The University of Western Australia

W/Prof Zed Rengel

Winthrop Professor
School of Earth and Environment

Contact details

Address

School of Earth and Environment
The University of Western Australia (M087)
35 Stirling Highway
CRAWLEY WA 6009
Australia

Phone

6488 2557

Fax

6488 1050

Email

zed.rengel@uwa.edu.au

Location

Room 2.242, Soil Science Building, Crawley campus

Qualifications

MSc Zagreb, PhD Louisiana State

Key research

My research interests are in nutrient uptake and ion toxicity in the soil-plant-water-microbe continuum. I have been working on natural and managed ecosystems in the field as well as studying specific mechanisms and relationships in the glasshouse and the lab. Among nutrients, I have been working on nitrate, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium as well as micronutrients (zinc, copper and manganese). Among toxic ions, aluminium, arsenic, zinc and sodium feature prominently. The approaches and techniques used range from ion imaging using confocal laser microscopy, to ion-specific microelectrodes, to enzyme assays and radioisotope tracking, to fiddling with bacteria and fungi in the rhizosphere, to chemical analysis of root exudates, to optimising fertilisation of crop and pasture plants, to computer modelling of root growth and nutrient uptake, and digging pits and holes in the field to access soil, roots and groundwater.

Publications

I have edited 4 books, 3 special issues of the journal Plant and Soil and published more than 160 papers in the referred international journals.

Funding received

I have been well funded in the past by Australian Research Council (ARC), Grains Research and Development Corporation (GRDC), Dairy Research Development Corporation (DRDC), AUSAid and a range of other funding bodies. I was subprogramme leader on mechanisms of subsoil acidification in CRC for Legumes in Mediterannean Agriculture (CLIMA) and am currently leading subprogramme on functioning of native ecosystems in saline and waterlogged land in CRC for Plant-Based Management of Dryland Salinity.

Honours and awards

My work has been recognised by 14 fellowship awards from Australia, UK, Germany, France, Austria and Japan. I was also Visiting Professor in Japan (Okayama University), Denmark (KVL) and USA (USDA/Cornell University).

Research profile

Research profile and publications