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Veronica VAIDA
Office Phone: 303 492 8605
E-mail: Veronica.Vaida@colorado.edu
FAX: 303 492 5894
Lab: Ekeley M2B50
Lab Phone: 303 492 1422
Group Website: http://www.colorado.edu/chem/vaidalab/index.htm
CIRES Fellows Website: http://cires.colorado.edu/people/vaida/
Ph.D.: Yale University, 1977
American Physical Society (APS) Fellow since 2004
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellow since 2004
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellow 2004-2005
Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard Fellow 2004-2005
Erskine Fellowship, University of Canterbury, New Zealand 1994
Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher Scholar 1984
A. P. Sloan Fellowship 1980
Xerox Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard University 1977-1979
Professor Vaida’s research interests are at the interface of physical chemistry and atmospheric science. In the Earth’s atmosphere, rapid oxidation of biogenic and anthropogenic emissions produces oxidized organic (acids, alcohols) and inorganic compounds.These hydrophilic molecules hydrogen bond readily to water forming complexes (hydrates) and aggregates, which are key ingredients in aerosol formation and subsequent cloud nucleation. Aerosols are ubiquitous in the atmosphere where they strongly influence climate by scattering and absorbing solar and thermal radiation. Professor Vaida’s experimental program investigates the spectroscopy and photoreaction dynamics of atmospheric molecules, their complexes and films at the water-air interface. Of interest is the environmental impact of sunlight-initiated chemistry. Sunlight initiated reactions of water complexes, aerosols and at the water-air interface are used to illustrate the fundamental chemistry driving the reactivity of the atmosphere and determining the temperature of the planet. Under study are light initiated chemical reactions relevant in the atmosphere of both the contemporary and prebiotic Earth. A new direction of this research is the application of photochemistry to synthesize high-energy compounds from readily available atmospheric targets.
Selected Publications
"Dynamics of vibrational overtone excited pyruvic acid in the gas phase: Line broadening through hydrogen-atom chattering." K. Takahashi, K. L. Plath, R. T. Skodje and V. Vaida Journal of Phsical Chemistry A, 112(32), 7321-7331 (2008).
"Sunlight-initiated photochemistry: Excited vibrational states of atmospheric chromophores." V. Vaida, K. J. Feierabend, N. Rontu and K. Takahashi International Journal of Photoenergy, Art. No. 138091 (2008).
"Calculated electronic transitions of the water ammonia complex." J. R. Lane, V. Vaida and H. G. Kjaergaard Journal of Chemical Physics, 128(3), Art. No. 034302 (2008).
"Vibrational Specroscopy of Perfluorocarboxylic Acids from the Infrared to the Visible Regions" N. Rontu and V. Vaida Journal or Physical Chemistry B, 112(2), 276-282 (2008).
"Surface Partitioning and Stability of Pure and Mixed Films of 8-2 Fluorotelomer Alcohol at the Air-Water Interface" N. Rontu and V. Vaida Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 111(31), 11612-11618 (2007).
"Photodissociation Yields for Vibrationally Excited States of Sulfuric Acid Under Atmosperic Conditions" Y. Miller, R. B. Gerber and V. Vaida Geophysical Research Letters, 34(16), Art. No. L16820, (2007).
"Vibrational Overtone Induced Elimination Reactions within Hydrogen-Bonded Molecular Clusters: The Dynamics of water catalyzed reactions in CH2FOH.(H2O)" K. Takahashi, Z. C. Kramer, V. Vaida and R. T. Skodje Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 9(29), 3864-3871 (2007).
"Miscibility of Perfluorododecanoic Acid with Organic Acids at the Air-Water Interfce" N. Rontu and V. Vaida Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 111(27), 9975-9980 (2007).
"Overtone Spectroscopy of Sulfonic Acid Derivatives" J. R. Lane, H. G. Kjaergaard, K. L. Plath and V. Vaida Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 111(25), 5434-5440 (2007).
"Interfacial properties of mixed films of long-chain organics at the air-water interface" J. B. Gilman, H. Tervahattu, and V. Vaida Atmospheric Environment, 40(34), 6606-6614 (2006).
"Molecular complexes in close and far away" W. Klemperer and V. Vaida Proceddings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 103(28), 10584-10588 (2006).
"Permeability ofacetic acid through organic films ast the air-aqueous inerface" J. B. Gilman and V. Vaida Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 110(24), 7581-7587 (2006).
"Vibrational spectroscopy of perfluoropropionic acid in the region between 1000-11000 cm-1" N. Rontu, V. Vaida Journal of Molecular Spectroscopy, 237(1), 19-26 (2006).
"Experimental and theoretical investigation of vibrational overtones of glycolic acid and its hydrogen bonding interactions with water" D. K. Havey, K. J. Feierabend, K. Takahashi, R. T. Skodje and V. Vaida Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 110(20), 6439-6446 (2006).
“The influence of organic films at the air-aqueous boundary on atmospheric processes” D. J. Donaldson, V. Vaida Chem. Rev. 106 (4): 1445-1461 (2006)
“Sunlight initiated atmospheric photochemical reactions” V. Vaida Int. J.Photoenergy 7, 61-70 (2005)
“Oxidation of organic films relevant to atmospheric aerosols” T.L. Eliason, J.B. Gilman and V. Vaida Atmos. Environ 38(9) 1367-1378 (2004)
“Photolysis of sulfuric acid vapor by visible solar radiation” V. Vaida, D. J. Donaldson, H. G. Kjaergaard, P. E. Hintze Science 299, 1566-1568 (2003)
“Hydrated complexes: relevance to atmospheric chemistry and climate” V. Vaida, H. G. Kjaergaard, and K. J. Feierabend Int. Reviews in Physical Chemistry 22, 203-219 (2003)
“ Atmospheric photochemistry via vibrational overtone absorption” D. J. Donaldson, A. F. Tuck and V. Vaida Chem. Rev. 103, 4717-4729, (2003)
“The atmospheric absorption of near infrared and visible solar radiation by the hydrogen bonded water dimer ” V. Vaida, A.F. Tuck, L.M. Goss, J.S. Daniel, and H. Kjaergaard Q. J. Roy. Met. Soc. 127, 1627-1643 (2001)
“Physicochemical Properties of Hydrated Complexes in the Earth’s Atmosphere” V. Vaida and J. E. Headrick J. Phys. Chem. 104, 5401-5412 (2000)
“Atmospheric aerosols as prebiotic chemical reactors” C. M. Dobson, G. B. Ellison, A. F. Tuck and V. Vaida PNAS 97, 11864-11868 (2000)
“ Atmospheric Processing of Organic Aerosols” G.B. Ellison, A.F. Tuck and V. Vaida J. Geophys. Res. 104, 11,633-11,641 (1999)
"The Photoreactivity of Chlorine Dioxide," V. Vaida and J. D. Simon, Science, 268, 1443-1448 (1995).
"Photoisomerisation of OClO: a Polar Ozone Depletion Mechanism?" V. Vaida, S. Solomon, E. C. Richard, E. Ruhl and A. Jefferson, Nature, 342, 405-408 (1989).
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