Tadeusz Depciuch : pionier badań geochronologicznych w Polsce

Dr Tadeusz Depciuch (1928–2007), geochemist, mineralogist and economic geologist, longtime employee of the Polish Geological Institute in Warsaw, as the first scientist in Poland who conducted a systematic study on isotopic age of crystalline rocks. In 1966, after preliminary age determinations by Dr Jerzy Borucki, he undertook research of crystalline rocks of the Lower Silesian Block, mainly granites, and subsequently of rocks of the basement of the Polish part of the East European Precambrian Platform penetrated in the 1960s and 1970s, as well as igneous rocks of its cover. He used the K-Ar method, applying its volumetric variety on own-designed equipment. Age determinations allowed identifying the magmatic and metamorphic stages of the development of the crystalline basement evolution, and establishing the stratigraphy. They also played an important role in the research on Variscan plutonism in Lower Silesia. Tadeusz Depciuch participated in prospecting for uranium deposits in the Sudetes, using geochemical methods, and studied the origin of some deposits. In 1974–1984, he worked in Africa (Benin) as a UN expert in the field of geochemistry and economic geology.