About

Isabel Barton is an associate professor in the University of Arizona's Department of Mining and Geological Engineering and a member of the Graduate Faculty. She holds graduate degrees in mining engineering and geosciences from the University of Arizona, with her research primarily focused on geometallurgy. Her work involves collaboration with academic and industry professionals including metallurgists, geologists, mine engineers, mineralogists, geotechnical engineers, archaeologists, and geochemists. Barton’s research interests encompass geometallurgy, materials characterization, analytical techniques, economic geology, geochemistry, extractive metallurgy, mineralogy, and the history of mining, metallurgy, and geology. She actively seeks qualified graduate students interested in pursuing master's or doctoral degrees in these areas, particularly those with experience in geology, extractive metallurgy, or mining engineering.

Research topics

• Geology
• Chemistry
• Organic chemistry
• Geochemistry
• Geomorphology
• Paleontology
• Mineralogy
• Remote sensing
• Inorganic chemistry

Selected publications

• Monitoring System Guidance, Innovation and Future Applications

  2026-01-15

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• The Effect of Chalcopyrite Composition on Semiconducting Properties

  2025-01-01

  book-chapterSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Variable Extraction of Cobalt from Central African Copperbelt Ores

  2025-01-01

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Influence of internal fluid driving mechanisms on red bed bleaching in the Paradox Basin (Colorado Plateau, Utah and Colorado, USA)

  Geological Society of America Bulletin · 2025-01-30 · 2 citations

  article

  Abstract While it has been known for some time that reducing fluids have bleached red beds adjacent to fault zones and regionally across the Colorado Plateau, the volumes of fluids expelled along faults have never been quantified. We have developed and applied a suite of one-dimensional hydrologic models to test the hypothesis that internally generated, reducing fluids migrated up sub-basin bounding faults across the Paradox Basin and bleached overlying red beds. The internal fluid driving mechanisms included are mechanical compaction, petroleum and natural gas generation, aquathermal expansion of water, and clay dewatering. The model was calibrated using pressure, temperature, porosity, permeability, and vitrinite reflectance data. Model results indicate that sediment compaction was the most important pressure generation mechanism, producing the majority of internal fluids sourced during basin evolution. Peak fluid migration occurred during the Pennsylvanian–Permian (325–300 Ma) and Cretaceous (95–65 Ma) periods, the latter being concurrent with simulated peak oil/gas generation (87–74 Ma), which likely played a role in the bleaching of red beds. Batch geochemical advection models and mass balance calculations were utilized to estimate the volume of bleaching in an idealized reservoir having a thickness (~100 m) and porosity (0.2) corresponding to bleached reservoirs observed in the Paradox Basin. Bleaching volume calculations show that internal fluid driving mechanisms were likely responsible for fault-related alteration observed within the Wingate, Morrison, and Navajo Formations in four localities across the Paradox Basin in the Colorado Plateau, Utah and Colorado, USA. The volume calculation required that 33%–55% of the total basinal fluids, composed of hydrogen-sulfide and paleo-seawater, migrated into an overlying red bed reservoir (0.5 wt% Fe2O3).

  PublisherDOI

• Reduction of Red Bed Sedimentary Rocks in Connection with Energy Metal Ore Formation: A Case Study from the Sinbad Seep, Mesa County, Colorado

  Mining Metallurgy & Exploration · 2025-02-18 · 2 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Automated Population and Validation of Geologic Logging Fields: An Approach to Autopopulate Select Logging Parameters and Rapidly Identify Mis-Logged Interval Candidates

  Mining Metallurgy & Exploration · 2024-11-26 · 1 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Is Endmember Extraction a Critical Step in the Analysis of Hyperspectral Images in Mining Environments?

  Remote Sensing · 2024-06-13 · 4 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Hyperspectral imaging systems (HSIs) are becoming widespread in the mining industry for mineral classification. The spectral features detectable from near infrared to long-wave infrared make HSIs a potentially efficient tool for exploration, clay mapping, and leach pad modeling. However, the redundancy of hyperspectral data makes the analysis of hyperspectral images complicated and slow. Many researchers have proposed different algorithms and strategies to speed up processing and increase accuracy. These procedures rely on endmember extraction as one of the critical steps. However, no one has tested whether endmember extraction actually improves accuracy under all circumstances. Eliminating endmember extraction, if possible, would speed up the analysis of hyperspectral data. This study tested whether endmember extraction improves the accuracy and efficiency of mapping materials at leach pads, which are among the most complicated situations in mining environments. We compared the accuracy of abundance maps produced with fully constrained least squares (FCLS) (a) with endmember extraction by N-FINDR and (b) without endmember extraction, using a spectral library instead. The results from endmember extraction showed lower accuracy than the results from using a spectral library, probably because the spectral data were noisy and the scanned materials were mixtures. The application of FCLS to hyperspectral images provides useful information for metallurgists. The abundance maps showed that kaolinite, muscovite, and precipitation (hexahydrite and pickeringite) were the dominant minerals on the leach pad. The abundance maps of pipes and precipitation can be used to monitor leaching conditions. Lixiviant ponds mapped out in the abundance map of water can indicate saturation. This technique can also detect organic leakage and agglomeration effectiveness, but it will need different wavelength ranges and more future study. This paper also suggests best practices for using hyperspectral imaging systems to map leach pads.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Paradox Basin Uranium-Vanadium Deposits: Comparative Mineralogy and Paragenesis

  Mining Metallurgy & Exploration · 2024-11-13 · 4 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Geometallurgy of the Tenke-Fungurume sediment-hosted copper-cobalt district, D.R. Congo

  Minerals Engineering · 2024-09-23 · 3 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• ASSESSMENT AND RECOVERY OF CRITICAL ELEMENTS IN WASTE FROM PORPHYRY COPPER MINING

  Abstracts with programs - Geological Society of America · 2024-01-01

  article1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• CAREER: Integrating geology and metallurgy for efficient, sustainable production of critical elements for the green economy

  NSF · $507k · 2021–2027

• SusChEM: Exploring Links Among U, Fe, and Hydrocarbon Movement in the Paradox Basin, Colorado Plateau

  NSF · $98k · 2017–2020

Frequent coauthors

• Mark D. Barton

  21 shared

• Jingping He

  18 shared

• Maxwell S Drexler

  University of Arizona

  15 shared

• Jennifer C. McIntosh

  University of Arizona

  14 shared

• J. Brent Hiskey

  University of Arizona

  13 shared

• Grant Ferguson

  University of Saskatchewan

  13 shared

• Leon Duplessis

  Arizona Geological Survey

  12 shared

• Jaeheon Lee

  Colorado School of Mines

  10 shared

Awards & honors

• MSHA 5000-23 certified, Mine Safety and Health Administratio…