The BiCycles Lab studies the flow and transformation of elements through and between components of the Earth System (lithosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere and atmosphere). We’re particularly interested in studing the dynamics of elements essential for life (nutrients), and elements that are toxic to organisms.

The role of environmental change and anthropogenic activity on the health of our natural systems is at the core of our research. We look to establish the direct and indirect impacts of human activity on these systems, determining the principle drivers of change in the past, present and future.

An important part of our research is collecting observation data during fieldwork, primarily in polar and alpine regions. Our research themes have a global scope: field sites over the last decade haved been based in the Arctic, Antarctic, Patagonia and the Himalayas. We cover both land and coastal processes, with fieldwork usually taking place out of remote field camps or small boat work. We are looking to apply the diverse research techniques we use at a more local work, with a focus on watershed and coastal biogeochemical processes in the Pennsylvania region.

To address research questions in aquatic geochemistry we use a suite of highly multidisciplinary and complementary state-of-the-art analytical techniques in both the lab and field. These include measuring elemental concentrations from high to extremely low levels, elemental speciation, molecular composition and stable isotopic signatures of dissolved and particulate constituents in water. You can check out some of our instrumentation and methodologies in The lab page of this website.