Dr. Baerbel Sinha is an Associate Professor at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Mohali (IISER Mohali) her work focusses on mechanistic understanding of particulate matter pollution, aerosol source apportionment and emission inventory building. Dr. Sinha is known internationally for state-of-the art experimental studies on in individual particles, and biological samples. Her work contributed significantly towards three publications in Science and two publications in PNAS. Prior to joining IISER Mohali in September 2011, Dr. Sinha worked at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz, Germany for seven years as a doctoral and postdoctoral research scientist first in the biogeochemistry division led by Prof. Meinrat O. Andreae, and later in the particle chemistry division lead by Prof. Borrman. Her doctoral thesis was awarded the highest grade possible for a PhD thesis in Germany (summa cum laude) in 2007. She developed a method to measure stable sulphur isotope ratios in individual aerosol particles and was honoured with the International Journal of Mass Spectrometry Best Student Paper Award awarded by American Society for Mass Spectrometry in Philadelphia, USA, 2009. She did her Master of Science (MSc in Archaeological Sciences) in 2004 from Technical University Bergakademie Freiberg in Germany. Her MSc studies were supported by a Fellowship from the German Merit foundation.

Social Media Links

ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/B-Sinha-2
Scholar.google: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=fpf8gKQAAAAJ&hl=en
Orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8614-7473
Webofscience: https://www.webofscience.com/wos/author/record/H-1250-2012
Scopus: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=14066802700

Poor air quality over the Indo-Gangetic Plain has become a matter of public debate and concern. Our research group works on improving air quality action plans by conducting source apportionment studies, deploying low-cost air pollution sensors and developing emission inventories. We also seek to understand the impact of air pollution on food crops and natural vegetation. Sophisticated single particle techniques such as Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and analysis of organic molecular tracers using CHARON PTR-TOF MS help us to understand the aerosol composition, study source signature and chemical transformations and understand the effect of particles on human health. Advanced statistical tools and source receptor model help us to pinpoint pollution sources that violate emission standards for evidence-based policy interventions.

Name	Current Position	Profile Photo
Pooja Chaudhary	Scientific Sales Expert Asia-Pacific Region, Durag Group
Himanchu Sachan	Business Analyst, CIBC USA
Manjima Mahesh	Research Assistant at the Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry, Jena, Germany
Nimya S S	Postdoctoral Scientist at Purdue University, USA
Prabhanjan Ramesh Borwankar	Assistant Vice President, Citibank (Citicorp Services India Pvt Ltd), Pune
Vaishali Vardhan	Postdoctoral Scientist, University College Cork, Ireland
Tess George	Aspirational Block Fellow, NITI Aayog; KAS Mentor
Ebin George	Crypto Ledger Analyst, Rector GmbH, Germany
Adarsh Raghuram	Climate Modeller at Genesis Ray Energy
Anita Sharma	Assistant Professor Botany, Department of Life Sciences at Rayat-Bahra University Kharar
Anita Sharma	Assistant Professor Botany, Department of Life Sciences at Rayat-Bahra University Kharar

PhD

Name	Roll Number	Current Position	Profile Photo
Pooja Chaudhary	PH18078	Alumni
Pallavi Jangra	ph15015	Alumni
Saryu Garg	PH13015	Founder, Curious Play Labs, Chandigarh
Gaurav Sharma	PH13044	Assistant professor (Adhoc), Delhi Skill and Entrepreneurship University, Dheerpur Campus Delhi
Hashita Pawar	PH15022	Development Editor American Chemical Society International India
Savita Datta	PH16044	–

MS-Thesis Students

Name	Roll Number	Current Position	Profile Photo
Lakhwinder Singh	MS19120	—
Himanshu Sachan	MS19082	—
Manjima Mahesh	MS08024	Analyst Tata Consultancy Services, Toronto, Canada
Prabhanjan Ramesh	MS08041	Data Scientist, Citibank (Citicorp Services India Pvt Ltd), Pune
Vaishali Vardhan	MS11074	PhD student at University College Cork, Ireland
Tess George	MS11046	Freelancer in content writing for Geography and Environmental Sciences with various Ed-Tech companies.
Nimya S S	MS12067	Senior Research Fellow at IITM Pune
Ebin George	MS12101	Assistant Manager, SBI
Aditya Kumar Singh	MS13105	Social Security Assistant at Employee’s Provident Fund Organisation
Sanjay Anand	MS13110	Ph.D. at the Department of Earth Science at Central University of Rajastan
Gobinder Singh	MS13125	Instructor Bhai Jaita Jee Foundation, India(BJFI).
Shubham Singh Tomar	Ms13099	Currently working as assistant immigration officer in the Bureau of Immigration (MHA)
Sukhwinder Singh	MS13082	Freelance Upwork
Pankaj Kharra	MS13063	Instructor, Base institute, Mohali, Punjab
Ashish	MS13076	–	–
Adarsh Raghuram	MS15036	PhD student Syracuse University, in the Department of Geography and the Environment
Parkar Vidit Suryakant	MS15041	PhD student IIT Bombay
Preeti Mann	MS15048	Environmental technician, employed as System Operator by Regional Municipality of Niagara, Ontario (Public works division )
Aakanksha Meena	MS15161	–	–
Sneha Saha	MS16061	Project assistant Evolutionary Biology Lab
Sachin Bhatt	MS16153	Farmer, Jia Valley, Dharmshala, Himachal Pradesh

