MSU researcher receives award for work in geosciences
by Sam Kealhofer, Intern on the A&S Research Support Team
Winning a Fullbright US Scholar Award, Rinat Gabitov will travel to the United Kingdom where he and his colleagues at Lancaster University will collect data on using calcite to uptake nitrate, a pollutant commonly found in water. The project aims to better understand the nitrogen cycle and to develop remediation models.
Gabitov has spent more than a decade researching the fields of experimental geochemistry, chemical oceanography and paleoclimatology. A primary research focus for Gabitov is the behavior of chemical elements in the environment. The obtained experiment data combined with measured trace element content in mineral (or fossil) allows evaluating of paleoenvironmental conditions at which mineral formed and can be applied to the multiple areas in geological and environmental sciences. Such areas include: paleoclimatology, paleoceanography, formation of hydrothermal ore deposits, and immobilization of environmental pollutions through the uptake of hazardous elements by minerals.
Gabitov has demonstrated that growing minerals can effectively entrap harmful elements and isolate them from the environment for as long as millions of years. His in-progress study show how to immobilize uranium (the primary component of nuclear spent fuel) by entrapping it into the structures of phosphate and carbonate minerals. “Structural information for phosphate minerals strongly indicate that uranium and many of its mobile fission products can be efficiently immobilized through sorption/uptake by these minerals,” he said. This research could have major impacts on the storage and treatment of nuclear waste by improving of engineering barrier system.
His recent articles “Elemental Uptake by Calcite Slowly Grown From Seawater Solution: An in-situ Study Via Depth Profiling” published in “Frontiers of Earth Science” and “The benthic foraminiferal δ34S records flux and timing of paleo methane emissions” published in “Scientific Reports” (The Nature Research journal) contribute to paleoclimate research. Those studies found that changes in seawater chemistry caused by geological processes (i.e. underwater volcanism and methane emissions from marine sediments) strongly affect the geochemical records in inorganic calcite and foraminifera calcite shells.
Gabitov’s work combines elements of Earth sciences and chemistry to pave the way in new interdisciplinary fields. By developing new strategies to stop pollution around the world, the research demonstrates the indomitable spirit of science to combat pressing issues in innovative ways.
In an effort to contribute solutions to the various challenges facing the nation, as well as insight into other points of interest, the College of Arts and Sciences will continue to highlight faculty research in our “Research in the Headlines” series each Monday and Wednesday. For more research in the headlines, visit https://www.cas.msstate.edu/research/researchintheheadlines/; and for information about the College of Arts and Sciences or the Department of Geosciences, visit https://www.cas.msstate.edu/ or https://www.geosciences.msstate.edu/.