David ZakharovView profile
Assistant Professor
David Zakharov is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences at Western Michigan University (WMU), specializing in petrology, stable isotope geochemistry, and water-rock interaction. His research focuses on the geochemical co-evolution of Earth’s crust and hydrosphere, particularly through igneous and metamorphic processes, with projects targeting Archean subaerial magmatism, Precambrian chert geochemistry, and fluid circulation in oceanic crust. At WMU, Zakharov established a stable isotope lab in January 2023, equipped with advanced instrumentation including a Thermo EA Isolink, Renishaw Raman microscope, and CO2 laser. His lab conducts high-precision triple O-isotope (δ¹⁸O, δD, Δ¹⁷O) analyses, geochronology, and SIMS measurements, collaborating on studies such as the 2025 Chemical Geology paper on exceptionally low δ¹⁸O zircon values and the 2024 Chemical Geology paper on experimental olivine-water reactions. He has presented at major conferences like Goldschmidt 2024 and AGU Fall Meeting 2022. Zakharov’s research integrates fieldwork, laboratory experiments, and analytical techniques to reconstruct ancient environmental conditions, such as seawater chemistry and hydrological cycles. His lab has hosted distinguished lecturers and workshops, including a 2024 SIMS Workshop at UCLA. Current projects involve PhD students Israr Hussain, Afrid Abdaly Sheik, and Zack Stevens, with recent publications highlighting reactive fluid dynamics, silicification processes, and isotopic constraints on early Earth environments.










