JEREMY WYKES

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2009 Fulbright Postgraduate Scholarship in Science and Engineering sponsored by BHP Billiton

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“A better understanding of the earth’s crust and how it came to be will increase our knowledge of how elements such as sulphur and lead cycle around the earth’s mantle and crust. Understanding this process will also help us in our quest to understand the formation of mineral deposits and ultimately find better ways to find them.”

Jeremy Wykes, a PhD candidate at the Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University is the winner of the 2009 Fulbright Postgraduate Scholarship in Science and Engineering sponsored by BHP Billiton. The Fulbright Scholarship in Science and Engineering was established with BHP Billiton in 2000.

Through his Fulbright, Jeremy will travel to the Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of California Los Angeles for a year. His research aims to increase understanding of subduction zones, which are places where one tectonic plate slides beneath another, and sinks into the earth’s mantle.

“My research investigates the release of elements such as lead and sulphur from subducting slabs,” Jeremy said.

“I will focus on sulphur and lead as they are elements that play an important role in our models for the formation of continental crust and important ore deposits. Additionally, sulphur released from arc volcanoes forms potent greenhouse-gasses.”

“Apart from being interesting scientifically, I hope that increased knowledge of subduction zones will lead to better understanding of the formation of certain copper deposits, which may lead to more successful mineral exploration.”

The laboratory in the Department of Earth and Space Sciences at UCLA where Jeremy will carry out his research is the premier laboratory in the world for investigating high-pressure mineral solubility. Professors Craig Manning and Bob Newton are foremost within the discipline due to their pioneering research in this area.

Jeremy has a Master of Philosophy in Earth Science from The Australian National University and a BSc(Hons) in Geology from The Australian National University. He has won several awards, including the 2003 ANU University Medal, a Society of Economic Geology Student Research Grant, an Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy Student Bursary and the W.B. Clarke Prize in Geology. Between 2006 and 2009 Jeremy worked in mineral exploration in Arnhem Land and the central west of NSW.