Staff
Dr.
Theresa Hennig
Function and Responsibilities:
Leader of working group Geochemistry of nuclear waste disposalResearch Interests:
Reactive transport simulations
Hydrogeochemical modelling
Nuclear waste disposal
Radionuclide migration
Water-Rock-Interactions
Uranium ore deposits
Career:
since 2026: Working group leader, GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences
2025 - 2026: Postdoc / Feodor Lynen Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA)
2024 - 2025: Working group leader, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam
2022 - 2024: Research fellow (Postdoc), GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam
2018 - 2022: Research fellow (PhD student), GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Potsdam
2014 - 2018: Student assistant, Notus energy Plan
Education:
2018 - 2022: Doctorate in Hydrogeology from University of Potsdam. Dissertation: "Uranium migration in the Opalinus Clay quantified on the host rock scale with reactive transport simulations"
2010 - 2018: Study of Geoecology (B.Sc. and M.Sc.), University of Potsdam. Master thesis: "Hydromechanical simulations to assess chimney formation in the Viking Graben". Bachelor thesis: "Die Reaktion tropischer Böden auf Wiederbewaldung”
Projects:
Mont Terri Underground Rock Laboratory - International research facility investigating Opalinus Clay for the deep geological disposal of radioactive waste
iCross - Integrity of nuclear waste repository systems – Cross-scale system understanding and analysis
Research Boards and Committees:
2023 - 2025 Member of GFZ's Internal Scientific Council
Awards:
2025 Poster award at the 19th Conference on the Migration of Actinides and Fission Products in the Geosphere (Migration’25) in New Orleans (USA)
2025 Feodor Lynen Research Fellowship awarded by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
2024 Poster prize in the category "Early Career Researchers" at the 9th Clay Conference in Hannover
2023 Dissertation Award of the Universitätsgesellschaft Potsdam
2022 Friedrich-Robert-Helmert-Award of the Association of Friends and Supporters of the GFZ