The Edge of Enrichment: Contributions of Very Metal-Rich Stars to the Origin of the Elements

While H, He and trace amounts of Li were produced during Big Bang Nucleosynthesis, most elements on the periodic table were formed later in stars and expelled to the interstellar medium in their dying days. The composition of the matter expelled from a given star is closely connected with the initial mass and metal content at its birth. We calculate a series of theoretical nucleosynthesis models to explore how stellar contributions to the enrichment of the Universe (and the periodic table) vary as the stars themselves become more enriched.