Maureen Le Bars

Dr. Maureen Le Bars is a Lecturer at the Department of Environmental Systems Science, ETH Zurich. Her research focuses on environmental chemistry, biogeochemistry, trace element cycling, soil science, microbial processes, and nanoparticle fate. She investigates interactions between organic matter, minerals, and trace elements like mercury, copper, and zinc in soils and waste systems.

Her work emphasizes microbial contributions to mercury methylation, nanoparticle behavior in environmental matrices, and sustainable waste recycling. Recent studies include mercury dynamics in soils and anaerobic bacteria, copper speciation during waste treatment, and zinc sulfide nanoparticles' instability during composting.

Publications highlight methodological innovations like synchrotron-based imaging and X-ray spectroscopy. No scientific awards are explicitly listed. While no student advisees are documented, her research spans interdisciplinary topics such as microbial biofilms' roles in nanoparticle fate and Arctic soil mercury transformations.