Stylianos Karastergios – ESR 9.

About Me

Currently I am based at the University of Milano-Bicocca in Milano, Italy. My specialization is metamorphic petrology, and I am also a member in a study group in the University of Milano-Bicocca, which is made up of students from every level (BSc, MSc, PhD, Post-doc) and two professors, which one of them, is also my supervisor (prof. Maria Luce Frezzotti). The members of this study group all share similar interest in fluid inclusions, from different lithologies (volcanic rocks, metamorphic rocks, plutons, etc.). 

I started my studies in the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh), in Thessaloniki, Greece, and I soon realised that petrology and mineralogy is what makes geology for me one of the most entertaining natural sciences. Six months after my graduation I embarked on my Master’s studies in the geology department of Lund University in Lund, Sweden. During that time, I also realized that metamorphic petrology is the right path for me and that I wanted to start a PhD on that subject. For that reason, I selected to work on my Master’s thesis project, studying high-grade metamorphic rocks (granulites and high-grade calc-silicates and marbles) from Allmenningen, Roan, Norway (Western Gneiss Region), under the supervision of prof. Charlotte Möller, of Lund University. 

About the project

Fluid inclusions can be found in every type of rock on Earth, and in various geotectonical environments. Fluid inclusions act as natural entrapments of the present fluids in a rock system, for example: during the formation of a volcanic rock, or the peak metamorphic conditions in an orogenic/metamorphic cycle. 

In this project, the primary objective is to characterize the mechanisms that regulate the formation of fluid and melt inclusions in deep, crustal rocks, especially mafic granulites, metasedimentary rocks and derived migmatitic bodies. The selected study area is the Ivrea Zone in NW Italy, a region in southern Italian Alps, where deep, crustal rocks from the Variscan orogen are exposed. Using specific instrumental and experimental techniques, we will try to define how these fluid inclusions were formed in these rocks. Moreover, utilizing thermodynamical datasets, Raman microspectroscopy and detailed petrographical observations from these rocks, we will be able to develop a model which will help to constrain the physical, thermodynamic and transport capacity in the lower-middle crust.