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Research Interests
In my group, we study coupled physical and chemical processes that control deformation and evolution of rocks. Most of our research focuses on how relatively small-scale processes (on the pore, grain, or asperity scale) control large-scale geological phenomena such as soil liquefaction, the dynamics of landslides and earthquakes, the process of rock compaction/dissolution, or the physics of friction. My group also studies larger scale coupled deformation, such as coupled brittle - ductile deformation, the creation of pockmarks on the ocean floor, salt tectonics and the physics of subduction initiation. I work on the boundary between physics and geology, using mainly theoretical and numerical tools. However, our work is always constrained by observations: to understand the physics of a system of interest, I collaborate also with field geologists and experimentalists who provide an empirical foundation to the theoretical work.
In addition, recently I became interested in Energy issues, especially in oil & gas formation and extraction, and their environmental and climatic impact. I formed and headed the Petroleum Geology MSc direction at the Hebrew University.
Ongoing projects:
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The physics of friction – can we predict friction, and dependence on velocity, temperature and pressure, from basic thermodynamic parameters?
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Understanding how salt tectonics causes faulting of overlying sediments.
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The physics of soil liquefaction during earthquakes.
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Earthquake triggering by fluids.
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Reactive flow in rocks and formation of hyopgenic karsts.
Past PhD Students and postdocs:
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Prof Liran Goren, Associate Prof at the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ben-Gurion University, Israel.
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Dr Stanislav Parez, Researcher at the Inst of Chemical Process Fundamentals, The Czech Academy of Sciences.
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Dr Shalev Siman-Tov, Researcher at the Geological Hazards Division, Geological survey of Israel
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Dr. Nataliia Makedonska, Scientist at Computational Earth Science Group, Los Alamos National labs, USA.
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Dr Anner Paldor, postdoc at the Univ. of Delaware, Dept. of Earth Sciences.
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Dr Leehee Laronne Ben-Itzhak
Past MSc students: Inbar Vaknin, Einav Reuven, Hanna Rubin, Itzhak Hamdani, Maor Kaduri. Boriana Kalderon‐Asael, Yonatan Elfassi.
Present PhD students: Shahar Ben Zeev, Roi Roded, Pritom Sarma, Jimmy Moneron (main advisor Prof Z Gvirtzman).
