About

Nathan Phillips is a physiological ecologist specializing in land-climate interactions within terrestrial ecosystems and human-dominated environments. His research focuses on the exchanges of energy, water, and greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide between the air and various surfaces including leaves, soil, buildings, humans, and pipelines. He collaborates with advocates, community members, and policymakers to apply his research findings toward advancing sustainable communities and fostering a habitable planet. Dr. Phillips holds a Ph.D. from Duke University obtained in 1997 and a B.S. in Physics from California State University – Sacramento earned in 1989. He teaches courses including Sustainability Science: Earth House Practicum and Plant Physiological Ecology at Boston University. His professional contact details include his office at STO 441A, email nathan@bu.edu, and phone number 617-353-2841.

Research topics

• Environmental science
• Computer Science
• Computer Security
• Geography
• Engineering
• Ecology
• Sociology
• Waste management
• Organic chemistry
• Environmental engineering
• Environmental chemistry
• Environmental resource management
• Business
• Environmental planning
• Civil engineering
• Chemistry
• Biology

Selected publications

• Indoor methane consistently above outdoor levels in homes with natural gas service

  PLoS ONE · 2026-05-19

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  BACKGROUND: Methane leaks across the natural gas process chain, including in homes. To date, no studies have described how common it is to have elevated methane in homes served by gas, in comparison to homes without gas. METHODS: In this study of homes in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, we utilized Cavity Ringdown Spectrometry to measure methane concentrations in outdoor air, and at mid-floor-level indoor air in basements and first, second, and third floors. We recruited a total of 195 homes in urban and rural areas, 175 of which had gas service and 20 of which did not. RESULTS: Indoor [CH4] in households with gas service was elevated over outdoor [CH4], averaging 1.45 parts per million (ppm) elevation over outdoor ambient [CH4] (p < 0.0001-0.0068), and up to 38.2 ppm above outdoor ambient [CH4]. Ninety-three percent of homes with gas showed higher median indoor [CH4] than the median [CH4] in non-gas homes. By contrast, indoor [CH4] in gas-free homes did not differ from outdoor conditions (p > 0.10), except marginally on the first floor (0.10 ppm elevation; p = 0.04). In 91% of a subset of homes investigated, leaks from gas equipment were confirmed. CONCLUSIONS: Elevated [CH4] is common in homes served with gas. Gas leaks and incomplete combustion were identified as sources of elevated [CH4]. There was no relationship between indoor [CH4] and home age or square footage; residents shouldn't assume that newer homes are less prone to indoor gas leaks. The majority of gas in the United States comes from hydraulically fractured gas containing carcinogenic co-pollutants. It is not well understood how consistent low-dose exposure to gas co-pollutants like mercaptans and benzene affects health. Additional studies could clarify any differences in health outcomes for people living in homes serviced by gas and those who don't use gas.

  PublisherDOI

• Elevated Methane in Massachusetts and Rhode Island Homes Using Fracked Gas

  2024-09-10

  preprintOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  We surveyed 197 Massachusetts and Rhode Island houses ranging in building style and age to test whether homes served by fracked gas have higher indoor methane concentrations ([CH4]) than in homes without gas. The answer is clearly “Yes”. From basements and single-floor slab homes to third floors of triple deckers, indoor [CH4] in households with gas service was significantly elevated over outdoor [CH4], averaging 1.48 parts per million (ppm) elevation over outdoor ambient [CH4] (p &amp;lt; 0.0001 - 0.0068), and up to 38.2 ppm above outdoor ambient [CH4]. Ninety-three percent of houses with gas showed higher indoor [CH4] than the average [CH4] in non-gas houses. As in other parts of the fracked gas supply chain where a few “super-emitter” leaks account for a disproportionately large percent of total emissions, the distribution of indoor [CH4] was skewed, with a smaller proportion of houses showing much larger [CH4] than the average household [CH4] elevation. For example, the 20% of the houses with highest indoor [CH4] averaged a [CH4] of 8.4 ppm, more than quadruple outdoor ambient [CH4]. By contrast, indoor [CH4] in gas-free homes was not significantly different from outdoor conditions (p &amp;gt; 0.05), except marginally on the first floor (0.10 ppm elevation; p = 0.029), less than 1/10th the average first floor [CH4] elevation in homes served with gas. In 88% of homes investigated, the source of leaks from fracked gas pipes or appliances could be confirmed. There was no relationship between indoor [CH4] and house age or square footage; residents should not assume that newer homes are less prone to indoor gas leaks. This result provides statistical and direct evidence that fracked gas leaks and exposure is not only commonplace, but likely in New England homes served by gas within the housing types studied. While we did not assess health impacts, leaks of any size are of concern because leaks do not tend to decrease over time and also constitute a condition of chronic exposure. A national program testing for indoor methane concentrations would broaden understanding of how widespread and persistent the pattern observed in this study is, including in low income and rental households.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• "We are Water Warriors":

