DoctorAngela Escolme

Dr. Angela Escolme is a Senior Lecturer and Researcher in Geology and Geometallurgy in the School of Natural Sciences under the College of Sciences and Engineering. Dr Escolme's research falls under the Centre for Ore Deposit and Earth Sciences (CODES). Her reserarch goals are to advance our understanding of mineral deposits and improve current approaches to measuring fundamental rock characteristics that impact on mineral processing behaviour (mineralogy, mineral chemistry, texture and structure) to enable environmental, social and economic benefits to be realised. Dr Escolme is unit coordinator for the Masters shortcourse KEA711 Geometallurgy.

Dr Escolme’s research activities predominantly involve field studies, microanalytical techniques and manipulation of geochemical and hyperspectral datasets. Prior to taking extended parental leave in 2021 Dr Escolme led a module of AMIRA International project P1202 ‘Finding and defining the next generation of Tier 1 ore deposits’ (Module 4: The transition zone) where the research team developed new tools and methodologies for the characterisation of alteration overprints in the transition zone of porphyry copper deposits. Key outcomes included workflows for effective characterisation of complex gangue mineralogy, new methodologies for textural classification of hyperspectral imagery and classification of mineral mixtures from hyperspectral imagery, and new mineral chemistry vectors for finding porphyry copper deposits.

Biography
After graduating from University of Manchester, UK, with a Master of Earth Sciences, Dr Escolme worked as an Exploration Project Geologist at a major remote gold mine in Western Australia for four years. Following this she perused a PhD in geochemistry and geometallurgy at University of Tasmania where she studied the enigmatic Productora Cu-Au-Mo deposit, Chile.

Dr Escolme held a postdoctoral research fellow position with the ARC Industrial Transformation Research Hub: Transforming the Mining Value Chain (TMVC) at CODES from 2017 before taking a staff position with Earth Sciences in 2020. During this time she was intimately involved in designing and establishing Module 4 of the AMIRA P1202 ‘Finding and defining the next generation of Tier 1 ore deposits’, a collaborative industry research project that commenced in 2018, as well as several other applied research projects working closely with industry partners to deliver outcomes to research questions. Since transitioning to a balanced teaching and research role, Dr Escolme has enjoyed inspiring the next generation of geologists and supporting postgraduate students in reaching their full potential. From late 2021 Dr Escolme took extended parental leave and recommenced her role in 2025.

Career summary
Qualifications

PhD Geology, geochemistry and geometallurgy of the Productora Cu-Au-Mo deposit, Chile, University of Tasmania, Australia August 2017
Master of Earth Sciences (Hons) Modelling the lithophile and chalcophile element geochemistry of lavas from back-arc and mid-ocean spreading centres at Manus Basin, Explorer Ridge, Explorer Seamount and Axial Seamount, University of Manchester, UK July 2007