Current BUFI research projects

Currently BUFI supports around 70 projects. Most of these are PhD studentships, but we also support peer-to-peer collaborations between BGS staff and academics, and this can include short-term (six to twelve month) post doctoral research assistantships. We also give limited funding to masters students who undertake their research project with BGS.

Active PhDs

Research year Student first name Student last name BGS Supervisor Project Title University Supervisor University Department/ School/ Institute
First Nicola Ashton Andy Tye Microbial response to soil chemistry defined by the Tellus dataset, Northern Ireland Richard Pattrick Manchester School of Earth, Atmospheric and Envirnmental Science
First John Balfour Adrian Humpage Late Quaternary Palaeoglaciology of the Welsh Ice Cap Michael Hambrey Aberystwyth Institute of Geography and Earth Studies
First Jochem Bijerk Colin Waters Glacio-eustatic controls on sedimentary sequences: a field and physical modelling based study Ken McCaffrey Leeds School of Earth and Environment
First Nia Blackwell Jenny Bearcock The geomicrobiology of coal mine drainage – microbes, green rust and the factors controlling iron mineralogy in coal mine drainage. William Perkins Aberystwyth Institute of Geography & Earth Sciences
First Kim Hagen Susanne Sargeant Engaging communities on geohazards: seeking community-centred approaches to reducing vulnerability to geohazards in the Solomon Islands Nigel Clark Open Geography
First Nyree Hill Gus Gunn Development of a genetic model for targeting gold mineralisation in the Scottish Dalradian Gawen Jenkin Leicester Geology
First Barbara Hofman Charlotte Vye Extremely long-lived continental volcanism: the Afar mantle plume Tim Wright Leeds Earth and Environmental Sciences
First Stefan Lachowycz Katy Mee Late Quaternary volcanism and climate of southern Patagonia David Pyle Oxford Earth Sciences
First Andy Merritt Jon Chambers 4D Hydrogeophysical Monitoring of Landslide Processes Phil Murphy Leeds School of Earth and Environment
First Helen Miller Carol Cotterill Determination of Late Glacial and Post Glacial processes using sediments from within Lake Windermere Jonathan Bull Southampton National Oceanography Centre
First Chijioke Nwankwor Keith Bateman The effects of gas stream impurities and reservoir mineralogy on in-situ carbonation for long-term geological storage of carbon dioxide Mercedes Maroto-Valer Nottingham Chemical and Environmental Engineering
First Lisa Orme Mike Ellis The role of the North Atlantic Oscillation in driving climatic variability during the Late Holocene Richard Jones Exeter Geography
First Amy Stephen Jon Naden Active & ancient geothermal systems in Tethyan ophiolites as examples of novel solutions for natural CO2 sequestration Gawen Jenkin Leicester Geology
First Jon Stone Sue Loughlin Evaluating the role of community-based monitoring in improving the mitigation of natural hazards: a case study on Montserrat, West Indies Jenni Barclay East Anglia School of Environmental Sciences
First Victoria Sword-Daniels Susanne Sargeant Evaluating impacts on community infrastructure following recent volcanic eruptions in Chaiten (Chile) and Rabaul (Papua New Guinea) Tiziana Rosetto London University College Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering
Second Hugh Anderson Mark Cooper The origin and nature of Cenozoic faulting in north-east Ireland John Walsh Dublin - University College School of Geological Sciences
Second Fran Boait Andy Chadwick Integrated seismic, analytical and numerical modeling of CO2 injection into saline aquifers Mike Bickle Cambridge Earth Sciences
Second Raquel Carduso Neil Breward The fate of contaminants in urban soils and road dusts: novel assessments and implications for risks (A case study from urban Manchester) Kevin Taylor Manchester Metropolitan Environmental and Geographical Sciences
Second Julia Crummy Sue Loughlin Petrological and geochemical monitoring of the most active volcano in North America- Volcan Fuego de Colima, Mexico Ivan Savov Leeds School of Earth and Environment
Second Alex Dunhill Andy Newell Sampling and knowledge of the palaeontology of the British Triassic and Jurassic Michael Benton Bristol Earth Sciences
Second Francine Entwistle Chris Rochelle How do geothermal fields relate to contact aureoles: A field study of the Isle of Skye volcanic complex Bruce Yardley Leeds School of Earth and Environment
Second Lucy Greenwood Randy Parrish Resolving conflicting models for the tectonic assembly of the Eastern Himalaya Tom Argles Open Earth and Environmental Sciences
