Hildebrandt Ruiz, Lea, Ph.D.

Hildebrandt Ruiz, Lea, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor Headshot of Professor Lea Hildebrandt Ruiz

Office: CPE 3.470 Mailing Address:
Phone: (512) 471-1050 The University of Texas at Austin
Fax: (512) 471-7060 Department of Chemical Engineering
Email: LHR@che.utexas.edu 200 E Dean Keeton St.
UT Mail: C0400 Austin, TX 78712-1589

Research Areas: Environmental Engineering

Research Group Website

Educational Qualifications

NSF Postdoctoral Fellow, National Center for Atmospheric Research (2011-2012)
Ph.D., Chemical Engineering and Engineering & Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University (2011)
B.S., Chemical Engineering, California Institute of Technology (2006)

Focus

Air quality, aerosol science, atmospheric chemistry, sustainability

Research

We research air quality, focusing on atmospheric nanoparticles (“aerosols”), which have adverse effects on human health and a highly uncertain effect on climate. Our research tools include laboratory experiments using an environmental chamber, ambient measurements, and mathematical modeling. The ultimate goal of this research is to make better-informed recommendations for environmental policies aimed at improving air quality and human health. Near-term projects include quantifying the effects of aerosols on reactive nitrogen chemistry and ozone production in Texas, and improving the understanding of atmospheric chlorine chemistry in the Dallas Fort-Worth region.

Hildebrandt Ruiz has recently been elected the 2013-2014 programming chair for the Aerosol Chemistry working group of the American Association for Aerosol Research.

 

Awards & Honors

Programming Chair, Aerosol Chemistry Group, American Association for Aerosol Research     2013-2014
NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellowship                                                                                             2011 – 2012
EPA Graduate Research Fellowship                                                                                                  2010 – 2011
NSF Graduate Research Fellowship                                                                                                  2006 – 2009

Selected Publications

  • L. Hildebrandt, K. Henry, J.H. Kroll, D. R. Worsnop, S.N. Pandis and N.M. Donahue. Evaluating the Mixing of Organic Aerosol Components Using High-Resolution Aerosol Mass Spectrometry. Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 6329-6335, 2011.
  • G.J. Engelhart, L. Hildebrandt, E. Kostenidou, N. Mihalopoulos, N.M. Donahue, S.N. Pandis. Water content of aged aerosol. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 11, 911-920, 2011.
  • B.-H. Lee, E. Kostenidou, L. Hildebrandt, I. Riipinen, G.J. Engelhart, C. Mohr, P.F. DeCarlo, N. Mihalopoulos, A.S.H. Prevot, U. Baltensperger, S.N. Pandis. Measurement of the Ambient Organic Aerosol Volatility Distributions: Application during the Finokalia Aerosol Measurement Experiment (FAME-2008). Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10, 12149-12160, 2010.
  • L. Hildebrandt, E. Kostenidou, D. R. Worsnop, N. Mihalopoulos, N.M. Donahue and S.N. Pandis. Formation of Highly Oxygenated Organic Aerosol in the Atmosphere: Insights from the Finokalia Aerosol Measurement Experiments. Geophysical Research Letters 37, L23801, doi:10.1029/2010GL045193, 2010.
  • L. Hildebrandt, G.J. Engelhart, , C. Mohr, E. Kostenidou, V. A. Lanz, A. Bougiatioti, P. F. DeCarlo, A. S. H. Prevot, U. Baltensperger, , N. Mihalopoulos, N.M. Donahue and S.N. Pandis. Aged organic aerosol in the Eastern Mediterranean: The Finokalia Aerosol Measurement Experiment – 2008, Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 10, 4167-4186, 2010.
  • L. Hildebrandt, N.M. Donahue and S.N. Pandis. High formation of secondary organic aerosol from the photo-oxidation of toluene. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics 9, 2973–2986, 2009.
  • J.R. Pierce, G.J. Engelhart, L. Hildebrandt, E.A. Weitkamp, R.K. Pathak, N.M. Donahue, A.L. Robinson, P.J. Adams and S.N. Pandis. Constraining particle evolution from wall losses, coagulation, and condensation-evaporation in smog-chamber experiments: Optimal estimation based on size distribution measurements. Aerosol Science and Technology 42, 1001-1015, 2008.
  • U. Dusek, G.P. Frank, L. Hildebrandt, J. Curtius, J. Schneider, S. Walter, D. Chand, F. Drewnick, S. Hings, D. Jung, S. Borrmann, M.O. Andreae. Size matters more than chemistry for cloud-nucleating ability of aerosol particles. Science 312, 1375-1378, 2006.
  • J.D. Surratt, S.M. Murphy, J.H. Kroll, N.L. Ng, L. Hildebrandt, A. Sorooshian, R. Szmigielski, R. Vermeylen. W. Maenhaut, M. Claeys, R.C. Flagan, J.H. Seinfeld. Chemical composition of secondary organic aerosol formed from the photooxidation of isoprene. Journal of Physical Chemistry A 110, 9665-9690, 2006