Andrew’s current research concerns the mechanisms of fluid-mineral interaction from nanoscale studies of the mineral-fluid interface to the large-scale consequences of metasomatism, metamorphism and rock deformation. At the nanoscale, in situ Atomic Force Microscopy is used to study the factors that control the mechanisms of mineral dissolution and precipitation. The direct applications of this fundamental research on the processes that take place at the mineral-fluid interface are very wide-ranging, including strategies to clean-up environmental waste, understanding the durability of nuclear waste glass, the chemical sequestration of CO2, and the prevention of mineral scaling in industrial processes.
On the macroscale, aqueous fluids play a fundamental role in the evolution of both the shallow and deep Earth. Aqueous solutions are the drivers of change, transferring energy and mass through the Earth’s crust resulting in the constant reequilibration of rocks coupled to the geodynamics of Earth systems. The applications are to understanding how reactive aqueous solutions move through low permeability rocks, mobilizing elements through coupled dissolution – precipitation mechanisms and ultimately forming ore deposits.