  Climate Literacy in Education · 2024-11-12

  articleOpen access

  Elementary-aged children with a team of science, theater, and literacy educators performed the Chicago Global Water Dances in 2023. Global Water Dances (GWD) is an international initiative to raise awareness about water issues, promote sustainability, and inspire action to protect water resources through dance performed by a local body of Water. Through the Chicago Global Water Dances, children articulated several messages about the necessity of, and right to, clean water and highlighted the collective responsibility to protect this precious resource.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A simple method to measure methane emissions from indoor gas leaks

  PLoS ONE · 2023-11-30 · 7 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  From wellhead to burner tip, each component of the natural gas process chain has come under increased scrutiny for the presence and magnitude of methane leaks, because of the large global warming potential of methane. Top-down measures of methane emissions in urban areas are significantly greater than bottom-up estimates. Recent research suggests this disparity might in part be explained by gas leaks from one of the least understood parts of the process chain: behind the gas meter in homes and buildings. However, little research has been performed in this area and few methods and data sets exist to measure or estimate them. We develop and test a simple and widely deployable closed chamber method that can be used for quantifying indoor methane emissions with an order-of-magnitude precision which allows for screening of indoor large volume ("super-emitting") leaks. We also perform test applications of the method finding indoor leaks in 90% of the 20 Greater Boston buildings studied and indoor methane emissions between 0.02-0.51 ft3 CH4 day-1 (0.4-10.3 g CH4 day-1) with a mean of 0.14 ft3 CH4 day-1 (2.8 g CH4 day-1). Our method provides a relatively simple way to scale up indoor methane emissions data collection. Increased data may reduce uncertainty in bottom-up inventories, and can be used to find super-emitting indoor emissions which may better explain the disparity between top-down and bottom-up post-meter emissions estimates.

  PublisherDOI

• Rebuttal to the Correspondence on Home is Where the Pipeline Ends: Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds Present in Natural Gas at the Point of the Residential End User

