Research Fellow
Leverhulme Trust Early Career Fellow
Research Interests
My research broadly relates to the reactivity of volcanic ash from explosive eruptions in the Earth system. I apply a range of experimental, analytical and modelling approaches to investigate the underlying mechanisms and associated impacts of the:
- Capacity of ash particles to take up and react with gases (e.g. sulphur dioxide, ozone, hydrochloric acid, hydrofluoric acid) in the eruption plume and atmosphere
- Activity of ash particles in promoting ice nucleation in water droplets in the eruption plume and atmosphere
- Role of ash particles as a source of soluble or nanoparticulate iron (micronutrient) to the open ocean
Previous Positions
- Marie Skłodowska-Curie Research Fellow (2018-2020) School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, United Kingdom
- Postdoctoral Researcher (2017) Laboratory of Physics and Chemistry of the Atmosphere, Université du Littoral Côte d'Opale, France
Qualifications
- PhD Geochemistry (2016) Earth and Life Institute, Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium (supervised by Prof. Pierre Delmelle)
- MSc Environmental Science and Management (2012) University of York, United Kingdom
- BSc Biological Sciences (2010) University of Calgary, Canada
Other Activities
I also love getting involved with outreach and engagement to share knowledge, inspire others about nature and our planet, and promote inclusion and widening participation in STEM subjects. I've had the privilege of taking part in 'I'm A Scientist, Get Me Out of Here' and 'I'm A Scientist, Stay at Home', I'm a founding member of the European Association of Geochemistry's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee, and I'm a volunteer technical editor for the pioneering diamond open-access journal Volcanica. Please feel free to contact me to find out more or chat about what we can accomplish together!
Publications
Society Pieces
Where do geochemistry teams start and end? Professional and technical support is vital to us all! (2022) European Association of Geochemistry Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. EAG Blog.
Professional culture: let's talk tackling of inequity, injustice, and absent talent (2021) European Association of Geochemistry Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. EAG Blog.
Strengthening geochemistry through community action and wider influence (2021) European Association of Geochemistry Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee. Elements.
Journal Articles
Volcanic effects on climate: recent advances and future avenues (2022) Marshall LR, Maters EC, Schmidt A, Timmreck C, Robock A, Toohey M. Bulletin of Volcanology. doi:10.1007/s00445-022-01559-3
Laboratory study of iron isotope fractionation during dissolution of mineral dust and industrial ash in simulated cloud water (2022) Maters EC, Mulholland DS, Flament P, de Jong J, Mattielli N, Deboudt K, Dhont G, Bychkov E. Chemosphere. doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.134472
Photo-enhanced uptake of SO2 on Icelandic volcanic dusts (2022) Lasne J, Urupina D, Maters EC, Delmelle P, Romanias MN, Thévenet F. Environmental Science: Atmospheres. doi:10.1039/D1EA00094B
Volcanic ash ice nucleation activity is variably reduced by aging in water and sulfuric acid: the effects of leaching, dissolution, and precipitation (2022) Fahy WD*, Maters EC* (*co-first authors), Giese Miranda R, Adams MP, Jahn LG, Sullivan RC, Murray BJ. Environmental Science: Atmospheres. 2, 85-99, doi:10.1039/D1EA00071C
Eruptive style controls the formation of silicon hexafluoride salts on volcanic ash: The case of the 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull volcano, Iceland (2021) Delmelle P, Maters EC, Calkins JA, Gaspard F, Opfergelt S, Jenkins SF. Chemical Geology. 579, 120327, doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2021.120327
