Biography

Barry Freifeld is a Guest Scientist/Mechanical Engineer (Retired) at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, where he was the Principal Investigator for numerous projects relating to CO₂ sequestration and arctic hydrology. He also spent three years (2016-2019) as the Head of the Hydrogeology Department in the Earth and Environmental Sciences Area.

He received his BA in Applied Mathematics (UC Berkeley), his MS in Mechanical Engineering (UC Santa Barbara), and PhD in Civil and Environmental Engineering (UC Berkeley, 2001). He is an expert in the development of well-based monitoring instrumentation and techniques. His recent innovations include the U-tube geochemical sampling methodology, as well as thermal perturbation fiber-optic monitoring techniques for understanding subsurface processes. He has also received a U.S. patent for a portable whole-core x-ray computed tomography imaging system used at continental drill sites and on drilling vessels.