"The Role of Formaldehyde in
Troposheric Ozone Chemistry." To most of us, this is Greek. To Ann Louise
Sumner ’96 of Irvine, Calif., it’s the result of months of arctic research
and analysis. And to over 100 scientists worldwide, it’s the dawn of an
entirely new scientific field – snow phase photochemistry – which they now
study, thanks to Sumner’s work.
Sumner conducted five years
of study and groundbreaking research at Purdue University, earning her doctorate
in analytical chemistry, with an emphasis in atmospheric chemistry. Under the
direction of Dr. Paul Shepson, professor of chemistry and earth and atmospheric
sciences, she spent seven months on the arctic snowpack of Canada and Greenland
and three months in northern Michigan, measuring formaldehyde in the snowpack
and in the atmosphere. She even independently designed and built an instrument
to measure formaldehyde concentrations in air above the snowpack.
Dr. Shepson explains, "In
the course of her research she made a very important discovery – that snowpack
photochemistry produces a variety of products that are emitted into the lower
atmosphere and have a significant impact on the composition of the Earth’s
atmosphere. Her work represents a significant contribution to development of an
understanding of global atmospheric change."
Sumner’s research has
environmental significance, because it has improved scientists’ ability to
predict concentrations of ozone, the main component of photochemical smog
controlled by the Clean Air Act. As a result, she has produced more than 10
scientific publications from her Ph.D. research, won numerous awards,
scholarships and research grants, and received the outstanding student paper
award at the American Geophysical Union fall meeting.
According to Shepson, "Ann
Louise was the best graduate student I have had, out of about 20 graduate
students. She … does great credit to Millikin University."
Sumner is currently a
postdoctoral researcher at University of California, Irvine, studying the role
of heterogeneous processes in the chemistry of nitrogen oxides. Her results are
reported directly to the California Air Resources Board, an organization that
protects public health and the environment.
Sumner has proven the value of
perseverance, tramping about the arctic in subzero temperatures, doing what she
loves and working toward a better world for us all.
To read the full-length profile
of Ann Louise Sumner, check out the fall 2002 issue of Millikin Quarterly
magazine.