• Song, S. Carlton, A.M., Chu, B., Donahue, N.M., Matrali, A., Pandis, S.N., Ram, K., Shiraiwa, M., Sinha, B., Tripathi, S.N. and Vasilakopoulou C. N. (2025). 60 Years of ES&T: Aerosols and Atmospheric Chemistry, Environ. Sci. Technol. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6c01924

• Singh, R., Sinha, B., Sinha V. (2025). A Novel Combinatorial Approach of Volatile Organic Compound Tracers, Low-Cost Sensors, and Source-Receptor Modeling for Spatial Identification and Quantification of Natural and Anthropogenic Sources of Criteria Air Pollutants: Case Study from the Indo-Gangetic Plain. Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett. 2025, 12, 9, 1177–1183. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.5c00473

• Putaud, J.P., Cavalli, F., Yttri, K.E., Chow, J. C., Watsonm J. G., Sinha, B. […] Yadav, K. (2025). A worldwide aerosol phenomenology: Elemental and organic carbon in PM2.5 and PM10 Atmospheric Environment, 358, 121338, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2025.121338

• Sharma, A., Chauhan, A., Parkar, V., Raghuram, A., Sinha, B. (2025). Planning eco-sensitive zones for promoting tree diversity and ecosystem services in urban academic landscapes: a case study from the North-western Indo-Gangetic plain. Arboricultural Journal, https://doi.org/10.1080/03071375.2024.2426414

• Awasthi, A., Sinha, B., Hakkim, H., Mishra, S., Varkrishna, M., Singh, G., Ghude, S. D., Soni, V., Nigam, N., Sinha, V., and Rajeevan M. (2024). Biomass burning sources control ambient particulate matter but traffic and industrial sources control VOCs and secondary pollutant formation during extreme pollution events in Delhi. Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 10279-10304. https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-10279-2024

• Mishra, S., Sinha, V., Hakkim, H., Awasthi, A., Ghude, S. D., Soni, V K.., Nigam, N., Sinha, B., and Rajeevan M. (2024). Reactive chlorine-, sulfur-, and nitrogen-containing volatile organic compounds impact atmospheric chemistry in the megacity of Delhi during both clean and extremely polluted seasons. Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 13129–13150, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-13129-2024

• Kapoor, T.S., Navinya, C., Apte, A., (…), Chaudhary, P., Sinha, B., (…), Chakrabarty, R.K., Venkataraman, C. (2024). Spatial Distribution in Surface Aerosol Light Absorption Across India. Geophysical Research Letters 51, e2024GL110089. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL110089

• Venkataraman, C., Anand, A., Maji, S., Barman, N., Tiwari, D., Muduchuru, K., Sharma, A., Gupta, G., Bhardwaj, A., Haswani, D., Pullokaran, D., Yadav, K., Sunder Raman, R., Imran, M., Habib, G., Kapoor, T. S., Anurag, A., Sharma, R., Phuleria, H. C., Qadri, A. M., Singh, G. K., Gupta, T., Dhandapani, A., Kumar, R., N., Mukherjee, S., Chatterjee, A., Rabha, S., Saikia, B. K., Saikia, P., Ganguly, D., Chaudhary, P., Sinha, B., Roy, S., Muthalagu, A., Qureshi, A., Lian, Y., Pandithurai, G., Prasad, L., Murthy, S., Duhan, S. S., Laura, J. S., Chhangani, A. K., Najar, T. A., Jehangir, A., Kesarkar, A. P., and Singh, V., (2024). Drivers of PM2.5 episodes and exceedance in India: A synthesis from the COALESCE network. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 129, e2024JD040834. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024JD040834

• Mogno, C., Wallington, T. J., Palmer, P. I., Hakkim, H., Sinha, B., Sinha, V., Steiner, A. L., and Sharma, S. (2024). Impact of electric and clean-fuel vehicles on future PM2.5 and ozone pollution over Delhi. Environmental Research Communications 6(7), 075018, https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ad507f

