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Distinguished Professor, Chemistry Department
Distinguished Professor, School of Public and Environmental Affairs

Professor Hites received his B.A. degree in 1964 from Oakland University. Subsequently, he began graduate studies in organic analytical chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, ultimately receiving his Ph. D. in 1968. Prior to beginning his career at Indiana, Dr. Hites was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.  Dr. Hites is also a Distinguished Professor at the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs.

Dr. Hites' research group applies organic analytical chemistry to the understanding of environmental problems. Most of their work uses mass spectrometry for the analysis of trace levels of potentially toxic environmental pollutants. Specific research areas include the global scale transport of halogenated compounds, the reactions of pollutants with the hydroxyl radical and ozone, and anthropogenic organic pollutants in the Great Lakes.

Research

Our research group applies organic analytical chemistry to the understanding of environmental problems. Most of our work uses mass spectrometry for the analysis of trace levels of potentially toxic environmental pollutants. Specific research areas include:

Global scale transport of halogenated compounds. Halogenated organic compounds move through the atmosphere to remote regions of the globe. Our work has focused on semi-volatile organics such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pesticides, and dibenzo-p-dioxins. We are making a long-term set of measurements of the concentrations of these compounds on the shores of the Great Lakes. From these data, we will be able to deduce long-term rates of change in the absolute concentrations and atmospheric residence times of these compounds.

Reactions of pollutants with the hydroxyl radical and ozone. In order to determine the fates of selected polychlorinated compounds and biogenic hydrocarbons, we are determining gas-phase, second order rate constants for their reactions with the hydroxyl radical (OH). In this way, we can estimate residence times due to these atmospheric removal pathways.

Anthropogenic organic pollutants in the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes have received a considerable input of toxic organic compounds from various hazardous waste disposal sites. Other inputs are more diffuse; for example, deposition from the atmosphere. Our current goal is to understand the atmospheric transport of PCBs, toxaphene (polychlorinated bornanes), and other pesticides to the Great Lakes. Other compound classes of considerable interest include chlorinated paraffins, brominated diphenyl ethers, and other flame retardants.

Publications

PubMed

Dechlorane Plus and related compounds in the environment: A review, Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 5088-5098 (2011); with E. Sverko, G. T. Tomy, E. J. Reiner, Y. F. Li, B. E. McCarry, J. A. Arnot, and R. J. Law.

Flame retardants in the serum of pet dogs and in their food, Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 4602-4608 (2011); with M. Venier.

Rate constants for the gas-phase reactions of OH and O₃ with, β-ocimene, β-myrcene, and α- and β-farnesene as a function of temperature, Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 115, 500-506 (2011); with D. Kim and P. S Stevens.

Radical dependence of the yields of methacrolein and methyl vinyl ketone from the OH-initiated oxidation of isoprene under NO_x-free conditions, Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 923-929 (2011); with M. A. Navarro, S. Dusanter, and P. S. Stevens.

Dioxins: An overview and history, Environmental Science and Technology, 45, 16-20 (2011) [an invited feature article].

Time trend analysis of atmospheric POPs concentrations near the Great Lakes since 1990, Environmental Science and Technology, 44, 8050-8055 (2010); with M. Venier.

Evaluation of tree bark as a passive atmospheric sampler for flame retardants, PCBs, and organochlorine pesticides, Environmental Science and Technology, 44, 6196-6201 (2010); with A. Salamova.

Flame retardants and organochlorine pollutants in bald eagle plasma from the Great Lakes region, Chemosphere, 80, 1234-1240 (2010); with M. Venier, M. Wierda, and W. W. Bowerman.

Regression model of partial pressures of PCBs, PAHs, and organochlorine pesticides in the Great Lakes' atmosphere, Environmental Science and Technology, 44, 618-623 (2010); with M. Venier.

Brominated flame retardants in serum from the general population in northern China, Environmental Science and Technology, 43, 6963-6968 (2009); with L. Y. Zhu and B. L. Ma.

Partial pressures of PCB-11 in air from several Great Lakes sites, Environmental Science and Technology, 43, 6488-6492 (2009); with I. Basu, K. A. Arnold, and M. Venier.

Rate constants for the gas-phase β-myrcene + OH and isoprene + OH reactions as a function of temperature, International Journal of Chemical Kinetics, 41, 407-413 (2009); with A. M. Turner.

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in the atmosphere around the Great Lakes, Environmental Science and Technology, 43, 1036-1041 (2009); with M. Venier and J. Ferrario.

Hydroxylated metabolites of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in human blood samples from the United States, Environmental Health Perspectives, 117, 93-98 (2009); with X. Qiu and R. M. Bigsby.

Atmospheric deposition of PBDEs to the Great Lakes featuring a Monte Carlo analysis of errors, Environmental Science and Technology, 42, 9058-9064 (2008); with M. Venier.

Flame retardants in the atmosphere near the Great Lakes, Environmental Science and Technology, 42, 4745-4751 (2008); with M. Venier.

Electron impact and electron capture negative ionization mass spectra of polybrominated diphenyl ethers and methoxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers, Environmental Science and Technology, 42, 2243-2252 (2008).

Dechlorane Plus and other flame retardants in tree bark from the northeastern United States, Environmental Science and Technology, 42, 31-36 (2008); with X. H. Qiu.

Awards

• Fellow, American Chemical Society
• Postdoctoral Fellow, U.S. Department of Agriculture
• Distinguished Alumni Award, Oakland University
• Fellow, AAAS
• Distinguished Faculty Research Lecture Award
• Founders Award, SETAC
• Award for Creative Advances in Environmental Science and Technology, ACS

Highlights

Indiana University, EPA to study airborne PCBs
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced today (Sept. 27) it would continue its collaboration with Indiana University Bloomington environmental scientists Ronald Hites and Ilora Basu to study the persistent toxin's circulation between the air and the Great Lakes. The information will help the EPA determine whether new PCB clean-up policies are needed. >> Full Story