Biography

Associate professor. Dr. Yao received her Ph.D. at the University of Toronto in 2020 before she worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University. In 2021 summer, she joined the Southern University of Science and Technology faculty in the Department of Ocean Science and Engineering. Dr. Yao has a broad range of interests in the fields of global biogeochemical cycles, seawater chemistry, and paleoceanography and paleoclimatology on various geological timescales. Stable isotope geochemistry and numerical modeling are the primary approaches for her research. 

Yao’s lab focuses on 1) reconstructing the temporal and spatial evolution of global biogeochemical (C/S/O/N/P) cycles over the Cenozoic, 2) developing marine barite as a chemical and isotopic tracer of paleo-productivity and seawater multi-isotope compositions, 3) investigating nutrients (e.g., nitrate, phosphate) and trace elements in various marine envrionments. The overarching goal is to elucidate the response and feedback mechanisms of biogeochemical processes to climate and tectonic changes and to provide insights into anthropological impacts on our planet.

Educational Background

2020  Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Department of Earth Sciences, University of Toronto

2015  Master of Science (M.Sc.), Department of Earth Sciences, University of Toronto

2014  Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.), School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University

Professional Experience

2022–Present Associate Professor, Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science & Technology 

2021–2022 Assistant Professor, Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science & Technology 

2021 Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Harvard University 

2020 Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Physical and Environmental Sciences, University of Toronto

Honors and Awards

2023  Marine Young Scientist Nomination Award

2021  Shenzhen High-level Professional Talents 

2020  Harry Elderfield Outstanding Student Paper Award, American Geophysical Union, USA 

2020  National Outstanding Self-funded Student Scholarship 

2018–2019  H.V. Ellsworth Graduate Fellowships in Mineralogy 

2017–2018  P.C. Finlay Q.C. President's Fellowships in Geology

2016  Centre for Global Change Science Graduate Student Research Award 

2015–2016  Laurence and Theresa Curtis Explorers Graduate Scholarship 

2015–2016  W. W. Moorhouse Fellowship

Projects

1. National Natural Science Foundation of China - National Talent Youth, Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology, 2022.01–2024.12., under research, PI

2. National Natural Science Foundation of China - General Project, 42376049, Ocean deoxygenation and nutrient cycles during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, 2024.01–2027.12, under research, PI

3. National Key Technologies R&D Program of China - Young Scientists Program, 2022YFF0802900, Orbital-scale evolution of ocean deoxygenation during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, 2022.12–2027.11, under research, core participation

4. University Stability Support Program of Shenzhen - General Project, 20231114150312001, The response of foraminiferal carbonate associated sulfate to marine environments, 2023.10–2025.09, under research, PI 

5.  Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong - General Project, New perspective on marine biological pump efficiency: A case study from fecal pellets and marine barite precipitation in the Southern Ocean, 2024.01–2026.12, under research, PI

Publications

Featured publications (*Corresponding Author):

1. National Natural Science Foundation of China - National Talent Youth, Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology, 2022.01–2024.12., under research, PI

2. National Natural Science Foundation of China - General Project, 42376049, Ocean deoxygenation and nutrient cycles during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, 2024.01–2027.12, under research, PI

3. National Key Technologies R&D Program of China - Young Scientists Program, 2022YFF0802900, Orbital-scale evolution of ocean deoxygenation during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, 2022.12–2027.11, under research, core participation

4. University Stability Support Program of Shenzhen - General Project, 20231114150312001, The response of foraminiferal carbonate associated sulfate to marine environments, 2023.10–2025.09, under research, PI 

5.  Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong - General Project, New perspective on marine biological pump efficiency: A case study from fecal pellets and marine barite precipitation in the Southern Ocean, 2024.01–2026.12, under research, PI

Publications

Featured publications (*Corresponding Author):

1. Yao W.*, Wortmann U.G. (2022) Glaciers sparked volcanism that harmed ocean health. Nature 611, 35-36. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-03456-3