• Bharali, C., Barth, M., Kumar, R., Ghude, S. D., Sinha, V., and Sinha, B (2024).: Role of atmospheric aerosols in severe winter fog over the Indo-Gangetic Plain of India: a case study, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 6635–6662, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-6635-2024

• Li, C., Hakkim, H., Sinha, V., Sinha, B., Pardo, M., Cai, D., Reicher, N., Chen, J., Hao, K. and Rudich Y. (2024) . Variation of PM2.5 Redox Potential and Toxicity During Monsoon in Delhi, India. ACS EST Air 1, 316-321 https://doi.org/10.1021/acsestair.3c00096

• Singh, R., Sinha, B.,Hakkim, H., &Sinha, V. (2023). Source apportionment of volatile organic compounds during paddy-residue burning season in north-west India reveals large pool of photochemically formed air toxics. Environmental Pollution, 338. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2023.122656

• Pandey, D., Sharps, K., Simpson, D., Ramaswami, B., Cremades, R., Booth, N., Jamir, C., Büker, P., Sinha, V., Sinha, B.,& Emberson, L. D. (2023). Assessing the costs of ozone pollution in India for wheat producers, consumers, and government food welfare policies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 120(32). https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2207081120

• Acharja, P., Ghude, S. D.,Sinha, B., Barth, M., Govardhan, G., Kulkarni, R., Sinha, V., Kumar, R., Ali, K., Gultepe, I., Petit, J.-E., & Rajeevan, M. N. (2023). Thermodynamical framework for effective mitigation of high aerosol loading in the Indo-Gangetic Plain during winter. Scientific Reports, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-40657-w

• Lyu, X., Li, K., Guo, H., Morawska, L., Zhou, B., Zeren, Y., Jiang, F., Chen, C., Goldstein, A. H., Xu, X., Wang, T., Lu, X., Zhu, T., Querol, X., Chatani, S., Latif, M. T., Schuch, D., Sinha, V., Kumar, P., … Sinha, B.,&Blake, D. R. (2023). A synergistic ozone-climate control to address emerging ozone pollution challenges. One Earth, 6(8), 964–977.

