Rate My Professor Ralph Mead

Ralph Mead is a Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW), as well as a Professor in the Department of Earth and Ocean Sciences and a faculty member at the Center for Marine Science. A Florida native with a lifelong interest in water and ocean environments, he earned his Ph.D. from Florida International University in 2003 and his undergraduate degree from Florida State University. Having served at UNCW for over 17 years, Mead heads the Environmental Organic Geochemistry Laboratory (EOGL) at the Center for Marine Science. His research centers on the cycling of natural organic matter in coastal zones and the occurrence, transport, and fate of anthropogenically derived organic compounds across the land-ocean continuum. A primary focus is per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), investigating their presence in atmospheric deposition, fine particulate matter, marine sediments, tidal creeks, drinking water, and other compartments. He also coordinates the Organic Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, equipped with advanced instruments like Bruker GC-MS/MS and Sciex LC-MS/MS for analyzing environmental samples.

Mead leads the North Carolina PFAS Testing Network (PFAST), directing multidisciplinary, multi-institutional efforts on PFAS toxicology, atmospheric transformations, removal technologies, and source tracing in collaboration with state regulatory agencies. His contributions include securing major grants, such as an NSF Major Research Instrumentation award for a GC-MS/MS system and, in 2024, an Orbitrap Exploris 240 Isotope Solutions system from the North Carolina Collaboratory and Thermo Fisher Scientific. Recognized with the inaugural North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Applied Research Fellowship in 2022 as the Summer 2023 PFAS science fellow, induction into UNCW’s Million Dollar Club in 2023 for over $5 million in external funding, and designation as a Distinguished Faculty Scholar, Mead has published extensively. Key works include “Sediment and soil organic matter source assessment as revealed by the molecular distribution and carbon isotopic composition of n-alkanes” (Organic Geochemistry, 2005), “Origin and transport of sedimentary organic matter in two subtropical estuaries: a comparative, biomarker-based study” (Organic Geochemistry, 2001), “Occurrence of the artificial sweetener sucralose in coastal and marine waters of the United States” (Marine Chemistry, 2009), and recent PFAS studies like “Atmospheric deposition and annual flux of legacy perfluoroalkyl substances...” (Environmental Science & Technology Letters, 2021). His research advances understanding of emerging contaminants and their environmental impact in coastal settings.