Why is geology essential in the transition to a more sustainable future, and how can we do a better job at explaining the importance of geological knowledge to society? These are the main questions guiding my research.

During my PhD in University College Dublin (Ireland), I studied pegmatites as resources of lithium and other critical metals that are used in batteries and other clean energy technologies in development.

Since joining the Geological Survey of Belgium in 2019, I coordinated the GeoConnect³d project (finalised in 2021), investigating different subsurface uses related to geo-energy in order to develop an online tool displaying geological information for policy support and subsurface management in Europe. Currently, as part of the LIBS-SCReeN project, I am contributing to the optimisation and application of Laser-induced break-down Spectroscopy (LIBS) techniques for multiscale detection and characterisation of critical raw materials.

Barros, R., Kaeter, D., Menuge, J.F., Fegan, T. & Harrop, J., 2022. Rare Element Enrichment in Lithium Pegmatite Exomorphic Halos and Implications for Exploration: Evidence from the Leinster Albite-Spodumene Pegmatite Belt, Southeast Ireland. Minerals, 12, 981. https://doi.org/10.3390/min12080981

Barros, R., Defourny, A., Collignon, A., Jobe, P., Dassargues, A., Piessens, K. & Welkenhuysen, K., 2020. A review of the geology and origin of CO₂ in mineral water springs in east Belgium. Geologica Belgica, 24/1-2, 17-31. https://doi.org/10.20341/gb.2020.023

Barros, R., Kaeter, D., Menuge, J.F. & Škoda, R., 2019. Controls on chemical evolution and rare element enrichment in crystallising albite-spodumene pegmatite and wallrocks: Constraints from mineral chemistry. Lithos, 352-353, 105289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lithos.2019.105289

Barros, R. & Menuge, J.F., 2016. The Origin of Spodumene Pegmatites Associated With the Leinster Granite In Southeast Ireland. Canadian Mineralogist, 54, 847-862. http://dx.doi.org/10.3749/canmin.1600027

Kaeter, D., Barros, R. & Menuge, J.F., 2020. Metasomatic High Field Strength Element, Tin, and Base Metal Enrichment Processes in Lithium Pegmatites from Southeast Ireland. Economic Geology (online) https://doi.org/10.5382/econgeo.4784

Kaeter, D., Barros, R., Menuge, J.F. & Chew, D.M., 2018. The magmatic–hydrothermal transition in rare-element pegmatites from southeast Ireland: LA-ICP-MS chemical mapping of muscovite and columbite–tantalite. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 240, 98-130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2018.08.024

BELSPO BRAIN-be 2.0, 2020-2024
Role: project coordinator

Science Figured Out video presenting GeoConnect³d research (April 2022)

Presentation of the GeoConnect³d project at the GeoERA Webinar Series (November 2020)

Invited contribution to the European Federation of Geologists’ GeoBlog (June 2020)