People
Research Highlights
In situ observation of nanolite growth in volcanic melt: A driving force for explosive eruptions
The fate of carbonate in oceanic crust subducted into earth’s lower mantle
Structural Ordering in Liquid Gallium under Extreme Conditions
Slab melting as a barrier to deep carbon subduction
Generation of porphyry copper deposits by gas–brine reaction in volcanic arcs
Frequency and magnitude of volcanic eruptions controlled by magma injection and buoyancy
Linking Petrology and Seismology at an Active Volcano
Petrology Group members involved in €3.5m project to study processes behind volcanic unrest
Deep Mantle Cycling of Oceanic Crust: Evidence from Diamonds and their Mineral Inclusions
Petrology Group member Jon Blundy wins Royal Society Wolfson Merit Award
Primary carbonatite melt from deeply subducted oceanic crust
Petrology Group member Jon Blundy elected to Fellow of the Royal Society

Current members of the Petrology Group.
Academic staff
Dr Richard Brooker
I manage the experimental petrology facilities, with projects ranging from planetary mantle petrology, crustal processes such as magma mushes through to volcanology, with a particular interest in the role of volatiles and more recently rheology. Other current research interests include ash damage in jet engines, survival of DNA and organic material during diagenesis and the environmental impact of mining ‘sulphide smoker’ deposits from mid-ocean ridges. I have a keen interest pushing experimental boundaries by designing new experimental equipment in close collaboration with our workshop.
Dr Frances Cooper
I study the mechanics of large-scale continental deformation and the evolution of orogenic systems, including the Himalaya, the Andes, and the Western US Cordillera. Through an ongoing collaboration with the mining company, BHP, I have a particular interest in the tectonic controls on porphyry copper deposits.
Professor Simon Kohn
My research is aimed at understanding the materials that control large-scale processes in the Earth’s mantle and crust and includes volatile dissolution mechanisms in silicate melts and OH storage in nominally anhydrous minerals in the mantle. My current focus is on diamonds and their inclusions and the unique information they provide on global geochemical cycling and the history of the lithosphere.
Dr Oliver Lord, Research group leader
I study the deep interior of the Earth by recreating its extreme pressures and temperatures in my home lab, at a variety of international synchrotron x-ray facilities and, more recently, inside supercomputers.
Dr Robert Myhill
I study the evolution and structure of the Earth and Mars through a combination of high-pressure experimental petrology, mineral physics, and geodynamics. I am particularly interested in where and how our planet melts, and in how melting over the last 4.5 billion years has led to the diverse geology of our planet. I am a principal developer of the BurnMan thermodynamics software (https://burnman.org) and ASPECT geodynamics software (https://aspect.geodynamics.org/).
Dr Jenny Riker
I’m a teaching-focused lecturer in the School of Earth Sciences with an emphasis on field-based geoscience education. I am also a member of the Volcanology and Petrology research groups. My research combines experiments, field observation, and textural and chemical characterisation of volcanic rocks to clarify the links between magmatic processes and volcanic activity.