Paul W. Volante

In my position at the U.S. Geological Survey, I study critical mineral deposits in the United States and abroad. I use a combination of computational tools and chemical instruments to complete my work. During my graduate work at Penn State, I applied traditional isotope-ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS) and Orbitrap mass spectrometry to improve position-specific isotope analysis (PSIA) techniques for carbon-13 analysis. In undergrad at William & Mary, I studied radioactive isotopes from atomic weapon detonations in lake sediments, vegetation, and honey samples to create age-models of lake sediments and to track biogeochemical processes.