Faculty and Staff Directory
Carol J. Asiala
Research Scientist/Engineer, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Suzanne Beske-Diehl
Professor Emerita, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Use of rock magnetic properties to identify volcanic ash and as indicators of atmospheric fractionation
- Rock magnetic properties as an indicator of environmental change with special interest in Lake Superior
- Effect of alteration on the magnetization of basalts
- Magnetostratigraphy of the Pliocene sediments in Anza-Borrego State Park, California
- Paleomagnetism and polar wander for North America at about 1.1 Ga concentrating on Keweenawan rocks
Gregg J. Bluth
Adjunct Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Volcanic emissions of sulfur dioxide, for both individual eruptions and global-scale trends
- Merging of wind trajectory models and remote sensing data to produce 3-dimensional reconstructions of drifting volcanic clouds
- Study of gas and solid interactions within drifting volcanic clouds
- Watershed geochemistry in the Lake Superior basin
- Antarctic continental weathering under ice-free conditions, and the effect on marine geochemistry
Theodore J. Bornhorst
Director, A.E. Seaman Mineral Museum
Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Adjunct Professor, Cognitive and Learning Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Geology of metallic ore deposits with emphasis on geochemistry
- Geology and native copper deposits of the Keweenawan Midcontinent rift system
- Geology and mineral deposits of the Archean of Upper Peninsula of Michigan, especially the Ishpeming greenstone belt
- Geochemistry and geology of selected metallic ore deposits in Finland
- Statistical analysis of geoscience data
- Environmental geochemistry as applied to metallic ore deposits
Gary A Campbell
Professor of Natural Resource Economics, School of Business and Economics
Teaching Interests
- Natural Resource Economics
- Principles of Economics
- International Economics
Research Interests
- Metal markets
- Sustainability of mining
- Social decision-making about resource use
Simon Carn
Associate Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Research Interests
- Using satellite measurements to constrain global volcanic SO2 production and emissions from individual volcanoes
- Validation of OMI SO2 retrievals using correlative data from ground-based, airborne and space-borne instruments
- Tracking volcanic SO2 and ash clouds operationally for aviation hazard mitigation
- Remote sensing of tropospheric volcanic plumes using DOAS and FTIR
- Quantifying anthropogenic emissions of SO2 from sources such as copper smelters and oil and gas fields
- Mitigation of the environmental and health impacts of volcanic degassing using satellite data
- Comparisons between satellite observations and chemical transport model simulations of volcanic clouds and plumes
Jimmy F. Diehl
Professor Emeritus, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Late cretaceous/early tertiary apparent polar wander for North America
- Environmental magnetism and paleoclimate records from cave and lake deposits
- Paleomagnetism of keweenawan rocks and their geomagnetic and tectonic implications
- Paleosecular variation of Plio-Pleistocene volcanic rocks
- Application of seismic, resistivity, gravity, and magnetic methods to geological engineering problems
Adam Durant
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
John S. Gierke
Chair, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Teaching Interests
- Hydrogeology
- Ground water Engineering
- Contaminant Transport
- Subsurface Remediation
Research Interests
- Field performance of air sparging for removing volatile organic chemicals from ground water
- Volatile organic vapor transport in unsaturated soils
- Sulfur dioxide interactions with volcanic ash
James Murray Gillis
Instructor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Director, Mine Safety and Health Training Program
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Process/product development, instrumentation and process control
- Ammounium carbonate leaching of metallic compounds
- Agglomeration of waste oxides
- Oxidation tower design
- Classification of fine particulate
- Spray drying of metallic compounds.
Ron Gradowski
Mine Safety Program Instructor
Rudolph E. Greuer
Professor Emeritus, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Jason D Gulley
Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
906-487-2534
jdgulley@mtu.edu
jdgulley@mtu.edu
Core research areas
- hydrogeology, particularly of karst aquifers, and glaciology
Specific current research interests include:
- How sea level fluctuations and climate change affect groundwater circulation and the formation of post depositional porosity in carbonate platforms
- How interactions between surface and groundwater affect dissolution, fluid flow and ecohydrology in carbonate platforms
- Physical processes responsible for dynamic coupling between glacier hydrology and ice motion with implications for understanding rates of sea level rise
Allison M. Hein
Research Engineer and Scientist I - IMP
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Benificiation of coal, minerals, and solid waste.
- Plating sludge leaching and pyro processing.
- Environmental compliance and permits.
- Technical and financial project planning and reporting.
