Dr Nicholle G. A. Bell

NERC Independent Research Fellow

Contact details

Address

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Room 257
University of Edinburgh
Joseph Black Building
David Brewster Road
Edinburgh
EH9 3FJ

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Research summary

Application of NMR spectroscopy and FT-ICR mass spectrometry in environmental sciences, peatlands characterisation, complex mixtures analysis, NMR methodology development, benchtop NMR.

Research Overview

Peatlands are vital to many ecosystem services; they filter our drinking water, store millions of tonnes of carbon and act as a unique habitat for diverse flora and fauna. However, due to human activities and climate change, over 80 % of the UK peatlands are in a state of damage; on the road from "happy" waterlogged anoxic to "unhappy" oxic dry soils. Peatlands are disappearing and losing their carbon to the atmosphere and to waters. In order to reverse this process large investments has been made into restoration projects. This typically involves rewetting a peat bog, raising the water table. The idea is that by restoring the anoxic conditions this will encourage the return of peat forming vegetation and hopefully kick-start the processes that lead to carbon storage and other ecosystem services to return. However, many questions remain unanswered. Can simple rewetting of peatbogs bring them back to a fully functioning state? Is a restored peatbog resilient against future changes? Part of the issue is our lack of understanding on how peatlands process and store their carbon. It is believed that much of a peatlands ability to maintain carbon is down to the existence of certain protective molecules. What are the chemical structures of these molecules? Where do they come from? Are they lost during peatland damage? If they are, how can they be brought back?

As part of the Soil Security Programme, my research focuses on understanding the process of degradation and restoration at a molecular level to start answering some of these questions. Using high-resolution FT-ICR-MS and NMR spectroscopy my goal is to create a metric for assessing the status of peatlands. This involves applying the latest developments in each field and creating tailored experiments for environmental samples. Once in place, this metric will used to assess peatlands not just across the UK but globally to help keep our beloved bogs alive and well.   

  1. Timári, I, Kaltschnee, L, Raics, M.H, Roth F, Bell, N.G.A, Adams, R.W., Nilsson, M, Uhrín, D, Morris, G.A., Thiele, C.M. et al., Real-time broadband proton-homodecoupled CLIP/CLAP-HSQC for automated measurement of heteronuclear one-bond coupling constants. RSC Advances. 6, 87848-87855 (2016).
  2. Bell, N.G.A., et al., Isotope-filtered nD NMR spectroscopy of complex mixtures to unravel the molecular structures of phenolic compounds in tagged soil organic matter. Analyst. 141, 4614-4624 (2016).
  3. Bell, N.G.A., et al., Isotope-Filtered 4D NMR Spectroscopy for Structure Determination of Humic Substances. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 54, 8382 - 8385 (2015).
  4. Bell, N.G.A., et al., NMR methodology for complex mixture ‘separation’. Chem. Commun. 50, 1694 -1697 (2014).

Expertise: Advanced Analytical Chemistry, Molecular Fingerprinting & Complex Mixture (organic matter, peat, water, Scotch whisky) Analysis, Peatland Health & Restoration Monitoring, Water Quality, Peated Whisky Characterisation, Maturation Monitoring, Ecosystem Service Tracking, NMR Spectroscopy, High resolution Mass Spectrometry, Metagenomics & eDNA Sequencing

Sectors: Food & Drink, Environment & Sustainability, Analysis, AI & Data Modelling

Summary: Dr Nicholle Bell is an environmental analytical chemist specialising in molecular fingerprinting and high‑resolution characterisation of highly complex mixtures. She supports industry by converting difficult, heterogeneous materials such as peat, soils, waters, and food & drink matrices, into robust chemical evidence and interpretable metrics that can underpin operational decisions, product development, and credible sustainability/ESG reporting.

A major strand of her work is peatland health monitoring for carbon, below-ground biodiversity and natural-capital projects, combining field monitoring with advanced laboratory analytics to provide defensible measures of carbon quantity and quality. In the Scotch whisky sector, she works on the chemical basis of peated flavour development as well as Scotch whisky maturation, helping connect choices made in the supply chain (peat source/use, barrel, processing) to measurable outcomes in the final product.

Consultancy focus areas:

Peatland health monitoring & verification (environment / sustainability / green finance)

  • design and delivery of monitoring plans to evidence peatland condition and restoration outcomes
  • deployment of field monitoring equipment for hydrology (e.g., water table dynamics), carbon quantity and carbon quality, eDNA and vegetation assessment
  • development of molecular “health metrics” suitable for reporting and long-term tracking

Food & Drink (Scotch whisky peat character & maturation chemistry)

  • molecular profiling of peat, malt and whisky and related matrices to understand “bog to bottle” flavour drivers
  • tracking compositional changes associated with whisky maturation, supporting evidence-led optimisation and evaluation of sustainability interventions (e.g., peat-use efficiency; alternative strategies)

Complex mixture analysis for challenging industrial samples

  • method development, sampling strategy, QA/QC, and translation of high-dimensional analytical outputs into decision-ready insights

Water utilities & environmental monitoring

  • characterisation of natural organic matter (NOM) to track pollution signatures and assess disinfection by-product precursor risk

Experience, funding & engagement:

  • Industry/sector Partnerships: collaborative track record including the Scotch Whisky Research Institute (SWRI) and cross-sector land-management stakeholders (private estates and NGOs such as RSPB).
  • Public Engagment Examples: NERC UnEarthed, International Science Festival, Royal Society Summer Exhibition, Natural History Museum London.

Recognised impact:

  • Royal Society of Chemistry 2024 Environment, Sustainability and Energy Early Career Prize for applying high-resolution NMR and mass spectrometry to carbon monitoring and sustainability challenges.
  • Royal Society of Chemistry's Analytical Science Early Career Prize: Joseph Black Prize in 2017 for her innovative developments in the teaching and practice of spectroscopy.
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