Second Brioch Hemmings Andy Hughes Hydrogeophysics of a restless volcano     Bristol Earth Sciences
Second Kathryn Hill Doug Tragheim Climate change on Mars: remote sensing constraints on the origin of layered sediments Johnm Bridges Leicester National Space Centre
Second Michael Kelly Graham Leslie lateral variations and linkages in thrust geometry in fold and thrust belts Graham Williams Keele School of Earth Sciences and Geography
Second Nicole Khan Chris Vane Holocene sea-level change from the Thames Estuary: implications for geophysical modeling and oceanclimate interactions Ben Horton Pennsylvania Earth and Environmental Science
Second Sven Konitzer Mike Stephenson Primary biological controls on UK lower Namurian shale gas prospectivity: understanding a major potential UK unconventional gas resource Sarah Davies Leicester Geology
Second Andrew Miles Martin Gillespie Granite genesis and crustal evolution across the Iapetus suture zone Colin Graham Edinburgh School of GeoSciences
Second Dan Parvaz Jon Naden Development of geochemical and mineralogical methods for targeting lower environmental impact secondary copper deposits in the Troodos Massif, Cyprus Ben Williams Exeter Camborne School of Mines
Second Sarah-Jane Phelan Mike Ellis Quantification of the impact of climate change on landscape evolution as mediated by plant community dynamics   Jones Exeter Geography
Second Robert Shore Sue Macmillan Satellite magnetometry and the new ESA SWARM constellation Kathryn Whaler Edinburgh School of GeoSciences
Second Hannah Smith Mike Watts Characterising and modelling the migration of iodine species through soil solution-mineral equilibra Scott Young Nottingham Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Second Jo Smith Andy Tye The role of the erosion of continental biomass on the Earth's thermostat Albert Galy Cambridge Earth Sciences
Second Rosie Smithells Geoff Kimbell A comparison of the geological, geodynamic and rheological evolution of the northern and southern Rockall Basin using a 3D modelling approach Stu Clark Keele School of Earth Sciences and Geography
Second Simon Tapster Jon Naden Magmatic, structural and tectonic controls on Cu-Au mineralisation in the Solomon arc SW Pacific Mike Petterson Leicester Geology
Third Mike Davis Andrew Butcher 3D – characterisation of the Chalk aquifer using innovative geophysical and testing methods W Burgess London University College Geography
Third Mélanie Douarin Dave Long Structure, Biogeography and Palaeoclimate Reconstruction from Mingulay Reef Complex Sediment Cores Mary Elliot Edinburgh School of GeoSciences
Third Andreas Hahn Jon Naden Characterisation and evolution of ore fluids related to diverse styles of Au–Ag, Cu and Pb–Zn mineralisation in the Tertiary metallogenic province, southern Balkans; metallogenic and economic implications Andy Rankin Kingston Earth and Environmental Science Research
Third Anna Hicks (nee Coulbeck) Sue Loughlin A multi-disciplinary approach to volcanic risk reduction under conditions of uncertainty: a case study on Tristan da Cunha Jenni Barclay East Anglia School of Environmental Sciences
Third Steve Hollis Mark Cooper Defining the geological evolution of the Tyrone Igneous Complex in the context of its metallogenic potential - correlation and comparison with world-class VMS terrains Steve Roberts Southampton National Oceanography Centre
Third Rachel Jamieson Mike Stephenson The impact of the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum on the distribution of sediments in the Central North Sea John Underhill Edinburgh School of GeoSciences
Third Gemma Kelly Alan Thomson From inner core to ionoshpere   Holme Liverpool Earth and Ocean Sciences
Third Matthias Kunz Stuart Marsh Robust earth observation assessment of geohazards and environmental change in challenging environments John Mills Newcastle School of Civil Engineering and Geosciences
Third Emma Langford Barbara Palumbo-Roe Bacterial growth and influence on trace element geochemistry at abandoned lead-zinc mines George Shaw Nottingham Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Third John MacDonald Kathryn Goodenough The effects of overprinting on rock fabrics and isotopic ages: the Lewisian Complex as a case study John Wheeler Liverpool Earth and Ocean Sciences
Third Henry Patton Tom Bradwell The Dynamic Instability of the British Ice Sheet : Timescales and Thresholds Alun Hubbard Aberystwyth Institute of Geography and Earth Studies
