Pierre Herckes

About

Pierre Herckes is a professor in the School of Molecular Sciences at Arizona State University. His research interests focus on Atmospheric Chemistry, particularly aerosols and clouds, aerosol-cloud interactions, and their effects on air quality and climate. A significant portion of his work involves applied projects aimed at addressing real-world air pollution challenges. Additionally, he specializes in analytical chemistry, developing methods to investigate the sources, occurrence, and fate of environmental pollutants. His recent research has concentrated on detecting emerging contaminants such as nitrosamines and nanomaterials in environmental and biological samples, with a strong emphasis on applied projects related to water quality and human exposure. Dr. Herckes holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from EHICS Strasbourg and earned his MS and PhD degrees in Environmental Physical Chemistry from Strasbourg University in France. Prior to joining ASU, he was a postdoctoral researcher and research scientist in the Atmospheric Science Department at Colorado State University.

Research topics

• Materials science
• Nanotechnology
• Computer Science
• Optoelectronics
• Metallurgy
• Chemistry
• Engineering
• Process engineering
• Soil science
• Geology

Selected publications

• Mineral Dust and Iron Solubility: Effects of Composition, Particle Size, and Surface Area

  Atmosphere · 2020 · 56 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding

  There is significant iron deposition in the oceans, approximately 14–16 Tg annually from mineral dust aerosols, but only a small percentage (approx. 3%) of it is soluble and, thus, bioavailable. In this work, we examine the effect of mineralogy, particle size, and surface area on iron solubility in pure mineral phases to simulate atmospheric processing of mineral dust aerosols during transport. Pure iron-bearing minerals common to Saharan dust were partitioned into four size fractions (10–2.5, 2…

  DOI

• Germicidal Ultraviolet Light Does Not Damage or Impede Performance of N95 Masks Upon Multiple Uses

  Environmental Science & Technology Letters · 2020 · 35 citations

  had adverse effects on the masks' ability to remove aerosolized virus-sized particles. Additional testing showed no change in polymer structure, morphology, or surface hydrophobicity for multiple layers in the masks and no change in pressure drop or tensile strength of the mask materials. Results were similar when applying 254 nm low-pressure UV lamps and 265 nm light-emitting diodes. On the basis of the input from healthcare workers and our findings, a treatment system and operational manual we…

  DOI

• Enhancing the Thermal Mineralization of Perfluorooctanesulfonate on Granular Activated Carbon Using Alkali and Alkaline-Earth Metal Additives

  Environmental Science & Technology · 2024-06-10 · 30 citations

  article

  Thermal treatment has emerged as a promising approach for either the end-of-life treatment or regeneration of granular activated carbon (GAC) contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). However, its effectiveness has been limited by the requirement for high temperatures, the generation of products of incomplete destruction, and the necessity to scrub HF in the flue gas. This study investigates the use of common alkali and alkaline-earth metal additives to enhance the mineraliza…

  PublisherDOI

• Flame retardant performance of carbonaceous nanomaterials on polyester fabric

  Polymer Testing · 2020 · 27 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  DOI

• Ozone in the Desert Southwest of the United States: A Synthesis of Past Work and Steps Ahead

  ACS ES&T Air · 2024-01-24 · 18 citations

  article

  A region often neglected in the grander scale of general atmospheric chemistry studies and model evaluation for gas-phase chemistry is the desert southwest of the U.S. Despite regulatory progress, challenges in meeting the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for ozone motivate a re-examination of the unique meteorological conditions, interactions between the desert, agricultural, and built environmental landscapes, emissions across natural and anthropogenic sources, and regional transport of p…

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• CAREER: Cloud and Fog Processing of Organic Matter

  NSF · $569k · 2009–2014

• Collaborative Research: Atmospheric Processing of Iron--Does Particle Size Influence Iron Solubility?

  NSF · $220k · 2010–2014

Frequent coauthors

• Paul Westerhoff

  Arizona State University

  86 shared

• Jeffrey L. Collett

  42 shared

• Barbara Ervens

  Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

  30 shared

• Matthew P. Fraser

  Arizona State University

  29 shared

• J. W. Hutchings

  26 shared

• D. Straub

  Susquehanna University

  21 shared

• David Hanigan

  University of Nevada, Reno

  17 shared

• Nabin Upadhyay

  Arizona State University

  14 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Environmental Physical Chemistry

  Louis Pasteur University

  1999

• M.S., Environmental Physical Chemistry

  Strasbourg University

• B.S., Chemical Engineering

  EHICS Strasbourg

Similar researchers at Arizona State University

• Hao Yanh-108
• Ana Mooreh-89
• Sidney Hechth-73