Michelle (Spruill) McCombs (BSEH 1996) is an Exposure Scientist/Chemist at RTI International in Research Triangle Park, NC. She uses the RTI MicroPEM™ sensor in human exposure studies to assess personal and ambient levels of PM2.5 and PM10 air pollutants for both adults and children. RTI partners with other organizations like ECU to help study health effects (specifically asthma) in families living in areas affected by major storms. Some of her other studies measure indoor air pollution from cookstoves in other countries around the world including India and Bangladesh. Another research project she works on analyzes the vapor phase of exhaled e-cigarette vapors for the quantification of nicotine and other compounds. These studies generate knowledge between air pollution sources, emissions, exposures, and health outcomes to promote environmental health. Other areas of environmental pollutant human exposure assessments include volatile organic compounds (VOCs), carbonyls, pesticides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), ozone and nitrogen dioxide. She has also done method development for analysis of these compounds by gas chromatography (GC), GCMS, GCMS-TOF, and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).
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Photos courtesy of Michelle McCombs
