Currently, I am involved in project financed by Croatian Science Foundation entitled Nanominerals in sediments and soils: formation, properties and the role in biogeochemical processes. The project aims to investigate the presence, formation, unique properties and the role of the naturally occurring inorganic nanomineral fraction in biogeochemical processes, particularly in the cycling of trace elements, in different modern marine and lacustrine sediments and soils developed on the carbonate rocks of the Adriatic region.

The subject of my PhD thesis was origin, conditions and diagenetical changes of Cretaceous paleosols formed during regional emersion of isolated Adriatic carbonate platform.

Soils and paleosols are subject of my interest since the beginning of my scientific career. My investigation of soils and paleosols was financed by Ministry of Science, Education and Sport (projects No.: 195-005; 0195-034 and 195-1953068-2704) and covered different topics, from environmental point of view (distribution and speciation of potentially toxic metals) to pedological aspect, as well as geotechnical viewpoint (excessive flysh erosion in Vinodol valley). Additionally, I was collaborator in bilateral Austrian-Croatian Project “Comparison between Terroirs of Istria, Vienna and Wachau”, investigating soils of Istrian Malvasia vineyards developed on terra rossa and flysch.

My interest for the impact of mining on the environment has already begun during work on my diploma thesis. Later, to a lesser extent I discussed impact of mining in my master thesis. Recently, I intensified my work on this subject through the IGCP Project No. 594, "Impact of Mining on the Environment in Africa". I investigated the speciation of potentially toxic metals in soils developed over historic silver mine St. Jakob on Medvednica mountain, as well as in overbank sediments of Gradna river in Samoborsko Gorje which drain old copper mine. In the frame of IGCP Project 594, I investigated impact of mining, mine processing and smelting in the Otavi Mountainland (mines: Tsumeb, Kombat, Berg Aukas) in northern Namibia on agricultural soils (determination of potentially toxic metals speciation and bioavailability in soil) and children’s health (bioaccessibility of potentially toxic metals from ingested soil in human body).

In collaboration with archaeologists, I am engaged in geoarchaeology and archaeometry of ceramics.

We investigated the geological context of the archaeological site of Pleistocene-Holocene age in Vela Spila on Korčula island and the origin of the deposited material.

I investigated the provenance of raw material and technology of ceramics from different archaeological sites and different archaeological ages (eg. antique Gnathia ceramics on Vis island; graphitic Late Iron Age pottery from Slavonia; Bronze Age ceramics from Slavonija, Podravina and Turopolje and ceramics of Vučedol culture from Eastern Slavonia) by archaeometrical methods (mainly optical microscopy and X-ray diffraction). I conducted prospection and investigation of potential raw material for the production of local pottery on island of Vis, Papuk mountain, areas of Podravina, Turopolje, Vinkovci and Stari Mikanovci.

Currently, I am interested in the development of direct ceramic dating method by rehydroxilation.

I dealt with geochemical, mineralogical and statistical studies on the impact of geological (lithological) substrate, ore paragnesis and anthropogenic activities on the spatial distribution of chemical elements in stream and overbank sediments of small drainage basins during the making of my master's thesis. The case study was Žumberačko-Samoborsko gorje. I collaborated with scientists from Croatian Geological Survey who worked on project "Geochemical Map of Croatia". The research results were used in defining the advantages and disadvantages of stream and flood sediments as sampling media in environmental geochemisty, as well as in exploration geochemistry.

I was collaborator in project entitled: Groundwater and Dependent Ecosystems: New Scientific and Technological Basis for Assessing Climate Change and Land-use Impacts on Groundwater (GENESIS), funded under the thematic area Environment (including Climate Change) of the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007-2013). The objective of GENESIS was to integrate pre-existing and new scientific knowledge into new methods, concepts and tools for the revision of the Ground Water Directive and better management of groundwater resources. I was part of the Croatian team which was focused on Zagreb aquifer. My main interest was shallow unsaturated zone of this unconfined aquifer, its mineral and chemical properties, water flow and solute transport, as well as different processes which govern solute transport.

Working with scientists from Croatia and abroad I have dealt with other topics such as palaeoecological reconstruction of clay deposits Ričica near Karlovac; mineralogical studies of loess palaeosol profile at Šarengrad; testing of bentonite for use in landfills; alternative ways of treating hazardous waste from petroleum, the assessment of climate change using water, soil and honey as sampling media; etc.