• Kapoor, T.S., Navinya, C., Anurag, G., Lokhande, P., Rathi, S., Goel, A., Sharma, R., Arya, R., Mandal, T.K., Jithin, K.P., Nagendra, S., Imran, M., Kumari, J., Muthalagu, A., Qureshi, A., Najar, T.A., Jehangir, A., Haswani, D., Raman, R.S., Rabha, S., Saikia, B., Lian, Y., Pandithurai, G., Chaudhary, P., Sinha, B., Dhandapani, A., Iqbal, J., Mukherjee, S., Chatterjee, A., Venkataraman, C., Phuleria, H.C. Reassessing the availability of crop residue as a bioenergy resource in India: A field-survey based study (2023) Journal of Environmental Management, 341, art. no. 118055. DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118055
• Navinya, C., Kapoor, T.S., Anurag, G., Lokhande, P., Sharma, R., Prasad SV, L., Nagendra SM, S., Kumari, J., Habib, G., Arya, R., Mandal, T.K., Muthalagu, A., Qureshi, A., Najar, T.A., Jehangir, A., Jain, S., Goel, A., Rabha, S., Saikia, B.K., Chaudhary, P., Sinha, B., Haswani, D., Raman, R.S., Dhandapani, A., Iqbal, J., Mukherjee, S., Chatterjee, A., Lian, Y., Pandithurai, G., Venkataraman, C., Phuleria, H.C. Heating and lighting: understanding overlooked energy-consumption activities in the Indian residential sector (2023) Environmental Research Communications, 5 (4), art. no. 045004. DOI: 10.1088/2515-7620/acca6f
• Sharma, G., Sinha, B. Future emissions of greenhouse gases, particulate matter and volatile organic compounds from municipal solid waste burning in India (2023) Science of the Total Environment, 858, art. no. 159708, DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.159708
• Pawar, P.V., Ghude, S.D., Govardhan, G., Acharja, P., Kulkarni, R., Kumar, R., Sinha, B., Sinha, V., Jena, C., Gunwani, P., Adhya, T.K., Nemitz, E., Sutton, M.A. Chloride (HCl / Cl-) dominates inorganic aerosol formation from ammonia in the Indo-Gangetic Plain during winter: modeling and comparison with observations (2023) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 23 (1), pp. 41-59. DOI: 10.5194/acp-23-41-2023
• Tibrewal, K., Venkataraman, C., Phuleria, H., Joshi, V., Maithel, S., Damle, A., Gupta, A., Lokhande, P., Rabha, S., Saikia, B.K., Roy, S., Habib, G., Rathi, S., Goel, A., Ahlawat, S., Mandal, T.K., Azharuddin Hashmi, M., Qureshi, A., Dhandapani, A., Iqbal, J., Devaliya, S., Raman, R.S., Lian, Y., Pandithurai, G., Kuppili, S.K., Shiva Nagendra, M., Mukherjee, S., Chatterjee, A., Najar, T.A., Jehangir, A., Singh, J., Sinha, B. Reconciliation of energy use disparities in brick production in India (2023) Nature Sustainability. DOI: 10.1038/s41893-023-01165-x
• Patnana, D.P., Chandra, B.P., Chaudhary, P., Sinha, B., Sinha, V. Optimized LC-MS/MS method for simultaneous determination of endocrine disruptors and PAHs bound to PM2.5: Sources and health risk in Indo-Gangetic Plain (2022) Atmospheric Environment, 290, art. no. 119363. DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2022.119363
• Chaudhary, P., Singh, R., Shabin, M., Sharma, A., Bhatt, S., Sinha, V., Sinha, B. Replacing the greater evil: Can legalizing decentralized waste burning in improved devices reduce waste burning emissions for improved air quality? (2022) Environmental Pollution, 311, art. no. 119897. DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119897
• Datta, S., Sharma, A., Sinha, B. Nocturnal pollutant uptake contributes significantly to the total stomatal uptake of Mangifera indica (2022) Environmental Pollution, 310, art. no. 119902. DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.119902
• Maheshwarkar, P., Ralhan, A., Sunder Raman, R., Tibrewal, K., Venkataraman, C., Dhandapani, A., Kumar, R.N., Mukherjee, S., Chatterje, A., Rabha, S., Saikia, B.K., Bhardwaj, A., Chaudhary, P., Sinha, B., Lokhande, P., Phuleria, H.C., Roy, S., Imran, M., Habib, G., Azharuddin Hashmi, M., Qureshi, A., Qadri, A.M., Gupta, T., Lian, Y., Pandithurai, G., Prasad, L., Murthy, S., Deswal, M., Laura, J.S., Chhangani, A.K., Najar, T.A., Jehangir, A. Understanding the Influence of Meteorology and Emission Sources on PM2.5 Mass Concentrations Across India: First Results From the COALESCE Network (2022) Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 127 (4), art. no. e2021JD035663. DOI: 10.1029/2021JD035663
• Acharja, P., Ali, K., Ghude, S.D., Sinha, V., Sinha, B., Kulkarni, R., Gultepe, I., Rajeevan, M.N. Enhanced secondary aerosol formation driven by excess ammonia during fog episodes in Delhi, India (2022) Chemosphere, 289, art. no. 133155. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.133155
• Pawar, H., Sinha, B. Residential heating emissions (can) exceed paddy-residue burning emissions in rural northwest India (2022) Atmospheric Environment, 269, art. no. 118846. DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2021.118846
