Current Research Projects

  • Geochemical and cosmochemical behavior of the elements.
  • In-situ analyses of elements at ppb (nanograms/gram) concentration levels.
  • Partitioning of Highly Siderophile Elements (HSE, including Platinum Group elements (PGE), Re and Au) in natural (geological and meteoritic samples) and synthetic systems.
  • Li isotopic studies of: surface processes, continental crust formation and evolution, crust-mantle recycling processes, and meteorites.
  • High resolution analyses of HSE abundances in meteorites and terrestrial rocks using high-pressure, carius tube decomposition and isotope dilution.
  • Composition, formation and evolution of the continental crust and lithospheric mantle.
  • Studies documenting the early chemical and isotopic evolution of the Earth’s mantle.
  • Chemical and isotopic studies that document the evolution of Iron meteorites.
  • Element partitioning in silicate, oxide, carbonate, sulfide and metal systems: pushing the detection limits of laser ablation methods.
  • Understanding the early differentiation and evolution of the mantle via solution and laser ablation analyses of komatiites and the uncommon findings preserved fresh olivine crystals.
  • Studies of the abundances and partitioning of chalcophile elements in magmatic systems.
  • Archeological studies of fossil and material remains to understand provenance and mobility of ancient peoples.
  • Chemical analyses, including documenting spatial resolution via laser ablation, of heavy elements in tissues.
  • Forensic chemical and isotopic fingerprinting of materials for attribution, provenance and environmental remediation.
  • Documenting the fissionogenic isotopic abundances of spent nuclear fuel rods for understanding burning processes in reactors.