He completed his postgraduate education in analytical chemistry at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he was awarded a PhD in 1966 for analysis of organic constituents of terrestrial and extraterrestrial samples using mass spectrometry supervised by Klaus Biemann.

This innovation provided a foundation for new studies of the pathways of carbon in natural environments, both modern and ancient.

[1] For 26 years he was a professor in the departments of chemistry and geology at Indiana University Bloomington, then moved to Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.

[1] Beginning in 2019, the Organic Geochemistry Division of the Geochemical Society is given an annual award in Hayes's name to a mid-career scientist for outstanding accomplishments that draw together multiple fields of investigation to advance biogeochemical science.

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