Madeleine Lomax-Vogt ’17 working as post-doctoral researcher in Austria
Madeleine Lomax-Vogt is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Vienna Department of Environmental Geosciences (EDGE) in the Austrian capital of Vienna. Her research is focused on developing methods to analyze and identify vehicle non-exhaust brake wear nanoparticles and microparticles.
“These particles are an under-researched yet widespread pollutant, produced when you use your car brakes to slow down,” Maddy explained. “They pose significant environmental and human health risks due to their high metal content, including toxic heavy metals, which can leach into the environment. Their small size allows them to be inhaled and enter the bloodstream.”
Maddy earned bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Alfred University in 2017 and went on to earn a master’s degree in analytical chemistry from The Ohio State University in 2019. In 2024, she earned her Ph.D. in analytical chemistry, also from The Ohio State University; her Ph.D. work involved developing methods to measure mineral dust nanoparticles and microparticles entrapped in glacial ice cores from Antarctica and Mt. Ortles in the Italian Alps.
Maddy and her husband, Ian Murphy—along with their two cats, Topo and Duchess—live next to the Vienna vineyards and less than 10 minutes from the Danube River. In her spare time, she visits the museums and historical buildings in and around Vienna and goes for walks in the vineyards. She is also a member of a local community garden—“Gemeinschaftsgarten Donaukanal”—located on the Danube Canal in the center of the city.
“Our life here is magical,” she says. “From the good food and coffee to the appreciation for art and culture engrained into daily Viennese life, we have created a charmed existence for ourselves.”
Reflecting on growing up in the small town of Ada, OH, to earning a doctoral degree and making a move overseas, Maddy gives credit to her time at Alfred University. “My four years at Alfred have played such an integral part in my successes,” she says. “Beyond my excellent chemistry education, Alfred taught me how to maintain my curiosity and optimism and to think with an interdisciplinary mindset.”