• Hakkim, H., Kumar, A., Sinha, B., Sinha, V. Air pollution scenario analyses of fleet replacement strategies to accomplish reductions in criteria air pollutants and 74 VOCs over India (2022) Atmospheric Environment: X, 13, art. no. 100150. DOI: 10.1016/j.aeaoa.2022.100150
• Sharma, G., Annadate, S., Sinha, B. Will open waste burning become India’s largest air pollution source? (2022) Environmental Pollution, 292, art. no. 118310. DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118310
• Datta, S., Sharma, A., Parkar, V., Hakkim, H., Kumar, A., Chauhan, A., Tomar, S.S., Sinha, B. A new index to assess the air quality impact of urban tree plantation (2021) Urban Climate, 40, art. no. 100995. DOI: 10.1016/j.uclim.2021.100995
• Chaudhary, P., Garg, S., George, T., Shabin, M., Saha, S., Subodh, S., Sinha, B. Underreporting and open burning – the two largest challenges for sustainable waste management in India (2021) Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 175, art. no. 105865. DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2021.105865
• Hakkim, H., Kumar, A., Annadate, S., Sinha, B., Sinha, V. RTEII: A new high-resolution (0.1° × 0.1°) road transport emission inventory for India of 74 speciated NMVOCs, CO, NOx, NH3, CH4, CO2, PM2.5 reveals massive overestimation of NOx and CO and missing nitromethane emissions by existing inventories (2021) Atmospheric Environment: X, 11, art. no. 100118. DOI: 10.1016/j.aeaoa.2021.100118
• Kumar, A., Hakkim, H., Sinha, B., Sinha, V. Gridded 1 km × 1 km emission inventory for paddy stubble burning emissions over north-west India constrained by measured emission factors of 77 VOCs and district-wise crop yield data (2021) Science of the Total Environment, 789, art. no. 148064. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148064
• Ravindra, K., Singh, T., Sinha, V., Sinha, B., Paul, S., Attri, S.D., Mor, S. Appraisal of regional haze event and its relationship with PM2.5 concentration, crop residue burning and meteorology in Chandigarh, India (2021) Chemosphere, 273, art. no. 128562. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.128562
• Mishra, A.K., Sinha, B., Kumar, R., Barth, M., Hakkim, H., Kumar, V., Kumar, A., Datta, S., Guenther, A., Sinha, V. Cropland trees need to be included for accurate model simulations of land-atmosphere heat fluxes, temperature, boundary layer height, and ozone (2021) Science of the Total Environment, 751, art. no. 141728. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141728
• Pawar, H., Sinha, B. Humidity, density, and inlet aspiration efficiency correction improve accuracy of a low-cost sensor during field calibration at a suburban site in the North-Western Indo-Gangetic plain (NW-IGP) (2020) Aerosol Science and Technology, 54 (6), pp. 685-703. DOI: 10.1080/02786826.2020.1719971
• Kulkarni, S.H., Ghude, S.D., Jena, C., Karumuri, R.K., Sinha, B., Sinha, V., Kumar, R., Soni, V.K., Khare, M. How Much Does Large-Scale Crop Residue Burning Affect the Air Quality in Delhi? (2020) Environmental science & technology, 54 (8), pp. 4790-4799. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.0c00329
• Vettikkat, L., Sinha, V., Datta, S., Kumar, A., Hakkim, H., Yadav, P., Sinha, B. Significant emissions of dimethyl sulfide and monoterpenes by big-leaf mahogany trees: Discovery of a missing dimethyl sulfide source to the atmospheric environment (2020) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 20 (1), pp. 375-389. DOI: 10.5194/acp-20-375-2020
• Pallavi, Sinha, B., Sinha, V. Source apportionment of volatile organic compounds in the northwest Indo-Gangetic Plain using a positive matrix factorization model (2019) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 19 (24), pp. 15467-15482. DOI: 10.5194/acp-19-15467-2019
• Hakkim, H., Sinha, V., Chandra, B.P., Kumar, A., Mishra, A.K., Sinha, B., Sharma, G., Pawar, H., Sohpaul, B., Ghude, S.D., Pithani, P., Kulkarni, R., Jenamani, R.K., Rajeevan, M. Volatile organic compound measurements point to fog-induced biomass burning feedback to air quality in the megacity of Delhi (2019) Science of the Total Environment, 689, pp. 295-304. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.06.438
• Sharma, G., Sinha, B., Pallavi, Hakkim, H., Chandra, B.P., Kumar, A., Sinha, V. Gridded Emissions of CO, NOx, SO2, CO2, NH3, HCl, CH4, PM2.5, PM10, BC, and NMVOC from Open Municipal Waste Burning in India (2019) Environmental Science and Technology, 53 (9), pp. 4765-4774. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.8b07076
• Mills, G., Pleijel, H., Malley, C.S., Sinha, B., Cooper, O.R., Schultz, M.G., Neufeld, H.S., Simpson, D., Sharps, K., Feng, Z., Gerosa, G., Harmens, H., Kobayashi, K., Saxena, P., Paoletti, E., Sinha, V., Xu, X. Tropospheric ozone assessment report: Present-day tropospheric ozone distribution and trends relevant to vegetation (2018) Elementa, 6, art. no. 47. DOI: 10.1525/elementa.302
