Low Temperature and Environmental Geochemistry

Low-temperature geochemical processes govern near-surface Earth processes, including mineral precipitation, dissolution, and alteration, and chemical transfer in the environment. Low-temperature research areas at Rice include diagenesis, chemical weathering, chemical oceanography, and soil geochemistry. Tools of modern analytical chemistry (nuclear magnetic resonance, mass spectrometry, isotope geochemistry) are used to understand teh Earth’s carbon cycle, and to study the mechanisms and timescales of carbon movement between reservoirs. Other laboratory facilities are shared with high-temperature geochemistry research.