Projects
Energy crops on agricultural land enriched with heavy metals: functional repair by phytoextraction and/or energy crops as a sustainable alternative for classic agriculture. Hasselt University
Exploring the Suillus luteus genome to understand the functional ecology of an ectomycorrhizal fungus adapted to heavy metal stress Hasselt University
Phosphorus recovery from incineration ash of phosphorus rich waste streams KU Leuven
Phosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient for all living organisms. Currently, P used in fertilizers and animal feed is largely extracted from non-renewable phosphate rock of which reserves are depleting. The European Union (EU) considers both P and phosphate rock as critical raw materials because of their strategic importance and the economic dependence on a limited number of non-EU suppliers. In this regard, it is important to recover P from ...
Adaptive growth responses of Arabidopsis thaliana after exposure to excess metals: molecular mechanisms and ecological relevance. Hasselt University
Monsters of the Apocalypse: A link between Anoxia, Mutation, Extinction, and Stratabound REE Ores Ghent University
Ordovician-Silurian mass-extinctions shaped the evolution of Earth’s biosphere. New data from these events record abrupt changes in the marine C-cycle and global climate that challenge the strongly held cause-and-effect relationship between cooling (glaciation) and extinction. Through a pilot study we have discovered a striking correlation between severely malformed organic-walled fossil plankton and dramatic increases in redox-sensitive ...
Impulsive and persistent birds: How neurotoxins alter response inhibition and its behavioural consequences. Ghent University
Heavy metals pose detrimental risks to animals (including humans), making them a focus of EU policies. As heavy metals exert neurotoxic effects, the cognitive system might be most susceptible to even low exposure levels, especially when absorption occurs prenatally. A crucial neurocognitive function that may be impaired through heavy metal exposure is response inhibition. Response inhibition allows animals to inhibit inappropriate actions to ...
Advanced 2D and 3D chemical imaging using laser ablation ICP - mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and complementary multimodal techniques via image fusion Ghent University
Laser ablation-ICP-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) can be used for visualizing the distribution of (trace) elements across any solid material with high spatial resolution. The recent development of low-dispersion LA cells has provided gains in throughput and sensitivity of 2-3 orders of magnitude compared to conventional cells. The project focuses on development of methodologies for high-resolution 2D & 3D imaging of samples of a wide range ...
Long term, field-scale Terrestrial Enhanced Weathering (TEW) using Basalt rock dust: Modelling and monitoring carbon sequestration while investigating synergies for forestry. University of Antwerp
Metallogenesis of the Cu-Co deposits in the Central African Copperbelt, information from REE patterns and the Lu-Hf isotopic system. KU Leuven
This PhD thesis is centered on the Central African Copperbelt, a Neoproterozoic stratiform Cu-Co ore province, and consists of three main parts. The first part focuses on the geotectonic evolution of the basement units in the vicinity of the Katanga basin that hosts the ore deposits. The second part uses rare earth element patterns in gangue carbonates associated with the ores as proxies for hydrothermal mineralization-related processes. The ...