Allan Bertram
Profile
Research and Teaching Interests
We are a team of environmental, analytical, and physical chemists investigating the chemistry of the atmosphere and aerosol particles—tiny particles that exert a major influence on air quality, health, climate, and the stratospheric ozone layer. Our work integrates laboratory experiments, field measurements, and modeling collaborations to understand real-world atmospheric processes from the molecular to the global scale.
Our goal is to quantify and understand the critical physical and chemical properties of atmospheric aerosols and improve predictive models for air quality, climate, and atmospheric composition. These improved models help policymakers design cost-effective strategies to protect the environment and human health.
Research Themes
- Chemistry and Impact of Stratospheric Aerosol Injection – examining the potential effects of geoengineering materials on stratospheric chemistry, polar stratospheric clouds, and the stratospheric ozone layer.
- Wildfire Smoke: Physical and Chemical Evolution and Impacts – investigating how smoke particles evolve and influence air quality, climate, and the stratospheric ozone layer.
- Chemistry, Fate, and Impact of Emerging Contaminants of Concern – exploring the effects of microplastics, tire wear, and brake wear particles on ice clouds, precipitation, and their long-range transport.
- New Instrumentation and Technology – developing and applying innovative tools such as new assays to determine the abundance and composition of atmospheric ice nuclei, and creating novel methods for cleaning mass spectrometers using atmospheric chemistry concepts.
- Properties and Emissions of Aerosols from the Transportation Sector – investigating how ships, trains, and trucks contribute to aerosol and greenhouse gas emissions, and how these emissions change with fuel type and technology through collaborations with UBC and industrial partners.
Students and postdoctoral fellows in our group gain hands-on experience with state-of-the-art instrumentation, field campaigns, and interdisciplinary research that bridges atmospheric chemistry, climate science, and environmental health.
Learn more about our research and opportunities on the Bertram Group website.
View the groups research overview here.
Contact
Curriculum Vitae
UBC Distinguished University Scholar (2023); Brockhouse Canada Prize for Interdisciplinary Research in Science and Engineering (2020); UBC Killam Research Prize Winner (2018); CIC Environment Division R&D Dima Award Winner (2016); Director of NSERC-CREATE-Atmospheric Aerosol Program (2010-2016); Canada Research Chair of Environmental and Atmospheric Chemistry (2001-2011); NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Mario Molina, 1998-2000); W.B. Pearson Medal (1998); Ph.D., University of Waterloo (James Sloan, 1998); B.Sc., University of Prince Edward Island (1993)