Summary
Dr William Hicks is a postdoctoral researcher at the Environmental Research Group. His academic interests include non-exhaust emissions from road traffic, urban air pollution sources and indoor air quality.
Indoor air pollution has significant implications for our health and wellbeing. The air we breathe indoors can be many times more polluted than outdoor air, due to the presence of a variety of pollutants such as mould, volatile organic compounds, and particulate matter. My current research involves maintaining and assessing air quality instruments which are used to measure a range of air pollutants in the indoor and outdoor environment.
My PhD, which was also undertaken at Imperial, quantified the impact of on non-exhaust emissions on urban air pollution. This was achieved by undertaking a range of atmospheric measurement campaigns in London, Birmingham and Manchester. The chemical and physical composition of the measured aerosols were characterised using source apportionment and elemental tracers. I also assessed the impact that electric vehicles will have on future urban air quality by using brake simulations to assess the influence of electric powertrain regenerative braking on PM emissions. I developed PM10 and PM2.5 emission factors for brake, tyre and road wear, and the resuspension of road dust; and modelled the impact that hybrid and electric vehicles will have on these emissions.
I was supervised by Dr Sean Beevers and Dr David Green and funded by the Department for Transport / NERC with industry case support from Robert Bosch Ltd.
Publications
Journals
Fussell JC, Franklin M, Green DC, et al., 2022, A Review of road traffic-derived non-exhaust particles: emissions, physicochemical characteristics, health risks, and mitigation measures., Environmental Science and Technology (washington), Vol:56, ISSN:0013-936X
Hicks W, Beevers S, Tremper A, et al., 2021, Quantification of non-exhaust particulate matter traffic emissions and the impact of COVID-19 lockdown at London Marylebone Road, Atmosphere, Vol:12, ISSN:2073-4433, Pages:1-19