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General Research Interest

​​​My general research field is petrology and geochemistry, with particular interest in metamorphic and igneous petrology, fluid-rock interaction, and mineralization. The cartoon to the right or below (depending on your devices) shows magma and hydrothermal fluids interacting with existing carbonate rocks in an arc setting. The interactions form calc-silicate (skarn) and marble contact aureoles, releasing CO2. This proecess may play a role in global carbon cycle and the long-term (> 1 Ma) climate variation.

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Instead of specializing in a single analytical method, I employ a wide range of tools, including extensive fieldwork, petrographic analysis, in-situ techniques (EPMA, SEM, LA-ICP-MS), fluid inclusion analysis, multiple thermobarometry, thermodynamic modeling, and more.​

Previous & Current Research

As shown in the figure to the right/below, my work focuses on understanding processes related to arc magma-carbonate interaction at different depth of arc.

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Previous research: shallow arc settings (Tibetan arc):

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  1. Phase relations in metacarbonate rocks. [Link]​

  2. Timescale vs. magnitude of carbon liberation. [Link]​

  3. Factors controlling the extend of fluid-rock reactions in contact aureoles. [Link]

Current research: deep arc settings (the Sierra Nevada arc):

 

  1. Metamorphic pressures of metacarbonate wallrocks across the Sierra Nevada Batholith.​

  2. The fate of metamorphic CO2 and global carbon cycle.

    An NSF grant awarded, with me as co-PI.

A Glimpse of Future Work

Student(s) and I work on extracting information on magma emplacement, thermal history, and fluid interaction from rock textures and chemistry, and explore how this information relate to tectonics and mineralization processes. I work mostly at the intersection of metamorphic and igneous petrology, using the combination of field and micro-scale observations, and modeling tools. ​

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