  Environmental Science & Technology · 2023-09-20

  article

  ADVERTISEMENT RETURN TO ISSUEPREVCorrespondence/Rebut...Correspondence/RebuttalNEXTRebuttal to the Correspondence on Home is Where the Pipeline Ends: Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds Present in Natural Gas at the Point of the Residential End UserDrew R. Michanowicz*Drew R. MichanowiczHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, C-CHANGE, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United StatesPSE Healthy Energy, Oakland, California 94612, United States*E-mail: [email protected]More by Drew R. Michanowiczhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2538-4819, Archana DayaluArchana DayaluAtmospheric and Environmental Research (AER), Lexington, Massachusetts 02421, United StatesMore by Archana Dayalu, Curtis L. NordgaardCurtis L. NordgaardPSE Healthy Energy, Oakland, California 94612, United StatesMore by Curtis L. Nordgaard, Jonathan J. BuonocoreJonathan J. BuonocoreHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, C-CHANGE, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United StatesMore by Jonathan J. Buonocorehttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7270-892X, Molly W. FairchildMolly W. FairchildHome Energy Efficiency Team (HEET), Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United StatesMore by Molly W. Fairchild, Robert AckleyRobert AckleyGas Safety Incorporated, Southborough, Massachusetts 01772, United StatesMore by Robert Ackley, Jessica E. SchiffJessica E. SchiffHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United StatesMore by Jessica E. Schiff, Abbie LiuAbbie LiuHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United StatesMore by Abbie Liu, Nathan G. PhillipsNathan G. PhillipsBoston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United StatesMore by Nathan G. Phillips, Audrey SchulmanAudrey SchulmanHome Energy Efficiency Team (HEET), Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United StatesMore by Audrey Schulman, Zeyneb MagaviZeyneb MagaviHome Energy Efficiency Team (HEET), Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United StatesMore by Zeyneb Magavi, and John D. SpenglerJohn D. SpenglerHarvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, United StatesMore by John D. SpenglerCite this: Environ. Sci. Technol. 2023, 57, 39, 14624–14625Publication Date (Web):September 20, 2023Publication History Received7 July 2023Published online20 September 2023Published inissue 3 October 2023https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.3c05355https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.3c05355article-commentaryACS PublicationsCopyright © 2023 American Chemical Society. This publication is available under these Terms of Use. Request reuse permissions This publication is free to access through this site. Learn MoreArticle Views611Altmetric-Citations-LEARN ABOUT THESE METRICSArticle Views are the COUNTER-compliant sum of full text article downloads since November 2008 (both PDF and HTML) across all institutions and individuals. These metrics are regularly updated to reflect usage leading up to the last few days.Citations are the number of other articles citing this article, calculated by Crossref and updated daily. Find more information about Crossref citation counts.The Altmetric Attention Score is a quantitative measure of the attention that a research article has received online. Clicking on the donut icon will load a page at altmetric.com with additional details about the score and the social media presence for the given article. Find more information on the Altmetric Attention Score and how the score is calculated. Share Add toView InAdd Full Text with ReferenceAdd Description ExportRISCitationCitation and abstractCitation and referencesMore Options Share onFacebookTwitterWechatLinked InRedditEmail PDF (975 KB) Get e-AlertscloseSUBJECTS:Aromatic compounds,Environmental modeling,Hydrocarbons,Natural resources,Odorants Get e-Alerts

  PublisherDOI

• Duke Forest FACE (FACTS-I): Plant and Soil Response Data

  OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) · 2023-01-01 · 1 citations

  datasetOpen access

  This dataset describing the responses of plant and soil pools and fluxes to elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration and increased nitrogen supply was collected from Duke Forest Free Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE) – Forest-Atmosphere Carbon Transfer and Storage (FACTS-I) experiment from 1996 to 2012. The dataset includes data files for allometry (diameter at breast height, tree height, and height to live crown base), leaf area index, biomass (stem, branch, foliage, and root biomass, tree density, and basal area), net primary productivity (stem, branch, foliage, reproductive, and coarse root NPP), sap flux density, soil CO2 efflux, and stem temperature. Data files were formatted as .csv (Microsoft Excel or other spreadsheet programs can be used to read the format) and file descriptions, including variable name, unit, and data range, can be found in ‘FileDescription_[data_name].txt’ files. The Duke FACE experiment was in a loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) plantation established in 1983. Naturally regenerated broadleaved species including sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua L.) and tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera L.), mostly in the overstory, and winged elm (Ulmus alata Michx.) and red maple (Acer rubrum L.) were common in the understory. The FACE experiment commenced with two plots (plots 7-8) in 1994 (Oren et al. 2001), with six additional plots (plots 1-6) coming online on 27 August 1996. CO2 enrichment was terminated on 31 October 2010 and post-enrichment data collection continued through 2012. Complete fertilization was applied annually to half of plots 7-8 from 1998 to 2004. The nutrient addition experiment expanded to half of plots 1-6 with a common protocol of N-fertilization in 2005 and continued until 2012. The levels of treatment in this dataset were expressed as ambient CO2 (AMB) or elevated CO2 (ELE) for CO2 treatment and control soil (CONT) or fertilized soil (FERT) for N treatment, respectively.

