McBride, Murray Brian

Professor
My long-term interests focus on understanding the behavior of contaminants at the soil-water interface in the environment, with particular emphasis on the phytotoxic and zootoxic trace and heavy metals. In order to understand adsorption and degradation processes mechanistically, I use numerous methods such as spectroscopy to investigate speciation and bonding of metal ions and organic molecules at surfaces and in soil solution. I have interest in the issue of soil health, as it is impacted by the contamination of soils by various waste materials, commercial fertilizers and manures.

research

research and scholarship focus

The focus of my research at present is the elusive concept of bioavailability of toxic and trace metals in soils, considering all of the properties of soils that modify this bioavailability. Ultimately, this research has several goals, protecting food crops from toxic metal contaminants, minimizing trace element deficiencies, and developing methods for testing and remediating contaminated soils.

research areas

affiliations

faculty appointment in

administrative appointment

member of graduate field

other Cornell affiliations

teaching

teaching focus

I teach an undergraduate course in Environmental Chemistry, which covers important environmental topics in soils, the atmosphere, and the hydrosphere. This course uses case studies of pollution in the biosphere and considers the potential effects on soil, plant, animal and human health. Because new environmental issues are emerging every year as more is learned, lectures evolve in response to this dynamic situation.| I also teach an advanced soil chemistry course, intended primarily for graduate students with a strong background in physical chemistry. This course covers the basic chemistry of clay mineralogy, soil organic matter, soil acidity, cation exchange, chemisorption of metal cations and oxyanions, redox processes and soil salinity.

service

outreach focus

As part of my outreach activities as Director of the Cornell Waste Management Institute, I am involved in working with extension staff at Cornell in developing guidelines and publications on the management of waste products (composts, sewage products, fly ash, etc.) used in farms and gardens. Improved methods of testing contaminated soils for toxic metals such as lead, zinc, cadmium and copper, and interpreting these tests, is also a focus of my outreach effort.

background

educational background

  • PhD, Michigan State University, 1974
  • MS, Michigan State University, 1972
  • BS, University of Guelph, 1971

professional background

  • Faculty, Cornell University, 1975-present
Keywords: clay chemistry, environmental chemistry, fate of xenobiotics in soils, soil chemistry, soil health, soil pollution, surface chemistry, toxic metals, toxic organics