The influence of chemical and mineral compositions on the parameterization of immersion freezing by volcanic ash particles (2021) Umo NS, Ullrich R, Maters EC, Steinke I, Benker N, Höhler K, Wagner R, Weidler PG, Hoshyaripour GA, Kiselev A, Kueppers U, Kandler K, Dingwell DB, Leisner T, Möhler O. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres. 126(17), e2020JD033356, doi:10.1029/2020JD033356
Volcanic ash ice-nucleating activity can be enhanced or depressed by ash-gas interaction in the eruption plume (2020) Maters EC, Cimarelli C, Casas AS, Dingwell DB, Murray BJ. Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 551, 116587, doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116587
Iceland is an episodic source of atmospheric ice-nucleating particles relevant for mixed-phase clouds (2020) Sanchez-Marroquin A, Arnalds O, Baustian-Dorsi KJ, Browse J, Dagsson-Waldhauserova P, Harrison AD, Maters EC, Pringle KJ, Vergara-Temprado J, Burke IT, McQuaid JB, Carslaw KS, Murray BJ. Science Advances. 6(26), eaba8137, doi:10.1126/sciadv.aba8137
The importance of crystalline phases in ice nucleation by volcanic ash (2019) Maters EC, Dingwell DB, Cimarelli C, Müller D, Whale TF, Murray BJ. Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. 19(8), 5451-5465, doi:10.5194/acp-19-5451-2019
Reactive uptake of sulfur dioxide and ozone on volcanic glass and ash at ambient temperature (2017) Maters EC, Delmelle P, Rossi MJ, Ayris PM. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres. 122(18), 10,077-10,088, doi:10.1002/2017JD026993
Controls on iron mobilisation from volcanic ash at low pH: Insights from dissolution experiments and Mössbauer spectroscopy (2017) Maters EC, Delmelle P, Gunnlaugsson HP. Chemical Geology. 449, 73-81, doi:10.1016/j.chemgeo.2016.11.036
Controls on the surface chemical reactivity of volcanic ash investigated with probe gases (2016) Maters EC, Delmelle P, Rossi MJ, Ayris PM, Bernard A. Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 450, 254-262, doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2016.06.044
Smectites and zeolites in ash from the 2010 summit eruption of Eyjafjallajökull volcano, Iceland (2016) Paque M, Detienne M, Maters EC, Delmelle P. Bulletin of Volcanology. 78(9), doi:10.1007/s00445-016-1056-x
Atmospheric processing of volcanic glass: Effects on iron solubility and redox speciation (2016) Maters EC, Delmelle P, Bonneville S. 2016. Environmental Science & Technology. 50(10), 5033-5040, doi:10.1021/acs.est.5b06281
Spatial analysis of Mount St. Helens tephra leachate compositions: Implications for future sampling strategies (2015) Ayris PM, Delmelle P, Pereira B, Maters EC, Damby DE, Durant AJ, Dingwell DB. Bulletin of Volcanology. 77(7), doi:10.1007/s00445-015-0945-8
HCl uptake by volcanic ash in the high temperature eruption plume: Mechanistic insights (2014) Ayris PM, Delmelle P, Cimarelli C, Maters EC, Suzuki YJ, Dingwell DB. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 144, 188-201, doi:10.1016/j.gca.2014.08.028
Comment on “Scavenging of sulfur, halogens and trace metals by volcanic ash: The 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption” by Bagnato et al. (2013) (2014) Delmelle P, Ayris PM, Maters EC. 2014. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. 127, 381-384, doi:10.1016/j.gca.2013.07.021
Book Chapters
High Temperature Reactions between Gases and Ash Particles in Volcanic Eruption Plumes (2018) Delmelle P, Wadsworth F, Maters E, Ayris P. In: King P; Fegley B; Seward T (eds.) Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry, Volume 84: High Temperature Gas-Solid Reactions in Earth and Planetary Processes. Mineralogical Society of America, Geochemical Society, 285-308, doi:10.2138/rmg.2018.84.8
Volcanic Influences on the Carbon, Sulfur, and Halogen Biogeochemical Cycles (2015) Delmelle P, Maters E, Oppenheimer C. In: Sigurdsson H, Houghton B, McNutt S, Rymer H, Stix J (eds.) The Encyclopedia of Volcanoes, Second Edition. Elsevier, 881-893, doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-385938-9.00050-X