Staff profile

About me

I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Department of Earth Sciences at Durham University. My project involves the investigation of crystal textures combined with apatite geochemistry to interpret crystal mush behaviour in the lead-up to large-scale volcanic eruptions. This work is part of the ERC-funded project "Storage and Eruption of Mushy Magma Systems (STEMMS)", granted to Madeleine Humphreys; co-investigators include Richard Brooker and Colin Macpherson.

CV

2021 - Present: PDRA, Earth Sciences, Durham University

2020 - 2021: Research Assistant at Massey University and GNS Science, New Zealand

2016 - 2020: PhD student, Massey University, New Zealand

2014 - 2016: MSc student, Laboratoire Magmas et Volcans, France

2013 - 2014: BSc student, University of Iceland, Iceland

2011 - 2013: BSc student, Université Blaise Pascal II, France

Research Interests

To this date, my research interests lie in the fields of volcanology, igneous petrology and geochemistry. More specifically, my recent research projects have focused on:

1. Distribution of volatile elements between mafic and intermediate magmas during the early phases of the 1976-2000 eruption episode of Whakaari/White Island
2. Ascent and magmatic processes of explosive eruptions through in-depth investigation of the chemistry and textures of the micrometer-sized crystal cargo of the Tongariro Volcanic Centre (PhD)
3. Structural, morphological and textural analysis of the 1974 low-elevation flank eruption of Etna using UAV-based photogrammetry and lava and pyroclast samples (MSc)
4. Fe-Mg interdiffusion and NiO diffusion in olivines from the rejuvenated volcanism of Oahu Island, Hawaii (MSc)

To better understand the processes associated with and the origin of such geological processes, I use a wide range of analytical and computational tools such as:

• High-resolution analytical instruments (SEM, SIMS, EPMA)
• UAV-based remote sensing and high-resolution DEMs
• Thermodynamic modelling (e.g. MELTS)
• Image processing softwares
• Data mining and machine learning techniques
• Optimisation techniques

Doctoral Thesis

• Lormand, C. (2020). Understanding magmatic processes and their timescales beneath the Tongariro Volcanic Centre through microanalytical investigations of the tephra record. (Thesis). [Awarding Organisation: Unknown]. Retrieved from https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1617849

Journal Article

• Walsh, B., Lormand, C., Procter, J., & Williams-Jones, G. (2023). Characterizing the evolution of mass flow properties and dynamics through analysis of seismic signals: insights from the 18 March 2007 Mt. Ruapehu lake-breakout lahar. Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences, 23(3), https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-1029-2023
• Garcia, M., Swanson, K., Lormand, C., & Norman, M. (2022). Petrology of Koko Rift Basalts: Hawai‘i's most recent and atypical rejuvenation stage eruptive sequence. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 424, Article 107504. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2022.107504
• Lormand, C., Zellmer, G., Sakamoto, N., Ubide, T., Kilgour, G., Yurimoto, H., …Moebis, A. (2021). Shallow magmatic processes revealed by cryptic microantecrysts: a case study from the Taupo Volcanic Zone. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 176, Article 97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00410-021-01857-7
• Lormand, C., Zellmer, G., Kilgour, G., Nemeth, K., Palmer, A., Sakamoto, N., …Moebis, A. (2020). Slow Ascent of Unusually Hot Intermediate Magmas Triggering Strombolian to Sub-Plinian Eruptions. Journal of Petrology, 61(10), https://doi.org/10.1093/petrology/egaa077
• Lormand, C., Harris, A., Chevrel, M., Calvari, S., Gurioli, L., Favalli, M., …Nannipieri, L. (2020). The 1974 West Flank Eruption of Mount Etna: A Data-Driven Model for a Low Elevation Effusive Event. Frontiers in Earth Science, 8, Article 590411. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.590411
• Zellmer, G., Iizuka, Y., Lormand, C., & Moebis, A. (2020). Beyond crystal mushes: evidence for uptake of high-T pyroxene antecrysts from mid- to upper crustal andesites into tephras from the Central Plateau, New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Geology and Geophysics, 64(2-3), 147-152. https://doi.org/10.1080/00288306.2020.1848883
• Lormand, C., Zellmer, G., Nemeth, K., Kilgour, G., Mead, S., Palmer, A., …Moebis, A. (2018). Weka Trainable Segmentation Plugin in ImageJ: A Semi-Automatic Tool Applied to Crystal Size Distributions of Microlites in Volcanic Rocks. Microscopy and Microanalysis, 24(6), 667-675. https://doi.org/10.1017/s1431927618015428
• Favalli, M., Fornaciai, A., Nannipieri, L., Harris, A., Calvari, S., & Lormand, C. (2018). UAV-based remote sensing surveys of lava flow fields: a case study from Etna’s 1974 channel-fed lava flows. Bulletin of Volcanology, 80, Article 29. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00445-018-1192-6