• Chandra, B.P., Sinha, V., Hakkim, H., Sinha, B. Storage stability studies and field application of low cost glass flasks for analyses of thirteen ambient VOCs using proton transfer reaction mass spectrometry (2017) International Journal of Mass Spectrometry, 419, pp. 11-19. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijms.2017.05.008
• Sarkar, C., Sinha, V., Sinha, B., Panday, A.K., Rupakheti, M., Lawrence, M.G. Source apportionment of NMVOCs in the Kathmandu Valley during the SusKat-ABC international field campaign using positive matrix factorization (2017) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 17 (13), pp. 8129-8156. DOI: 10.5194/acp-17-8129-2017
• Garg, S., Sinha, B. Determining the contribution of long-range transport, regional and local source areas, to PM10 mass loading in Hessen, Germany using a novel multi-receptor based statistical approach (2017) Atmospheric Environment, 167, pp. 566-575. DOI: 10.1016/j.atmosenv.2017.08.029
• Li, K., Sinha, B., Hoppe, P. Nitrogen isotope analysis of NaNO3 and KNO3 by nano secondary ion mass spectrometry using the 15N16O2-/14N16O2- ratio (2016) Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology B: Nanotechnology and Microelectronics, 34 (3), art. no. 030601. DOI: 10.1116/1.4931983
• Li, K., Sinha, B., Hoppe, P. Speciation of Nitrogen-Bearing Species Using Negative and Positive Secondary Ion Spectra with Nano Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (2016) Analytical Chemistry, 88 (6), pp. 3281-3288. DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.5b04740
• Garg, S., Chandra, B.P., Sinha, V., Sarda-Esteve, R., Gros, V., Sinha, B. Limitation of the Use of the Absorption Angstrom Exponent for Source Apportionment of Equivalent Black Carbon: A Case Study from the North West Indo-Gangetic Plain (2016) Environmental Science and Technology, 50 (2), pp. 814-824. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.5b03868
• Sinha, B., Singh Sangwan, K., Maurya, Y., Kumar, V., Sarkar, C., Chandra, B.P., Sinha, V. Assessment of crop yield losses in Punjab and Haryana using 2 years of continuous in situ ozone measurements (2015) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 15 (16), pp. 9555-9576. DOI: 10.5194/acp-15-9555-2015
• Pawar, H., Garg, S., Kumar, V., Sachan, H., Arya, R., Sarkar, C., Chandra, B.P., Sinha, B. Quantifying the contribution of long-range transport to particulate matter (PM) mass loadings at a suburban site in the north-western Indo-Gangetic Plain (NW-IGP) (2015) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 15 (16), pp. 9501-9520. DOI: 10.5194/acp-15-9501-2015
• Nandy, B., Sharma, G., Garg, S., Kumari, S., George, T., Sunanda, Y., Sinha, B. Recovery of consumer waste in India – A mass flow analysis for paper, plastic and glass and the contribution of households and the informal sector (2015) Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 101, pp. 167-181. DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2015.05.012
• Henning, S., Dieckmann, K., Ignatius, K., Schäfer, M., Zedler, P., Harris, E., Sinha, B., Van Pinxteren, D., Mertes, S., Birmili, W., Merkel, M., Wu, Z., Wiedensohler, A., Wex, H., Herrmann, H., Stratmann, F. Influence of cloud processing on CCN activation behaviour in the Thuringian Forest, Germany during HCCT-2010 (2014) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 14 (15), pp. 7859-7868. DOI: 10.5194/acp-14-7859-2014
• Harris, E., Sinha, B., Van Pinxteren, D., Schneider, J., Poulain, L., Collett, J., D’Anna, B., Fahlbusch, B., Foley, S., Fomba, K.W., George, C., Gnauk, T., Henning, S., Lee, T., Mertes, S., Roth, A., Stratmann, F., Borrmann, S., Hoppe, P., Herrmann, H. In-cloud sulfate addition to single particles resolved with sulfur isotope analysis during HCCT-2010 (2014) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 14 (8), pp. 4219-4235. DOI: 10.5194/acp-14-4219-2014
• Harris, E., Sinha, B., Hoppe, P., Ono, S. High-precision measurements of 33S and 34S fractionation during SO2 oxidation reveal causes of seasonality in SO2 and sulfate isotopic composition (2013) Environmental Science and Technology, 47 (21), pp. 12174-12183. DOI: 10.1021/es402824c
• Huffman, J.A., Prenni, A.J., Demott, P.J., Pöhlker, C., Mason, R.H., Robinson, N.H., Fröhlich-Nowoisky, J., Tobo, Y., Després, V.R., Garcia, E., Gochis, D.J., Harris, E., Müller-Germann, I., Ruzene, C., Schmer, B., Sinha, B., Day, D.A., Andreae, M.O., Jimenez, J.L., Gallagher, M., Kreidenweis, S.M., Bertram, A.K., Pöschl, U. High concentrations of biological aerosol particles and ice nuclei during and after rain (2013) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 13 (13), pp. 6151-6164. DOI: 10.5194/acp-13-6151-2013
