
I hold a Bachelor degree in Computational Chemistry.
I am keenly interested in solving challenging chemical, environmental, and social problems using advanced computational methods and technology. I have always been passionate about diving into complex data and producing solutions to problems with high complexity.
Short-chain polychlorinated n-alkanes are ubiquitous industrial chemicals widely recognized as persistent organic pollutants. They represent only a small fraction of the 184,600 elemental compositions (C10–25) and the myriad isomers of all possible (mixed) halogenated n-alkanes (PXAs). This study prioritizes the PXAs on the basis of their potential to persist, bioaccumulate, and undergo long-range transport guided by quantitative structure–property relationships (QSPRs), density functional theory (DFT), chemical fate models, and partitioning space.
The QSPR results narrow the list to 966 elemental compositions, of which 352 (23 Br, 83 Cl/F, 119 Br/Cl, and 127 Br/F) are likely constituents of substances used as lubricants, plasticizers, and flame retardants. Complementary DFT calculations suggest that an additional 1367 elemental compositions characterized by a greater number of carbon and fluorine atoms but fewer chlorine and bromine atoms may also pose a risk. The results of this study underline the urgent need to identify and monitor these suspected pollutants, most appropriately using mass spectrometry.