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Maggie and Malvika at the CMG RiP Meeting in Leeds

Maggie and Malvika attended the Research in Progress Meeting of the Clay Minerals Group, which took place on 18 May 2023 in Leeds. They presented their work in the general Clay Mineralogy session of this meeting on ‘Clays in Construction’. Well done, Maggie, for giving a talk, and well done, Malvika, for presenting a poster!

  • Malvika presenting her poster.
  • Maggie giving her presentation
All in-person contributors and attendees of the CMG RiP Meeting, including the Keynote speaker Katja Emmerich and the President of the Mineralogical Society of the UK and Ireland, Sally Gibson.

Action in the lab!

Anke’s Humboldt Fellowship is progressing – and she is back in the lab! To prepare samples for TEM and XRD, the glovebox is one of the main places you can find her at the moment.

Anke synthesising green rust in the glovebox at GFZ.

Meeting dear friends

Anke travelled to Switzerland and met two very dear friends: Neumann group alumni Kath Rothwell (Postdoc in the Soil Chemistry group at ETH) and former Iowa colleague and student assistant Luiza Notini (also Postdoc in the Soil Chemistry group at ETH).

Catching up on both personal matters and research updates.
From left to right: Anke, Kath and Luiza

Maggie and Anke at ICC Istanbul

Maggie and Anke both presented their research at the International Clay Conference in Istanbul this year. Run as a hybrid meeting, it was a new experience and gave plenty of time and room for networking, research and also exploring Istanbul.

Maggie presenting her work during ICC2022 in Istanbul. (session chair: Daniel Alessi)
Maggie receiving the Blair Jones/Jane Flinn Award from Paul Schroeder (Co-chair of ICC2022 and CMS representative) during the Gala Dinner, which was held as a cruise on the Bosporus.

Maggie and Anke also enjoyed the sightseeing tour organised through the conference and meeting old and new colleagues from around the world.

Anke and Maggie in the Topkapi Palace in Istanbul.
Maggie catching up with David Bish during the Conference Dinner/Boat Cruise on the Bosporus.

Field work at Force Crag

Andy, Adam and Anke went back to Force Crag again in July; this time to retrieve solid samples from the treatment system. So out we went with our boat – or dingy? – and a professionally improvised corer…

Andy is getting our boat ready.
Andy and Adam in action, retrieving a core from the middle of the treatment pond.
Adam and Anke retrieving the third and last core sample – against the impressive backdrop of the Cumbrian Mountains.

Field visit to Force Crag

Andy went to Force Crag for his first sampling campaign on 20 and 22 June. We took MSc students along for their field work as part of their dissertation, so it was two intensive days with loads of samples collected and data measured in the field.

Andy and Guiyu Chen (MSc student) collecting field data (alkalinity titration).
Guiyu Chen (MSc student) successfully setting up the auto sampler at the inlet (and outflow) of the passive treatment system at Force Crag.
Andy is busy taking samples and collecting the field data at one of the point sources (the v-notch weir has been made unusable by debris accumulation at high flows/storms.)

Maggie wins CMS travel award

Congratulations to Maggie who was, again, successful with her application to the Clay Minerals Society for a graduate student travel grant! Maggie will attend the International Clay Conference in Istanbul, which is co-hosted by AIPEA and CMS in July 2022. Maggie also won the Blair Jones/Jane Flinn Award, which is given each year to the highest rated Travel Grant Application.

Well done – and congratulations again!