Research Interests
Geochemistry, Tectonics Volcanology and Petrology
Pronouns
she/her
Biography
I am interested in the role that exhumation and fluid-rock interactions have on tectonic and geochemical processes. I use (U-Th)/He thermochronology, geochemistry, and petrology to 1) date minerals that form during fluid alteration, 2) investigate the geochemical fingerprints of fluid-rock interactions and volatile cycling at different tectonic settings, and 3) constrain the thermal history of convergent and divergent plate margins. In addition, I am interested in the history of diversity in the geosciences and efforts to make the discipline more inclusive.
Three DEEPS graduate students have created a Field Preparedness Guide, a fillable brochure and informative guide to help support safe, productive, and fun field experiences for undergraduate and graduate students.
A new study led by DEEPS Assistant Professor Emily H. G. Cooperdock and DEEPS 2024 REU alumn Ailani Bonilla investigates how nitrogen is stored in ultramafic (mantle) rocks from subduction zones. Their study tested whether serpentine, talc, or chlorite store most of the nitrogen in fluid-altered mantle rocks rocks, as has been proposed by previous researchers based on their sheet-like crystal structures. They found that while these minerals contain some nitrogen, they do not host the majority of it, indicating that a substantial portion resides in other minerals or sites within the rocks. This finding has important implications for models of nitrogen mobility and storage during subduction, metamorphism, and fluid-rock interactions.
This new work combines experimental petrology and modeling to understand the conditions of sedimentary diapir formation occurring in subduction zones. Led by collaborators at University of Arizona along with DEEPS Assistant Professor Emily Cooperdock, the authors find that subducted sediments are unlikely to form diapirs except in warm, slow subducting systems. Sedimentary diapirs may contribute to arc magmatic geochemical signatures under these specific conditions.
A new publication in G3 led by Assistant Professor Emily H. G. Cooperdock untangles the systematics of uranium enrichment for serpentinites from different tectonic settings and explores potential mineral hosts. The researchers found that "uranium enrichment is most common in the upper 100m of the seafloor and is not correlated with degree of serpentinization. We also find a correlation between U concentration and iron-oxidation, which we use to suggest that U is hosted in ferric iron minerals, possibly iron-oxides." The paper also provides insights on using uranium as a tracer for tectonic setting, fluid rock interactions, and redox records in the solid Earth system.
For her recent UTRA project, Ava Ward '25 tackled the organization and stewardship of the department's field and camping supplies to help DEEPS students gear up for safer, more sustainable adventures.
This summer, DEEPS Assistant Professor Emily H. G. Cooperdock, graduate student Anahi Carrera, and Columbia University Professor Steven L. Goldstein visited the island of Unalaska to collect samples that will help interpret data from a 2015 NSF GeoPRISMS campaign, as well as pave the way for future research.
