Lafayette Student Earns Award at American Association for Aerosol Research Annual Conference
O’Leary’s award-winning research focuses on the physical and chemical properties of aqueous atmospheric aerosols. Using an atmospheric chamber, she recreates real-world atmospheric conditions with salt and organic solutions exposed to light. Her work involves analyzing aerosol filter samples to identify compounds formed during these reactions and to study how their properties change under light exposure.
“This research has immediate implications within climate systems and is helping to fill in missing pieces of the climate model,” O’Leary explains. Aerosols are critical to understanding Earth’s energy balance—they can absorb or reflect light and influence cloud formation. While their properties are well documented under dark conditions, their behavior when exposed to light remains largely uncharacterized. O’Leary’s work aims to address this knowledge gap, advancing our understanding of aerosols’ role in climate dynamics.
O’Leary’s academic journey has been shaped by her desire to attend a small college with a strong engineering program that integrates liberal arts. At Lafayette, she found the ideal environment to pursue balanced, interdisciplinary education. “I knew I wanted to get into research that had environmental implications,” she shares. A pivotal moment came during her First-Year Seminar (FYS) with Associate Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Joseph Woo, where early conversations about her interests laid the groundwork for her research path.
Reflecting on her success at the AAAR conference, O’Leary attributes much of it to preparation and support from her peers and mentors. “I made sure to prepare thoroughly, focusing on making my poster presentation a discussion rather than something overly formal,” she says. She credits Professor Woo for fostering a supportive lab environment that prioritizes skill-building, including plenty of opportunities to practice presentation skills.
“It’s not very common for a student from an undergraduate-only institution to win an AAAR Student Poster Award,” Woo says. “Erin is competing against both undergraduate and graduate students from much larger research institutions. Because she has been taking an extremely active role in the development and evolution of this work for nearly three years, Erin is able to speak thoughtfully and critically about her findings in a way that is unique to a program like Lafayette’s.”
O’Leary is also active outside the classroom and lab. She’s a thrower on Lafayette’s track team, a CITLS Student Fellow, and an Athletics Peer Mentor. Looking ahead, O’Leary plans to work as an environmental engineer at ARM Group and eventually pursue a PhD in chemical engineering or atmospheric science.