• Harris, E., Sinha, B., Van Pinxteren, D., Tilgner, A., Fomba, K.W., Schneider, J., Roth, A., Gnauk, T., Fahlbusch, B., Mertes, S., Lee, T., Collett, J., Foley, S., Borrmann, S., Hoppe, P., Herrmann, H. Enhanced role of transition metal ion catalysis during in-cloud oxidation of SO2 (2013) Science, 340 (6133), pp. 727-730. DOI: 10.1126/science.1230911
• Huffman, J.A., Sinha, B., Garland, R.M., Snee-Pollmann, A., Gunthe, S.S., Artaxo, P., Martin, S.T., Andreae, M.O., Pöschl, U. Size distributions and temporal variations of biological aerosol particles in the Amazon rainforest characterized by microscopy and real-time UV-APS fluorescence techniques during AMAZE-08(2012) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 12 (24), pp. 11997-12019. DOI: 10.5194/acp-12-11997-2012
• Harris, E., Sinha, B., Hoppe, P., Crowley, J.N., Ono, S., Foley, S. Sulfur isotope fractionation during oxidation of sulfur dioxide: Gas-phase oxidation by OH radicals and aqueous oxidation by H2O2, O3 and iron catalysis(2012) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 12 (1), pp. 407-424. DOI: 10.5194/acp-12-407-2012
• Pöhlker, C., Wiedemann, K.T., Sinha, B., Shiraiwa, M., Gunthe, S.S., Smith, M., Su, H., Artaxo, P., Chen, Q., Cheng, Y., Elbert, W., Gilles, M.K., Kilcoyne, A.L.D., Moffet, R.C., Weigand, M., Martin, S.T., Pöschl, U., Andreae, M.O. Biogenic potassium salt particles as seeds for secondary organic aerosol in the Amazon(2012) Science, 337 (6098), pp. 1075-1078. DOI: 10.1126/science.1223264
• Harris, E., Sinha, B., Foley, S., Crowley, J.N., Borrmann, S., Hoppe, P. Sulfur isotope fractionation during heterogeneous oxidation of SO2 on mineral dust(2012) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 12 (11), pp. 4867-4884. DOI: 10.5194/acp-12-4867-2012
• Harris, E., Sinha, B., Hoppe, P., Foley, S., Borrmann, S. Fractionation of sulfur isotopes during heterogeneous oxidation of SO 2 on sea salt aerosol: A new tool to investigate non-sea salt sulfate production in the marine boundary layer(2012) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 12 (10), pp. 4619-4631. DOI: 10.5194/acp-12-4619-2012
• Jochum, K.P., Wang, X., Vennemann, T.W., Sinha, B., Müller, W.E.G. Siliceous deep-sea sponge Monorhaphis chuni: A potential paleoclimate archive in ancient animals(2012) Chemical Geology, 300-301, pp. 143-151. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemgeo.2012.01.009
• Pöschl, U., Martin, S.T., Sinha, B., Chen, Q., Gunthe, S.S., Huffman, J.A., Borrmann, S., Farmer, D.K., Garland, R.M., Helas, G., Jimenez, J.L., King, S.M., Manzi, A., Mikhailov, E., Pauliquevis, T., Petters, M.D., Prenni, A.J., Roldin, P., Rose, D., Schneider, J., Su, H., Zorn, S.R., Artaxo, P., Andreae, M.O.Rainforest aerosols as biogenic nuclei of clouds and precipitation in the Amazon(2010) Science, 329 (5998), pp. 1513-1516. DOI: 10.1126/science.1191056
• Müller, W.E.G., Wang, X., Sinha, B., Wiens, M., Schröder, H.-C., Jochum, K.P. NanoSIMS: Insights into the organization of the proteinaceous scaffold within hexactinellid sponge spicules(2010) ChemBioChem, 11 (8), pp. 1077-1082. DOI: 10.1002/cbic.201000078
• Halm, H., Musat, N., Lam, P., Langlois, R., Musat, F., Peduzzi, S., Lavik, G., Schubert, C.J., Sinha, B., Laroche, J., Kuypers, M.M.M. Co-occurrence of denitrification and nitrogen fixation in a meromictic lake, Lake Cadagno (Switzerland)(2009) Environmental Microbiology, 11 (8), pp. 1945-1958. DOI: 10.1111/j.1462-2920.2009.01917.x
• Sinha, B.W., Hoppe, P., Huth, J., Foley, S., Andreae, M.O. Sulfur isotope analyses of individual aerosol particles in the urban aerosol at a central European site (Mainz, Germany)(2008) Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, 8 (23), pp. 7217-7238. DOI: 10.5194/acp-8-7217-2008
• Musat, N., Halm, H., Winterholler, B., Hoppe, P., Peduzzi, S., Hillion, F., Horreard, F., Amann, R., Jørgensen, B.B., Kuypers, M.M.M. A single-cell view on the ecophysiology of anaerobic phototrophic bacteria(2008) Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 105 (46), pp. 17861-17866. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0809329105
• Winterholler, B., Hoppe, P., Foley, S., Andreae, M.O. Sulfur isotope ratio measurements of individual sulfate particles by NanoSIMS(2008) International Journal of Mass Spectrometry, 272 (1), pp. 63-77. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijms.2008.01.003
• Winterholler, B., Hoppe, P., Andreae, M.O., Foley, S. Measurement of sulfur isotope ratios in micrometer-sized samples by NanoSIMS (2006) Applied Surface Science, 252 (19), pp. 7128-7131. DOI: 10.1016/j.apsusc.2006.02.150

