MOLLO Silvio
I investigate the petrological processes controlling the evolution of magmas during fractional crystallization, magma assimilation, and mixing. I also interpret the geochemical changes generated by variable undercooling regimes experienced by magmas during their emplacement. Magmas follow diverse polybaric, multicomponent, and multiprocess evolution paths. Major and trace element concentrations of mineral and residual glasses may be controlled by disequilibrium growth processes that take place during magma ascent and emplacement. Crystals may grow rapidly, and in the process, may deviate from equilibrium, even if the mineral is indeed contained within the liquid from which it grew. By means of experimental and field observations, my researches focus on the compositional variations of minerals growth under variable cooling rate conditions. I compare such disequilibrium compositions with those of crystals equilibrated at isothermal temperatures in order to improve the predictive power of thermometers, barometers, and hygrometers. Upon the effect of fast undercoolings, the growing crystals may potentially record the closure P-T-X-fO2 conditions of the system. This opens new important perspectives in the interpretation of the petrochemical characteristics of igneous rocks, allowing to reconstruction the history of volcanic rocks through geospeedometers based on the kinetics of cation exchanges between crystal and melt.
Education
- 2003, M.S., Geological Sciences, Università degli Studi Roma Tre, Roma, Italy
- 2008, Ph.D., Geological Sciences, Università degli Studi Roma Tre, Roma, Italy
Professional experience
- 2015-PRESENT, Associate Professor; Department of Earth Sciences, Sapienza – University of Rome, Italy.
- 2008-2015, Researcher; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Roma, Italy.
Research Topics
- Igneous petrology and experimental petrology
- Thermometry, barometry, oxygen barometry, and hygrometry
- Mineral-melt major and trace element partitioning
- Modelling of magma processes
- Crystallization kinetics
Institutional roles
- 2018-Present, Coordinator of the PhD programme in Earth Sciences
- 2017-Present, Research assignment at the INGV (Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia)
Editorial Activities
- Periodico di Mineralogia – Topic Editor
- Minerals - Guest Editor
- Geosciences – Guest Editor
- AGU Books (Wiley) – Guest Editor
- Frontiers – Reviewer Editor
- Austrian Academy of Sciences - Reviewer
- US National Science Foundation - Reviewer
- Swiss National Science Foundation - Reviewer
- German Research Foundation - Reviewer
- Science - Reviewer
- Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology - Reviewer
- Chemical Geology - Reviewer
- Lithos - Reviewer
- Earth and Planetary Science Letters - Reviewer
- Earth-Science Reviews - Reviewer
- Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems - Reviewer
- The Canadian Mineralogist - Reviewer
- Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research - Reviewer
- Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids - Reviewer
- Radiation Measurements - Reviewer
- Geology - Reviewer
- Mineralogy and Petrology - Reviewer
- Energies - Reviewer
- American Mineralogist - Reviewer
- Scientific Reports - Reviewer
- International Geology Review – Reviewer
- Journal of Petrology - Reviewer
- Pure and Applied Geophysics – Reviewer
- Applied Geochemistry – Reviewer
- Ore Geology Review – Reviewer
Papers
List of papers in Google Scholar
(https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=Mbs3EaQAAAAJ&view_op=lis...)
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Citations: 2241; h-index: 30 (from Scopus May 2021).
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1448-0282
SCOPUS: https://www.scopus.com/authid/detail.uri?authorId=14020239100