AAAR 37th Annual Conference October 14 - October 18, 2019 Oregon Convention Center Portland, Oregon, USA
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Zezhen, Ph.D. of Engineering, Postdoc or Research Scientist Position
ZEZHEN CHENG, University of Georgia
Abstract Number: 477 Working Group: Meet the Job Seekers
Abstract I have achieved my B.S. of Chemical Engineering degree from the Ohio State University and Master of Chemical Engineering degree from Carnegie Mellon University. Now I am pursuing my Ph.D. of Engineering degree at the University of Georgia. My Ph.D. research focus on the light-absorption properties of fresh and aged combustion carbonaceous aerosols including black carbon (BC) and brown carbon (BrC).
I contributed to designing, building, and testing a controlled combustion system, where we can generate combustion carbonaceous aerosols with variable light-absorption properties via changing combustion conditions (e.g., air to fuel ratio and combustion temperature). This system has an advantage that it can generate emissions with a narrower distribution of chemical, physical, and optical properties than the emissions in real-life combustion. We then used the system to perform controlled combustion experiments with toluene and benzene as model fuels. These experiments showed that the light-absorption properties of the emissions are strongly correlated with combustion conditions, and the emitted aerosols exhibit a continuum of light-absorption properties regardless of fuel type.
Currently, I am working on investigating the evolution of light-absorbing Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) due to oxidation by NO3, as part of a collaborative project with Aerodyne Research Inc. We generated light-absorbing PAHs with variable light-absorption properties from toluene combustion at different combustion conditions. We then exposed the PAHs to different concentrations of NO3 in an oxidation flow reactor and investigated the evolution of their chemical, physical, and optical properties. We are currently in the data analysis phase of the project.
I expect to graduate in May 2020. I am seeking a postdoc or research scientist position in the field of primary and secondary aerosol characterization. I do not have any geographical preferences.