Jacqueline Huntoon
Dean of the Graduate School
Associate Provost for Graduate Education
Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Specialties
- Oversees all aspects of graduate education
- Evaluates programs and student outcomes
Jiann-Yang (Jim) Hwang
Professor, Materials Science and Engineering
Adjunct Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Research Interests
- Materials Processing
- Microwave
- Hydrogen Storage Material
- Energy
- Recycling
- Extractive Metallurgy
- Environmental Engineering
Allan M. Johnson
Professor Emeritus, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Rodney C. Johnson
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Charles Kerfoot
Professor, Biological Sciences
Director, Lake Superior Ecosystem Research Center
Adjunct Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Aquatic Ecology
- Paleoecology
Louisa Kramer
Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Long-range transport of trace gases and their impact on the chemical composition of the atmosphere
- Satellite remote sensing and validation
- Surface-atmosphere fluxes of reactive gas species from soils and snow
- Development of instrumentation for measuring atmospheric trace gases
Maria Val Martin
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Alex S. Mayer
Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Teaching Interests
- Groundwater flow and transport and subsurface remediation
Research Interests
- Numerical and Experimental Investigations of Contaminant Transport in Groundwater Vadose Zones
- Mathematical Optimization of Groundwater Remediation Systems: Multi-Objective and Uncertainty Problems
- Surfactant-Enhanced Dissolution of Nonaqueous Phase Liquids in Subsurface Systems
- Groundwater Flow in a Fault Zone in the Vicinity of Desert Hot Springs, California
- Simulation of Saltwater Intrusion in the Guaymas Valley, Sonora, Mexico California
S. Douglas McDowell
Professor Emeritus, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Research Interests
- Clay mineralogy and low temperature diagenetic/geothermal/metamorphic systems
Guy Meadows
Director, Great Lakes Research Initiatives
Colleen B. Mouw
Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Oceanography and Limnology
- Aquatic optics and remote sensing
- Development of novel aquatic satellite products
- Aquatic biogeochemical processes
- Phytoplankton ecology
- Response of aquatic systems to environmental change
Thomas Oommen
Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Links of Interest
Teaching Interests
- Computer Methods in Geomechanics
- Computational Geoscience
- Remote Sensing for Geotechniques
- Geostatistics and Data Analysis
Research Interests
- Liquefaction susceptibility evaluation at local and regional scales using in-situ measurements and remote sensing observations
- Estimating liquefaction induced damage such as lateral spread displacement
- Active learning to identify data gaps in empirical models
- Documenting earthquake induced damages, especially liquefaction using aerial/satellite images that are sensitive to surficial moisture
- Spatial statistics for predictive modeling of georesource prospectivity
Wayne D. Pennington
Interim Dean, College of Engineering
Professor of Geophysical Engineering, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Properties of rocks under varying conditions of saturation, stress, and heterogeneity
- Oil and gas exploration and development
- Seismic petrophysics -- relating rock properties to seismic observations, particularly in oil and gas development
- Earthquake seismology, particularly induced seismicity, and humanitarian aspects of large earthquakes
- Administrator of the SPOT Lab (seismic petrophysics: observation and theory)
Fred J. Prata
Adjunct Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Muhammad Azeem Raza
Instructor, Mining Engineering
Teaching Interests
- Surface Mining Methods & Design
- Surface Mining Equipment
- Underground Mining Methods and Equipment
- Ore body modeling and Reserve Estimation
Research Interests
- Stress and Failure Modeling of Heavy Mining Equipment
- Fatigue Failure and Life Expectancy Modeling of Heaving Mining Equipment
- Mine Layout Design & Planning
- Process Optimization in Mining
- Mine Reserve Estimation
- Material Handling in Mines
Robert S. Regis
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Lizzette Rodriguez
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
William I. Rose
Research Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Research Interests
- Volcanology
- Remote Sensing
- Volcanic Clouds
- Geoheritage
Robert A. Shuchman
Adjunct Professor, Biological Sciences
Co-director of the Michigan Tech Research Institute (MTRI)
Research Interests
- Oceanic Sciences/Natural Resources
- AR, MS, and Photo-imaging Applied to Oceanography
- Earth Resources
- Military Coastal Environmental Assessment
Aleksey Smirnov
Associate Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- The long-term evolution of the Earth's magnetic field (especially in relation to the geodynamo mechanisms and the early history of the field) and its geological and geodynamical implications
- Geodynamics and global plate tectonics (eg., large igneous province formation and true polar wander)
- Magnetism of rocks, minerals, and synthetic materials
- Environmental magnetism (eg., biomineralization and the relationships between physical, chemical and magnetic properties of minerals)
- Development of new techniques and instruments for paleomagnetic and rock magnetic research
James W. Vallance
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Stanley J. Vitton
Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Adjunct Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Research Interests
- Mechanics of seismic signals generated from hydrodynamic phenomena such as the interaction of tornadoes with the ground
Greg Waite
Associate Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Seismic source mechanisms of tectonic and volcanic earthquakes
- Mantle and crustal-scale seismic tomography
- The relationship of seismic anisotropy to fluids and strain
- Active-source investigations of magmatic systems
- Triggering of earthquakes by magmatic and hydrous fluid migration
- Relationship between shallow syneruptive volcanic earthquakes and degassing
Matthew Watson
Adjunct Associate Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Using satellite data to retrieve information about the gases and particles produced by volcanoes
- The importance of volcanic gases during explosive eruptions
- MODIS thermal IR algorithm development
- Improvement of TOMS data processing software
- Near-vent Sun photometry of volcanic aerosols
- COSPEC and FTIR
James R. Wood
Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Petroleum geology
- Geochemistry
- Solution chemistry
- Diagenisis
- Thermodynamics
- Computer mapping and visualization
Shiliang Wu
Assistant Professor, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Assistant Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Interactions among climate, atmospheric chemistry, air quality, and land use/land cover
- Impacts of global change on atmospheric chemistry and long-range transport of air pollution
- Anthropogenic perturbations to the atmosphere and implications for environmental sustainability
- Atmosphere-biosphere interactions, especially in the context of global change
- Impacts of aerosols on the global hydrological cycle
Charles T. Young
Professor Emeritus, Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences
Links of Interest
Research Interests
- Aquifer heterogenetity estimation using ground penetrating radar
- Three dimensional visualization of geophysical data
- Novel uses of electrical resisitivity to reveal fracture patterns in limestone
- Application of geophysics to archaeology (non-destructive archaeology)
- Table top models for teaching geophysics
- Signal analysis for geophysical interpretation
