Biography
Evan is the Principal Investigator of ESG and is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geology and Environmental Science at the University of Pittsburgh (starting formally August 2024). Before joining Pitt, he held appointments as an NSF Postdoctoral Fellow at Rice University and Brown University and a Junior Fellow in the Rice Academy of Fellows at Rice University. His research concerns the role of fluid-rock interactions in the cycling of nutrients across the Earth's surface and employs a wide range of techniques to do so.
Degrees
- PhD 2021, Geological Sciences, University of Texas at Austin
- M.S. 2017, Geological Sciences, University of Texas at Austin
- B.A. 2015, Geophysics and Planetary Science, Boston University
Awards
- 2021, Rice Academy Fellowship
- 2021, NSF Postdoctoral Fellowship
- Research
- Recent Publications
- Teaching
The research of the Earth Surface Geochemistry group concerns the role that life and water-rock interactions play in global climate and element cycles, today and throughout Earth’s history. We measure the elemental and isotopic composition of organic matter, water, soil, and sediment as tracers of Earth surface processes, which we then compare with predictions from numerical models or other first-principles calculations to help identify key processes that regulate these element cycles. Our work is inherently interdisciplinary, and we are always looking for ways to enhance collaboration and scientific communication beyond geoscience sub-disciplines.
Current research foci include:
- The connection between clay mineral formation and organic carbon burial in soil (i.e., organo-mineral interactions)
- Watershed- and continent-scale responses to past climate change events
- Floodplain redox and hydrology
- The intrinsic properties of rocks and their regulation of Critical Zone architecture and weathering
- The influence of wildfires and glaciation on watershed hydrochemistry and nutrient cycling
- Hydrothermal water-rock interactions
Research Areas
- (2024) Muñoz, S., Jenckes, J., Ramos, E.J., Munk, L.A., Ibarra, D.E.: Hydrologic and Landscape Controls on Rock Weathering Along a Glacial Gradient in South Central Alaska, USA. Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface. DOI: 10.1029/2023JF007255
- (2024) Ramos, E.J., Larsen, W.J., Hou, Y. Muñoz, S., Kemeny. P.C., Scheingross, J.S., Repasch, M.N., Hovius, N., Sachse, D., Ibarra, D.E., Torres, M.A.: Competition or collaboration: Clay formation set the relationship between silicate weathering and organic carbon burial in soil. Earth and Planetary Science Letters. DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2024.118584
- (2022) Ramos, E.J., Breecker, D.O., Barnes, J.D., Li, F., Gingerich, P.D., Loewy, S.L., Satkoski, A.M., Baczynski, A.A., Wing, S.L., Miller, N.R., Lassiter, J.C.: Swift weathering response on floodplains during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, Geophysical Research Letters. DOI: 10.1029/2021GL097436
- (2021) Li, F., Yang, S., Breecker, D.O., Ramos, E.J., Huang, X., Duan, Z., Guo, Y., Mei, X.: Responses of silicate weathering intensity to Pliocene-Quaternary cooling in East and Southeast Asia, Earth and Planetary Science Letters. DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2021.117301
GEOL 0800 Geology (Spring 2025)