Goldstein Group Trace Gas Biogeochemistry Laboratory

Research Themes

Goldstein group research themes include atmospheric chemistry and biogeochemistry. We investigate anthropogenic and natural contributions to the chemical composition of the troposphere, interactions of air pollution with ecosystems, aerosol composition and chemistry, and the biogeochemistry of greenhouse gases and stratospheric ozone depleting gases. A unifying theme in our research is to understand the balance between natural and anthropogenic sources of trace gases and aerosols in earth's atmosphere, and to elucidate the biogeochemical processes which control their budgets. One of our major foci is to push the forefront of observational capabilities through the development and deployment of novel analytical instrumentation, making possible new avenues of research to address elusive scientific questions. We develop instrumentation, develop and maintain long term biosphere-atmosphere exchange experiments, engage in short term field campaigns, perform controlled laboratory experiments, and utilize models of atmospheric processes, all with the goals of understanding the composition and chemistry of earth's atmosphere, how it functions naturally, and how it is impacted by anthropogenic emissions and changing climate.

Research Projects

Title Funding Agency Project Period
To Investigate the Processes and Source Responsible for Indoor Microbial Communities and Indoor Air QualityAlfred P. Sloan Foundation2010-2013
Measurements of Speciated Organics in Aerosols by Thermal Desorption Aerosol GC/MS (TAG) during CalNex 2010 National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration 2010-2013
Collaborative Research: Investigating SOA Formation in Central Los Angeles as Part of CalNex 2010 NSF National Science Foundation 2010-2013
An In-Situ Instrument to Assess the Concentration and Phase Partitioning of Atmospheric Semi-Volatile Organic Compounds Department of Energy (STTR Phase II) 2009-2011
Characterization of Particulate Organic via Combined Thermal Desorption Aerosol Gas Chromatography and Aerosol Mass Spectrometry (TAG-AMS) Department of Energy (SBIR Phase II) 2009-2011
Evaluation of Mobile Source Emissions and Trends Using Detailed Chemical and Physical Measurements US Environmental Protection Agency 2010-2013
Hourly In Situ Quantitation of Organic Aerosol Marker Compounds during CalNex 2010 California Air Resources Board 2010-2013
Characterization of the Atmospheric Chemistry in the Southern San Joaquin Valley and an Initial Comparison with Atmospheric Chemistry in the South Coast Air Basin California Air Resources Board 2009-2012
Improving Regional Biogenic VOC Emission Estimates Using an Airborne PTRMS Eddy Flux Measurement System California Air Resources Board 2010-2013
Biogenic VOC Emission and Organic Aerosol Composition during the Biosphere Effects on Aerosol and Photochemistry Experiment (BEARPEX) NSF National Science Foundation 2009-2012
Flux Measurements of Biogenic Precursors to Ozone and Particulate Matter in the Central Valley, with co-PI John Karlik Cal EPA Air Resources Board 2007-2011
Measurements of Ozone Removal and VOC Emissions in Citrus Trees with Implications for Regional Air Quality, with co-PI John Karlik California Citrus Research Board 2007-2011
Extending the Use of Proton-Transfer-Reaction Mass Spectrometer (PTR-MS) for New Measurements of Volatile Organic Compounds and Their Oxidation NSF National Science Foundation 2005-2011
Organized Research Unit (ORU), Atmospheric Science Center UC Berkeley 2000 - 2011
An In-Situ Instrument to Assess the Concentration and Phase Partitioning of Atmospheric Semi-Volatile Organic Compounds, Department of Energy (SBIR Phases I) 2002 - 2009
Two-dimensional chromatography of atmospheric aerosols: A new in-situ instrument Department of Energy (STTR Phases II) 2006 - 2009
Automated Measurements of Organic Aerosol Composition in Agricultural Systems Using Thermal Desorption GC UC DANR Core Issue Grant 2007 - 2009
Process-Based Farm Emission Model for Estimating Volatile Organic Compound Emissions from California Dairies California Air Resources Board 2006 - 2008
Extending the use of PTR-MS for new measurements of volatile organic compounds and their oxidation products National Science Foundation Phases I and II 2001 - 2008
Hourly, In-situ Quantitation of Organic Aerosol Marker Compounds California Air Resources Board 2004 - 2008
Measurements of organic trace gases by PTR-MS in support of ITCT-2K4 National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration 2004 - 2007
Carbon exchange in a Ponderosa Pine Plantation: Strategies of Water use, Seasonality of Plant Physiology, and the Impact of Aerosols on Photosynthesis National Institute for Global Environmental Change (NIGEC)/NICCR 2004 - 2007
Guiding Future Air Quality Management in California: Sensitivity to Changing Climate Environmental Protection Agency 2003 - 2007
Controls of Canopy Photosynthetic Activity on Roots and Soil Carbon Dynamics in Ponderosa Pine and Oak/Savanna Ecosystem (Co-PI’s Weixin Cheng [UCSC] and Dennis Baldocchi [UCB]) Kearney Foundation 2004 - 2006
An Isotopic Approach for Determining the Industrial Fraction of the Total CH3Br Source to the Atmosphere National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Jointly with NSF 1998-2002) Phases I, II and III 1998 - 2006
Measurements of speciated VOC's, OVOCs, and halocarbons, by automated in-situ GC/FID/MSD in support of the Intercontinental Transport and Chemical Transformation (ITCT) project National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration 2002 - 2005
Linking Carbon and Water Cycling in Sierra Nevada Forests to the Dynamics of Ozone and Hydrocarbon Exchange UC Berkeley, Agricultural Experiment Station 1998 - 2004
Controls of Canopy Activities on Roots and Soil Carbon Dynamics in a Young Ponderosa Pine Forest Kearney Foundation 2002 - 2003
Quantifying Biogenic Terpene Emissions and assessing their importance for Secondary Aerosol Formation California Air Resources Board 2001 - 2003
Whole Ecosystem Measurements of Biogenic Hydrocarbon Emissions California Air Resources Board 1999 - 2002
Modeling Ozone Flux to Forests Across an Ozone Concentration Gradient in the Sierra Nevada Mts., CA Environmental Protection Agency 1998 - 2002
Atmospheric Change at the Interface Between Regional and Global Scales Department of Energy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 1999 - 2001
A Field-Based Study of Sierra Nevada Forest Response to Anthropogenic Ozone and Nitrogen Deposition Hellman Family Faculty Fund 1997 - 1999
Global Climate Change: Regional Effects and Potential Consequences of Adaptation and Mitigation Measures in California Department of Energy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory 1997 - 1999
Impacts of Ozone Deposition on Carbon Uptake Rates in a Sierra Nevada Ponderosa Pine Plantation UC Berkeley, Junior Faculty Research Grant 1997 - 1998
Determination of Volatile Organic Carbon Emission Rates from Biogenic Sources in California UC Berkeley, Agricultural Experiment Station 1996 - 1998


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