), aerodynamic particle sizer (APS), and scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS) in our mobile trailer. In addition, Pratt Lab PhD student Rachel Kirpes flew with Prof. Paul Shepson in the Purdue University Airborne Laboratory for Atmospheric Research, collecting cloud water and atmospheric particle samples above Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, and the forest.
Funding: University of Michigan Biological Station Graduate Fellowships & MCubed2 program
From March-May 2016, the Shepson, Pratt, and Fuentes research groups studied snowpack molecular halogen production and near-surface atmospheric turbulence in Barrow, Alaska. Prof. Pratt led the field campaign, with supervision of the lead PhD student Angela Raso (Shepson Lab, Purdue University) and Pratt Lab PhD student Stephen McNamara, who operated the chemical ionization mass spectrometer, completing near-surface vertical profiles and eddy covariance measurements of molecular halogens. In addition, the Pratt Lab collected atmospheric particles for off-line computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy. During the University of Michigan’s winter break in early March, Pratt Lab PhD student Nate May accompanied two first-year Pratt Lab undergraduate students Claire Mattson and Alicia Kevelin to Barrow, Alaska. They snow-machined across the tundra and sea ice collecting snow samples for the next offering of our new course CHEM 125/126-Snow (General Chemistry Laboratory I/II – Authentic Research Experience in Snow Chemistry)! (Claire and Alicia were stellar students during the first offering our course in Fall 2015 and were invited to join the Pratt Lab afterward!)
Funding: NSF Arctic Natural Sciences, 2014-2018
PIs: Paul Shepson (Purdue Univ.), Kerri Pratt, Jose Fuentes (Univ. of Michigan)
HHMI Authentic Research Connection
Univ. of Michigan Department of Chemistry, Program in the Environment, and International Institute (Arctic Internship funding)
Michigan News Story
From February-March 2016, the whole Pratt Lab joined together to conducted a suite of measurements to characterize the wintertime urban atmospheric composition (trace gases and particles) in Ann Arbor, Michigan. We applied every technique in our ‘toolbox’: aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometry (ATOFMS), chemical ionization mass spectrometry (CIMS), ambient ion monitor-ion chromatography (AIM-IC), aerodynamic particle sizer (APS), scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS), impactor sampling for computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy (CCSEM-EDX), and snow sampling.
From August - September 2015, the Pratt Lab led a field campaign in Barrow, Alaska to investigate composition of atmospheric aerosols in the Arctic in the summertime. In particular, our goal was to examine particles resulting from oil and gas extraction activities near the North Slope of Alaska with focus on the offshore drilling and ship emissions. With climate change already showing noticeable impacts in the Arctic, it is paramount to understand the increasing local emissions impacting this region. From July – September 2015, offshore drilling off was completed off the coast of northern Alaska.
PhD student Matt Gunsch deployed our custom-built aircraft aerosol time-of-flight mass spectrometer (A-ATOFMS) for the first time. Using the A-ATOFMS, scanning mobility particle sizer, and aerodynamic particle sizer, we collected real-time data on the size and chemical composition of the atmospheric particles influencing the area. Together these data will allow determination of the concentrations of particles from specific sources.
This collaborative study included the research group of Dr. Rebecca Sheesley (Baylor University), and was funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), as well as the Department of Energy (DOE) Atmospheric Radiation Management (ARM) Program.
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt, co-I: Rebecca Sheesley (Baylor Univ.)
NOAA, 2014 – 2017, “Assessment of Atmospheric Aerosols Resulting from Oil and Gas Extraction Activities near the North Slope of Alaska”.
DOE ARM, 2015-2016, “Summertime Aerosol Across North Slope of Alaska Field Campaign”.
Ensia Story
Upon reading in the news of 7 foot waves predicted for the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, Pratt Lab PhD student Nate May and Ault Lab rotation student Isabel Colon-Bernal headed to Van Buron State Park, where they collected lake water and atmospheric particle samples over several days during the high wave event!
Funding: University of Michigan Water Center (2014-2016)
Lead PI: Andrew Ault, co-I: Kerri Pratt
In July 2014, Pratt lab undergraduate researcher Jennifer Berry traveled to the southern Alaska panhandle to collect snow and ice samples from various glacier sites on the Juneau Icefield, one of the largest icefields in the Western Hemisphere and home to several massive glaciers. The purpose of the study was to measure atmospheric particle and ozone concentrations on this remote icefield.
2014 Michigan Space Grant Consortium Undergraduate Research Fellowship
2014 University of Michigan Arctic Internship
2014 University of Michigan Department of Chemistry Summer Undergraduate Research Program Fellowship
2014 University of Michigan Program in the Environment Individual Academic Enrichment Funding
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt, Collaborator: Dr. Chelsea Thompson, University of Colorado, Boulder
With importance to both climate change and air quality, the summer 2014 field study will augment the Program for Research on Oxidants: Photochemistry, Emissions, and Transport (PROPHET) at the University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS). PROPHET is well-suited for studies of forest-atmosphere interactions and the influence of transported urban pollution on remote locations. This project will add measurements of greenhouse gases and atmospheric particles to characterize the remote forest ecosystem in northern Michigan. This collaborative study, funded by the University of Michigan MCubed Program, will include the research groups of Prof. Kerri Pratt, Prof. Andrew Ault, and Prof. Eric Kort, as well as external collaboration with researchers from Washington State University. The Pratt lab will conduct real-time measurements of the size and chemistry of individual atmospheric particles will be conducted using a single-particle mass spectrometer.
University of Michigan MCubed grant, 2013-2014, “Climate and Air Quality Impacts of Greenhouse Gases and Atmospheric Particles in Northern Michigan.”
Lead PI: Kerri Pratt, co-Is: Eric Kort, Andrew Ault
In January – February 2014, Prof. Pratt co-supervised Purdue Univ. PhD students Kyle Custard and Angela Raso (Paul Shepson’s research group) during their fieldwork in Barrow, Alaska. We used chemical ionization mass spectrometry to investigate snowpack production of molecular halogens (Br2, Cl2, BrCl, I2) through a combination of ambient and artificial radiation experiments. In addition, Prof. Pratt collected atmospheric particles using a micro-orifice uniform-deposit impactor (MOUDI) for off-line computer-controlled scanning electron microscopy.
Funding: NSF Office of Polar Programs, 2011-2014
Lead PI: Paul Shepson, Collaborator: Kerri Pratt
The ground-based portion of SOAS alone involves over 50 institutions in 4 countries with funding primarily from EPA and NSF. As part of this highly collaborative project, Dr. Pratt is responsible for supervision of students conducting chemical ionization mass spectrometry measurements of isoprene nitrates, one-dimensional modeling of biogenic organic nitrates, ground-based aerosol filter sampling, and aircraft-based sampling and chemical analysis of aerosols and cloudwater.
EPA STAR grant, 2013-2015, "Role of Oxidation of Biogenic Volatile Organic Compounds in Secondary Organic Aerosol Production in Southeastern U.S.", lead PI: Steve Bertman (Western Michigan Univ.); co-PIs: Kerri Pratt (Univ. of Michigan), Paul Shepson (Purdue Univ.), John Seeley (Oakland Univ.), Tim Starn (West Chester Univ. of PA)