World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Earth Science
USA
2026

D-Index & Metrics

Earth Science

D-Index
110
Citations
48767
World Ranking
69
National Ranking
33

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2026 - Research.com Earth Science in United States Leader Award
  • 2025 - Research.com Earth Science in United States Leader Award
  • 2019 - V.M. Goldschmidt Award, Geochemical Society
  • 2019 - Member of Academia Europaea
  • 2009 - Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
  • 2000 - Fellow of John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
  • 1999 - Arthur L. Day Medal, The Geological Society of America
  • 1997 - Geochemistry Fellow Honor, Geochemical Society and the European Association of Geochemistry
  • 1994 - Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • 1993 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
  • 1983 - James B. Macelwane Medal, American Geophysical Union (AGU)
  • 1983 - Fellow of American Geophysical Union (AGU)
  • 1978 - F.W. Clarke Award, Geochemical Society
  • Fellow of the Geological Society of America
  • Fellow of the Geological Society of America

Overview

Donald J. DePaolo is affiliated with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the United States. Their research primarily spans the fields of Earth and Planetary Sciences and Environmental Science, contributing significantly to various subfields including Geophysics, Environmental Chemistry, Atmospheric Science, Environmental Engineering, and Biomaterials.

The scientist's work focuses on several main topics, notably:

  • Geological and Geochemical Analysis
  • Methane Hydrates and Related Phenomena
  • Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
  • CO2 Sequestration and Geologic Interactions
  • Hydrocarbon Exploration and Reservoir Analysis
  • Paleontology and Stratigraphy of Fossils
  • Calcium Carbonate Crystallization and Inhibition

DePaolo has published extensively in venues such as:

  • Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
  • Goldschmidt Abstracts
  • Geophysical Monograph
  • ACS Earth and Space Chemistry
  • Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems

Notable recent papers include:

  • "Ti-in-quartz: Evaluating the role of kinetics in high temperature crystal growth experiments," 2020, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
  • "New insights into Mn2+ and Mg2+ inhibition of calcite growth," 2022, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
  • "The influence of Ca:CO3 stoichiometry on Ca isotope fractionation: Implications for process-based models of calcite growth," 2021, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
  • "Equilibrium calcite-fluid Sr/Ca partition coefficient from marine sediment and pore fluids," 2020, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta
  • "Isotopic fractionation accompanying CO2 hydroxylation and carbonate precipitation from high pH waters at The Cedars, California, USA," 2021, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta

Frequent co-authors include:

  • John N. Christensen
  • Shuo Zhang
  • Nicholas J. Pester
  • Jennifer V. Mills
  • Laura N. Lammers

DePaolo has contributed to academic literature beyond journal articles, including a book titled Sr Isotopes in Seawater, published by Cambridge University Press in 2022.

Throughout their career, DePaolo has been recognized with multiple awards and honors, such as:

  • Member of Academia Europaea (2019)
  • V.M. Goldschmidt Award, Geochemical Society (2019)
  • Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) (2009)
  • Fellow of John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (2000)
  • Arthur L. Day Medal, The Geological Society of America (1999)
  • Geochemistry Fellow Honor, Geochemical Society and the European Association of Geochemistry (1997)
  • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1994)
  • Member of the National Academy of Sciences (1993)
  • Fellow of American Geophysical Union (AGU) (1983)
  • James B. Macelwane Medal, American Geophysical Union (AGU) (1983)
  • F.W. Clarke Award, Geochemical Society (1978)
  • Fellow of the Geological Society of America

Best Publications

  • Trace element and isotopic effects of combined wallrock assimilation and fractional crystallization

    Donald J. DePaolo

  • Neodymium isotopes in the Colorado Front Range and crust–mantle evolution in the Proterozoic

    Donald J. DePaolo

  • Intercalibration of standards, absolute ages and uncertainties in 40Ar/39Ar dating

    Paul R. Renne;Paul R. Renne;Carl C. Swisher;Alan L. Deino;Daniel B. Karner

  • Nd isotopic variations and petrogenetic models

    D. J. DePaolo;G. J. Wasserburg

  • Neodymium Isotope Geochemistry: An Introduction

    Donald J. DePaolo

  • A neodymium and strontium isotopic study of the Mesozoic calc‐alkaline granitic batholiths of the Sierra Nevada and Peninsular Ranges, California

    Donald J. DePaolo

  • Precise determination of SmNd ratios, Sm and Nd isotopic abundances in standard solutions☆

    G. J. Wasserburg;S. B. Jacobsen;D. J. DePaolo;M. T. McCulloch

  • Inferences about magma sources and mantle structure from variations of ^(143)Nd/^(144)Nd

    D. J. DePaolo;G. J. Wasserburg

  • Reactive transport modeling: An essential tool and a new research approach for the Earth sciences

    Carl I. Steefel;Donald J. DePaolo;Donald J. DePaolo;Peter C. Lichtner

  • Proterozoic crustal history of the western United States as determined by neodymium isotopic mapping

    Victoria C. Bennett;Donald J. Depaolo

  • Neodymium Isotope Geochemistry

    Donald J. DePaolo

  • High-resolution stratigraphy with strontium isotopes

    Donald J. DePaolo;Bonnye L. Ingram

  • Rapid production of continental crust 1.7 to 1.9 b.y. ago: Nd isotopic evidence from the basement of the North American mid-continent

    Bruce K. Nelson;Donald J. DePAOLO

  • Sr isotope evolution of seawater: the role of tectonics

    Frank M. Richter;David B. Rowley;Donald J. DePaolo

  • The continental crustal age distribution: Methods of determining mantle separation ages from Sm-Nd isotopic data and application to the southwestern United States

    D. J. DePaolo;A. M. Linn;G. Schubert

  • Isotopic fractionation of water during evaporation

    Christopher D. Cappa;Melissa B. Hendricks;Melissa B. Hendricks;Melissa B. Hendricks;Donald J. DePaolo;Donald J. DePaolo;Ronald C. Cohen

  • Surface kinetic model for isotopic and trace element fractionation during precipitation of calcite from aqueous solutions

    Donald J. DePaolo;Donald J. DePaolo

  • Petrogenetic mixing models and Nd-Sr isotopic patterns

    D.J. DePaolo;G.J. Wasserburg

  • Isotope fractionation by chemical diffusion between molten basalt and rhyolite

    Frank M. Richter;Andrew M. Davis;Donald J. DePaolo;E.Bruce Watson

  • Origin of Mesozoic and Tertiary granite in the western United States and implications for Pre‐Mesozoic crustal structure: 1. Nd and Sr isotopic studies in the geocline of the Northern Great Basin

    G. Lang Farmer;Donald J. DePaolo

Frequent Co-Authors

John N. Christensen
John N. Christensen Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Mark E. Conrad
Mark E. Conrad Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Carl I. Steefel
Carl I. Steefel Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Kate Maher
Kate Maher Stanford University
Frank M. Richter
Frank M. Richter University of Chicago
Kenneth W.W. Sims
Kenneth W.W. Sims University of Wyoming
Matthew S. Fantle
Matthew S. Fantle Pennsylvania State University
Daniel P. Schrag
Daniel P. Schrag Harvard University
Edward M. Stolper
Edward M. Stolper California Institute of Technology
G. J. Wasserburg
G. J. Wasserburg California Institute of Technology

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