Third Matthew Pound Jim Riding Land cover in a warmer world: reconstructing global late miocene and pliocene vegetation and climate Alan Haywood Leeds School of Earth and Environment
Third Annemarie Valentine Peter Balson Investigation of Pliocene climate and Oceanography of the North Atlantic region through bivalve sclerochonology: an approach to predicting future conditions Andrew Johnson Derby School of Science
Third David Vaughan-Hirsch Jon Lee Glaciotectonic rafts: methods of of detachment, transport and emplacement Janet Hart Southampton Geography
Researching part time Hannah Mathers Tom Bradwell British Ice Sheet Dynamics: Constraining ice-sheet thickness and ice-stream collapse in NW Scotland using Cosmogenic isotope analysis Derek Fabel Glasgow Geographical and Earth Sciences
writing up Linda Austin Gary Kirby 3D geological and geodynamic evolution of the Northumberland Trough Region Stu Clark Keele School of Earth Sciences and Geography
writing up Wendy Austin-Giddings Dave Tappin Assessing the hazard from the collapse of Atlantic volcanoes: facies analysis of sediments from a possible tsunami source Bill McGuire London University College Earth Sciences
writing up Laura Duthie Martin Gillespie The impact of climate change on weathering in urban environments: prediction and mitigation Martin Lee Glasgow Geographical and Earth Sciences
writing up Amanda Ferguson Emrys Phillips Polyphase deformation in subglacial and proglacial tills of the UK Jaap van der Meer London Queen Mary College Geography
writing up Reka Fulop Jez Everest A novel cosmogenic isotope-based approach to assessing Holocene soil erosion Paul Bishop Glasgow Geographical and Earth Sciences
writing up Stephen Grebby Jon Naden Application of airborne LiDAR to fault mapping, structural analysis, and identification of fracture controlled mineralisation, Slovenia and Cyprus  Dickson Cunningham Leicester Geology
writing up Richard Haslam Clive Auton Integrated 3D modelling of shallow ground conditions at a nuclear site undergoing decommissioning Stu Clark Keele School of Earth Sciences and Geography
writing up Irfan Jan Mike Stephenson The Palaeocene-Eocene thermal maximum (PETM) in the clastic sequences of the Kohat Basin, northern Pakistan: a low latitude Tethyan view of the fastest global warming in recent Earth history Jan Zalasiewicz Leicester Geology
writing up Emma Kiddle Sue Loughlin Modelling igneous processes at the Soufriere Hills volcano, Montserrat (incorporating data from the SeaCalipso project) Steve Sparks Bristol Earth Sciences
writing up Kate McIntyre Tom Bradwell Postglacial fjordic landscape evolution: the onshore and offshore limits of the Younger Dryas ice sheet, western Scotland John Howe Scottish Association for Marine Science  
writing up Sam Parry Simon Kemp Turning rock into soil—changes in reactivity and surface area Mark Hodson Reading Soil Science
writing up Michele Paulatto Brian Baptie Probing the interior of an active volcano: three dimensional seismic tomography at Montserrat, West Indies Tim Minshull Southampton National Oceanography Centre
writing up Tom Sizmur Barbara Palumbo-Roe The impact of earthworm activity on metal mobility in soils   Hodson Reading Soil Science
writing up David Strong Ian Wilkinson Quantifying continental scale run-off in the past Rachel Flecker Bristol Earth Sciences
writing up Katie Turnbull Alan Thomson Analysis and prediction of the ground technology hazards due to space weather Jim Wild Lancaster Communications Systems 
writing up Jo Warham Jane Evans Systematic biosphere mapping of Sr-isotope ratios across major lithological boundaries in Southern England to create the first biosphere map in the UK Janet Montgomery Bradford Division of Archaeological, Geographical and Environmental Sciences
writing up Chengchao Zuo Fiona McEvoy Modelling the environmental and socio-economic impacts of aggregates for major construction projects: 2012 Olympic Park case study Mark Birkin Leeds School of Geography
writing up Marta Zurakowska Martin Gillespie Current mechanisms and future patterns of stone decay in cleaned sandstone and granite buildings John Hughes University of the West of Scotland School of Engineering
submitted Audrey Versteegen Toni Milodowski Calcareous structures in Quaternary soils and sediments Guy Kirk Cranfield School of Applied Science

Contact Dr Jon Naden for further information

BGS University Funding Initiative
British Geological Survey
Keyworth
Nottingham
NG12 5GG
E-mail: BUFI
Telephone: 0115 936 3100
Fax: 0115 936 3200