2. Yao W.*, Paytan A., Wortmann U.G. (2018) Large-scale ocean deoxygenation during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Science 361(6404), 804-806. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aar8658 

3.  Yao W.*, Paytan A., Wortmann U.G. (2020) Effects of a transient marine sulfur reservoir on seawater δ18OSO4 during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 269, 257-269. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2019.10.019

4.  Yao W.*, Markovic S., Paytan A., Erhardt A.M., Wortmann U.G. (2021) Quantifying pyrite oxidation on continental shelves during the onset of Antarctic glaciation in the Eocene-Oligocene transition. Earth and Planetary Science Letters 568, 117015. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2021.117015

5.  Yao W.*, Paytan A., Griffith E.M., Martı́nez-Ruiz F., Markovic S., Wortmann U.G. (2020) A revised seawater sulfate S-isotope curve for the Eocene. Chemical Geology 532, 119382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2019.119382

6.  Yao W., Paytan A.* (2020) Possible triggers of the seawater sulfate S-isotope increase between 55 and 40 million years ago. Chemical Geology 552, 119788. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2020.119788

7.  Yao W., Griffith E.M., Paytan A.* (2021) Pelagic Barite: a Tracer of Ocean Productivity and a Recorder of Isotopic Compositions of Seawater S, O, Sr, Ca and Ba. In Lyons T.W., Turchyn A.V., Reinhard C.T. (Eds.), Elements in Geochemical Tracers in Earth System Science. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108847162

8.  Yao W., Wortmann U.G., Paytan A.* (2019) Sulfur isotope – Use for stratigraphy during times of rapid perturbations. In Montenari M. (Ed.), Stratigraphy & Timescales, Volume 4, pp. 1-33, Academic Press, Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.sats.2019.08.004

9. Yao W.*, Tsang M.-T., Wortmann U.G. (2022). Oxidation of pyrite during barite extraction. Chemical Geology 607, 121011. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2022.121011.

10. Zhai R., Zeng Z., Zhang R., Yao W.* (2023) The response of nitrogen and sulfur cycles to ocean deoxygenation across the Cenomanian-Turonian boundary. Global and Planetary Change 227, 104182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2023.104182 

11.  Nan J., Tsang M.-Y., Li J., Köster M., Henkel S., Lin F., Yao W.* (2023) Postdepositional behavior of molybdenum in deep sediments and implications for paleoredox reconstruction. Geophysical Research Letters 50, e2023GL104706. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL104706

12. Jiang X., Zhao X., Sun X., Roberts A.P., Sluijs A., Chou Y.-M.*, Yao W.*, Xing J., Zhang W., Liu Q. (2024) Iron fertilization-induced deoxygenation of Eastern Equatorial Pacific intermediate waters during the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum. Geology.

13. Nan J., Zhu K., Ren J., Yao W.*, Peng X.* (2023) Assessing micrometer-scale contamination from organic materials in serpentinite analysis. Science of The Total Environment 903, 166609. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166609

14.  Waldeck A.R.*, Hemingway J.D., Yao W., Paytan A., Johnston D.T. (2022) The triple oxygen isotope composition of marine sulfate and 130 million years of microbial control. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 119(31), e2202018119. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2202018119

15. Paytan A.*, Yao W., Faul K.L., Gray E.T. (2020) Sulfur isotope stratigraphy. In Gradstein F.M., Ogg J.G., Schmitz M.B., Ogg G.M. (Eds.), Geologic Time Scale 2020, Volume 1, pp. 259-278, Elsevier Science & Technology, Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-824360-2.00009-7

Reviewer Editor for: Frontiers in Geochemistry

Peer reviewer for: Nature; Nature Geoscience; Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences; Geology; Earth and Planetary Science Letters; Geophysical Research Letter; Communications Earth and Environment; Limnology and Oceanography; Chemical Geology; Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems; Global and Planetary Change; Paleoceanography & Paleoclimatology; Marine Geology; Applied Geochemistry; Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology; etc.