  PublisherDOI

• The BosWash Infrastructure Biome and Energy System Succession

  Infrastructures · 2022-07-19 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  The BosWash corridor is a megalopolis, or large urbanized region composed of interconnected transportation, infrastructure, physiography, and sociopolitical systems. Previous work has not considered the BosWash corridor as an integrated, holistic ecosystem. Building on the emerging field of infrastructure ecology, the region is conceptualized here as an infrastructure biome, and this concept is applied to the region’s energy transition to a post-fossil fueled heating sector, in analogy to ecosystem succession. In this conception, infrastructure systems are analogous to focal species. A case study for an energy succession from an aging natural gas infrastructure to a carbon-free heating sector is presented, in order to demonstrate the utility of the infrastructure biome framework to address climate and energy challenges facing BosWash communities. Natural gas is a dominant energy source that emits carbon dioxide when burned and methane when leaked along the process chain; therefore, a transition to electricity is widely seen as necessary toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Utilizing an infrastructure biome framework for energy policy, a regional gas transition plan akin to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative is generated to harmonize natural gas transition within the BosWash infrastructure biome and resolve conflict arising from a siloed approach to infrastructure management at individual city and state levels. This work generates and utilizes the novel infrastructure biome concept to prescribe a regional energy policy for an element of infrastructure that has not previously been explored at the regional scale—natural gas.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Connected Learning

  2022-05-30 · 1 citations

  reference-entrySenior author

  Ito et al. (2013) introduced connected learning as a "framework for understanding and supporting learning, as well as a theory of intervention that grows out of … analysis of today's changing social, economic, technological, and cultural context" (p. 7). Connected learning is focused primarily on adolescents' learning, and is particularly attentive to how the technological milieu at the beginning of the 21st century presents new possibilities and challenges for learning. It is an evolving framework co-designed and developed by practitioners and researchers. Connected learning has been taken up across a broad range of disciplines including community psychology and arts, educational technology, media studies, education, STE(A)M, literacy, and civics. It is being used by scholars and practitioners in both formal and informal learning environments, including k-12 and university classrooms, after- and out-of-school education, maker spaces, and online (e.g., gaming, digital badging, coding). However, there is some variation in the ways connected learning is positioned: as "an approach to education" (Ito et al., 2013), an "agenda for research," a "learning theory," or a "model for design" (Connected Learning Research Network, n.d.).

  PublisherDOI

• Enhancing crop growth in rooftop farms by repurposing CO2 from human respiration inside buildings

  Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · 2022-10-24 · 5 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Integrating cities with the surrounding environment by incorporating green spaces in creative ways would help counter climate change. We propose a rooftop farm system called BIG GRO where air enriched with carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) produced through respiration from indoor spaces is applied through existing ventilation systems to produce a fertilization effect and increased plant growth. CO 2 measurements were taken inside 20 classrooms and at two exhaust vents on a rooftop at Boston University in Boston, MA. Exhausted air was directed toward spinach and corn and plant biomass and leaf number were analyzed. High concentrations of CO 2 persisted inside classrooms and at rooftop exhaust vents in correlation with expected human occupancy. CO 2 levels averaged 1,070 and 830 parts per million (ppm), reaching a maximum of 4,470 and 1,300 ppm CO 2 indoors and at exhaust vents, respectively. The biomass of spinach grown next to exhaust air increased fourfold compared to plants grown next to a control fan applying atmospheric air. High wind speed from fans decreased growth by approximately twofold. The biomass of corn, a C4 plant, experienced a two to threefold increase, indicating that alternative environmental factors, such as temperature, likely contribute to growth enhancement. Enhancing growth in rooftop farms using indoor air would help increase yield and help crops survive harsh conditions, which would make their installation in cities more feasible.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Home is Where the Pipeline Ends: Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds Present in Natural Gas at the Point of the Residential End User

  Environmental Science & Technology · 2022 · 64 citations

  • Environmental chemistry
  • Chemistry
  • Environmental science

  and associated VOCs.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• CNH-S: Coupling of Physical Infrastructure, Green Infrastructure, and Communities

  NSF · $484k · 2016–2021

• Collaborative Research: ULTRA-Ex: Metabolism of Boston

  NSF · $254k · 2009–2013

• WCR: Vegetation Control of Ecohydrologic Processes

  NSF · $338k · 2003–2008

• Palms: A Model System for Evaluating Hydraulic Costs of Plant Size

  NSF · $291k · 2005–2009

Frequent coauthors

• Ram Oren

  University of Helsinki

  29 shared

• James D. Lewis

  University of Pennsylvania

  27 shared

• Barry A. Logan

  Bowdoin College

  21 shared

• David T. Tissue

  20 shared

• Michael G. Ryan

  Colorado State University

  13 shared

• Michael Daley

  University of Rochester

  13 shared

• Robert B. Jackson

  Stanford University

  12 shared

• B. J. Bond

  11 shared