Dr. Marek Szczerba

Principal research interests
Clay Mineralogy, Spectroscopy, Molecular modelling

Address:
Instytut Nauk Geologicznych Polskiej Akademii Nauk
Ośrodek Badawczy w Krakowie
ul. Senacka 1, 31-002 Kraków, POLAND 

Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences
Research Centre in Cracow

Position: Adjunct

phone: (+48) 12 422 19 10; fax (+48) 12 422 16 09
          (+48) 12 3705 232
e-mailm.szczerba@ingpan.krakow.pl 

 

Academic degrees

2001 - 2006 
Institute of Geological Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Kraków
MSc Thesis (2006):
Some mineralogical and geochemical aspects of oxidation zone in Zn-Pb ore deposits from the "Pomorzany" mine rear Olkusz
Supervisor: Dr hab. Zbigniew Sawłowicz

2002 - 2007 
Faculty of Chemistry, Jagiellonian University, Kraków
MSc Thesis (2007):
Modelling of infrared and Raman scaterring spectra of chosen phosphonic derivatives of proline.
Supervisor: Prof. dr hab. Leonard M. Proniewicz

2007 - 2009
Faculty of Physics, Mathematics and Applied Computer Science, Cracow University of Technology, Kraków part-time student of Computer Sciences.

2009 - 2011
Polish-Japanese Institute of Information Technology, Warsaw, part-time student of Computer Sciences.

BSc Eng. Thesis (2011) 
Supervisor: Dr Krzysztof Barteczko

Professional career

2007 - 2011  -  PhD student
Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Science

PhD Thesis (2011): 
Interpretation of K-Ar ages measured for mineral mixtures 
Supervisor : Prof. dr hab. Jan Środoń

2009 - present
Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences - Researcher

05-2016 - present
Institute of Geological Sciences, Polish Academy of Sciences, head of the Clay Minerals Laboratory

 

Articles

  • M. Szczerba, A. Kuligiewicz, A. Derkowski, V. Gionis, G.D. Chryssikos, A.G. Kalinichev, 2016: Structure and dynamics of water-smectite interfaces: Hydrogen bonding and the origin of the sharp O-Dw/O-Hw infrared band from molecular simulations. Clays and Clay Minerals, in press.
  • M. Szczerba, A. Derkowski, A.G. Kalinichev, J. Środoń, 2015: Molecular modeling of the effects of 40Ar recoil in illite particles on their K-Ar isotope dating, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 159, 162-176.
  • A. Kuligiewicz, A. Derkowski, M. Szczerba, V. Gionis, G.D. Chryssikos, 2015: Water-smectite interface by infrared spectroscopy.  Clays and Clay Minerals, 63, 15-29.
  • M. Szczerba, Z. Kłapyta, A. Kalinichev, 2014: Ethylene glycol intercalation in smectites. Molecular dynamics simulation studies, Applied Clay Science,91-92, 87-97
  • A. Derkowski, M. Szczerba, J. Środoń, M. Banaś, 2014: Radiogenic Ar retention in residual silica from acid-treated micas, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 128, 236-248.
  • Y. Deng, L. Liu, A.L. Barrientos Velázquez, M. Szczerba, J.B. Dixon, 2013: Interactions of Aflatoxin B1 with Smectites: Interlayer Accessibility, Bonding Mechanisms, and Size Matching, in: Aflatoxin Control: Safeguarding Animal Feed with Calcium Smectite, J.B. Dixon, A.L. Barrientos Velázquez, Y. Deng (eds). pp. 67. American Society of Agronomy and Soil Science Society of America, Madison, USA
  • Y. Deng, M. Szczerba, 2011: Computational evaluation of bonding between aflatoxin B1 and smectite, Applied Clay Science, 54, 26-33.
  • M. Skiba, M. Szczerba, S. Skiba, D.L. Bish, M. Grybos, 2011: The Nature Of Interlayering In Clays From A Podzol (Spodosol) From The Tatra Mountains, Poland, Geoderma, 160, 425-433.
  • M. Szczerba, M. Rospondek, Controls of distributions of methylphenanthrenes in sedimentary rock extracts: insights from molecular modelling and critical evaluation of existing geological data, Organic Geochemistry, 41, 1297-1311.
  • M. Szczerba, J. Środoń, M. Skiba, A. Derkowski, 2010: One dimensional structure of exfoliated polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites: a polivynylpyrrolidone (PVP) case study, Applied Clay Science, 47, 235-241.
  • M. Szczerba, Z. Sawłowicz, 2009: Origin of cerussite in the Upper Silesian Zn-Pb deposits, Poland, Mineralogia, 40, 54-64.
  • M. Szczerba, J. Środoń, 2009: Extraction of diagenetic and detrital ages and of 40Kdetrital/40Kdiagenetic ratio from K-Ar ages of clay fractions, Clays and Clay Minerals, 57, 46-56.
  • M. Rospondek, M.Szczerba, K. Małek, M. Góra, L. Marynowski, 2008: Comparison of phenyldibenzothiophene distributions predicted from molecular modelling with relevant experimental and geological data, Organic Geochemistry, 39, 1800-1815.

Awards

2014 - the 3-years fellowship for the young outstanding researchers awarded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education 

2013 - the "Giovanni Novelli" prize of Associazione Italiana per lo Studio delle Argille

2012 - the Prime Minister Award for the PhD thesis 

2011 - the Start Programme - prolongation of the stipend for young researchers awarded by the Foundation for Polish Science.

2010 - the Start Programme - stipend for young researchers awarded by the Foundation for Polish Science.

2010 - The Clay Minerals Society, Conference grant for young scientists, Sevilla, Spain.

2009 - Bradley Award of The International Association for the Study of Clays (AIPEA) for the article: M. Szczerba, J. Środoń and M. Skiba: One dimensional structure of exfoliated polymer-layered silicate nanocomposites: a polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) case study.

2009 - American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Grant-in-Aid.

2009 - International Union of Crystallography, Conference grant for young scientists, Zvenigorod, Russia.

2009 - The Clay Minerals Society, Conference grant for young scientists, Billings MT, USA.

2006 - 1st prize of Polish Mineralogical Society for Master thesis in mineralogy, petrology and geochemistry.

Industrial applications

Q-MIN - a computer program used for quantitative analysis of clay-bearing rocks from random preparations. The programs is a whole-pattern fitting program, which models experimental XRD pattern as sum of mineral standards using genetic algorithms as an optimization engine.

Downloads

>MODELAGE< - a Java program for extraction of diagenetic and detrital ages and of 
  40Kdetrital/40Kdiagenetic ratio from K-Ar dates of clay fractions

>MODELAGE source code<

>instruction to MODELAGE<