TEAM CORE

My research interests center on fluid-rock interactions, metasomatism, and the evolution of volatile elements (most notably C and H) from the seafloor to high-pressure conditions in subduction zones. I am interested in the control exerted by seafloor hydrothermalism and fluid-rock interactions on the petrological and geochemical evolution of the Earth, and finally on how these processes control geo-(bio)chemical processes at different depths, scales and over the geological timescales. 

Thomas is a geologist with a PhD in Tectonics of inverted sedimentary basins, his expertise includes thermochronology, structural geology, basin analysis, and petrography. Currently he is the manager of the Deep Carbon lab, in charge of the supervision and maintenance of all the facilities within. 

Francesco is currently a Junior assistant professor at BiGeA. Previously, he was PostDoc ERC DeepSeep (and former PostDoc ANR T-ERC). His work centers on the relationships between H₂ infiltration and strain localization in high-pressure carbonate rocks. He started this research on this subject at IMPMC, Paris, France, before moving to BiGeA as PI of a Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellowship. See his work on this topic in Scientific Reports.

Guillaume is a metamorphic petrologist with a strong emphasis on fluid-rock interactions. On top of a very good knowledge in thermodynamics applied to petrology, he has a strong background in analytical spectroscopy, especially in secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS), having worked in 2 different SIMS labs. Guillaume currently works on building graphical user interface applications to streamline thermodynamic modeling of fluid-rock interactions using the EQ3/6 packages. He is also involved in the development of our new Picarro isotopic analyzer.

Paolo is an ore geologist interested in hydrothermal geochemistry and fluid-rock interactions. His background on fluid inclusion analysis is precious for the ERC DeepSeep project.

Zeudia is leading a fellowship on the magnetic signature of rocks that experienced fluid-rock interactions in deep subduction zones. Zeudia uses geophysical methods on multiple scales (from the micron to the kilometer scale) to study rocks' physical properties and  is particularly interested in the potential for deep fluid-rock interactions to generate natural hydrogen.

Veronica is a geochemist and petrologist interested in the role of fluids in petrological processes. Veronica uses U-Pb geochronology of epidote and titanite to date production and migration of fluids produced during serpentinization in subduction zones. She also employs Raman microspectroscopy and unconventional stable isotope geochemistry to determine the physico-chemical conditions of these fluids. She has experience with U-Pb geochronology and Pb-Sr-O-H isotope geochemistry to investigate fluid circulation in the granitic continental crust in orogens, and with halogens to trace mantle fluids.

Orlando is working on the spectroscopic and isotopic characterization of metamorphic CH4 through the study of fluid inclusions trapped in HP rocks. He is also developing fluid inclusion extraction protocols and taking care of our Picarro carbon isotope analyzer.

Francesco is a PhD student involved in the ERC DeepSeep group. His work centers on the study of magnetite formation, evolution and distribution in high pressure serpentinites in order to provide insights on hydrogen fluxes at depth in subduction zones. His research integrates investigations on boron isotopes, iron partitioning, quantification of magnetite via AI-based image analysis and thermodynamic modeling of fluid-rock interactions using the EQ3/6 packages.

Pauline's work centered on molecular dynamics simulations of high-pressure hydrogenation reactions, under the supervision of Fabio Pietrucci (IMPMC, Sorbonne Université).

Antoine's work centered on the genesis and migration of deep H₂ and abiotic CH₄ in high-pressure rocks from the Alps and the Appalachians by means of an integrated natural and numerical approach. 

Miriam is doing a research internship on the petrographic characterisation of ultramafic rocks in order to understand the genesis of natural hydrogen, through the combination of optical and electron microscopy. She is currently classifying 50 thin sections of ultramafic rock samples from the Mount Belvidere complex, northern Appalachian mountains (Vermont, USA) according to the degree of redox reactions

Giacomo is doing a research internship at the Deep Carbon Lab, as part of his Master degree thesis, aiming at identifying the origin of the mineralisations that formed the graphite deposit of Amitsoq (Greenland). To achieve such goal, he is performing petrographic and microstructural characterisation of rock samples from the mineral deposit at the optical microscope and Raman spectroscopy analyses on fluid inclusions and graphite.