Dr Silvia Frisia
Associate Professor
School of Environmental and Life Sciences
Newcastle University
Australia
Biography
Silvia has specialised in carbonate mineralogy and geochemistry while doing her Master of Science research at Berkeley (USA). She used Transmission Electron Microscopy and stable isotope analyses to recognise multi-step dolomitisation in carbonate platforms. Subsequently, she pioneered the study of terrestrial carbonate micro-structural and micro-morphological analyses as tool to reconstruct changes in their environments of formation, and relate these changes to climate and environmental parameters. These studies became the baseline for speleothem-based palaeoclimate Subsequently, Silvia pioneered the application of synchrotron radiation micro X-Ray fluorescence spectroscopy to speleothem studies. A major breakthrough of synchrotron work was the detection of sulphate layers in stalagmites which recorded past volcanic eruptions. The impact of Silvia's work is obviously circumscribed within the Earth Sciences community, and more specifically within carbonate and speleothem researchers. The overall impact in the specified communities is large, but small if compared to the impact of medical, ecological, economic research.
Research Interest
Condensed Matter Physics, Sedimentology, Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
Publications
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Tuysuz O, Susini J, Kramers J, Gokturk OM, Frisia S, Fleitmann D, Edwards RL, Cheng H, Borsato A, Badertscher S. The use of stalagmite geochemistry to detect past volcanic eruptions and their environmental impacts.
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Frisia S. Microstratigraphic logging of calcite fabrics in speleothems as tool for palaeoclimate studies. International Journal of Speleology. 2015 Jan 1;44(1):1.
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Frisia SI, Badertscher S, Borsato A, Susini J, Göktürk OM, Cheng H, Edwards RL, Kramers J, Tüysüz O, Fleitmann D. The use of stalagmite geochemistry to detect past volcanic eruptions and their environmental impacts. PAGES news. 2008;16(3):25-6.