• IDC208: Introduction to environmental sciences
• EES102 Introduction to environmental sciences
• EES302 Quantitative data analysis in earth and environmental sciences
• EES301 Global Biogeochemical Cycles and Climate Change
• EES311 Air Water and Soil Laboratory
• IDC203: Introduction to earth sciences
• IDC208: Introduction to environmental sciences
• EES401: Quantitative data analysis in earth and environmental sciences
• EES641: Radiogenic isotope geology
• HSS636: Climate change and sustainable development
• IDC408: Environmental hygiene, sanitation and waste management
• IDC635: Aerosol measurements: Principles and applications

BLUE EYE IN THE SKY AT IISER MOHALI

“Blue” eye in the IISER Mohali campus sky: The state of the art atmospheric chemistry and air quality facility (sampling inlets are on extreme left the facility is on the extreme right)

India’s first Proton Transfer Reaction Mass Spectrometer (PTR-MS):

IISER Mohali has set up India’s first integrated proton transfer reaction mass spectrometer (PTR-MS) cum ambient air quality facility. This facility will enable frontier research in the area of atmospheric chemistry, climate and air quality by comprehensive long term chemical characterization of ambient air with high time resolution at a site in the northern Indo Gangetic plain.

One of the instruments in the facility capable of measuring volatile organic compounds at parts per trillion level sensitivity in less than a second.

The meteorology, topography and emission pattern in the densely populated Indo Gangetic plain is very different from the rest of the world and provides a unique “tropospheric reactor” for atmospheric chemistry, air quality and climate interaction investigations. The causal relationship of chemical emissions on climate can be summarily represented as follows:

Emissions into the atmosphere => Impacts composition of atmosphere directly, and indirectly by oxidation to aerosol and carbon dioxide (in multiple steps) => Impacts radiation, activity of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) and chemistry of the atmosphere => Impacts health and climate
Through this state of the art measurement facility, in addition to regular monitoring of primary air pollutants such as ozone, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide , sulphur dioxide, respirable suspended particulate matter (PM 2.5) and suspended particulate matter (PM 10) at high temporal resolution (1 minute), simultaneous high time resolution measurements (few seconds) of a suite of ambient volatile organic compounds that act as the precursors of ozone and secondary organic aerosol will also be available for the first time in India, enabling characterization of in-situ instantaneous ozone production rates and fine mode aerosol (PM 2.5) formation potential to be constrained. Although air quality stations in India have monitored the criteria air pollutants, unavailability of sophisticated instruments such as PTR-MS had prevented quantification of the most reactive precursors of ozone and secondary organic aerosol (e.g. isoprene, acetaldehyde, styrene, trimethyl benzene) that are known to be present in urban ambient air. The facility has started compiling a dataset for ambient levels of harmful organic gases such as acetonitrile for the first time in India. As state of the art research is one of the primary objectives, for criteria air pollutants the recommendations of the Ministry of Environment and Forests, India in respect of specified analytical techniques has been followed and careful quality assurance is ensured through regular calibrations and maintenance checks.

This facility will serve multiple purposes, namely 1) help address uncertainties in atmospheric chemistry, air quality and climate science from such an important region of the world through quality assured long term high time resolution research data and its analysis 2) enthusing students to take up research in a high priority research area of the nation through world class training on sophisticated analytical instrumentation 3) serving the local community by providing information about the daily regional air quality and exceedance levels of criteria air pollutants.

A Snap Shot of One Day (02.11.2011) of Measurements Showing Diel Profiles of Primary Air Pollutants and Select Volatile Organic Compounds Present in the Ambient Air of IISER Mohali

Research Projects:

• Research Projects:
  Realtime Ambient Source Apportionment of Gases and Aerosol for Mitigation (RASAGAM) (2021–2026)
  Funded by the Ministry of Earth Sciences
  Amount: Rs 628 Lakh INR
• Completed Research Projects:

  National Carbonaceous Aerosols Programme NCAP-COALESCE (2016–2025)
  Outreach Institution, Funded by Ministry of Environment and Forests, India
  Amount: Rs 106 Lakh INR

  DST Climate Change Project – Atmospheric Chemistry of Climate Change (2017–2021)
  Amount: Rs 151 Lakh INR

• Select Awards / Achievements of Students:

  Arpit Awasti (PH22062) – Awarded the Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship

  Pooja Chaudhary (PH18078) – Received the SERB Overseas Visiting Doctoral Fellowship to visit Prof. Alexander Laskin’s lab at Purdue University

  Pooja Chaudhary (PH18078) – Received a travel grant to present a talk at the EGU Conference 2024