Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

An Investigation Into The Origin, Composition, And Commercial Significance Of A Sedimentary Subsalt Formation: Keathley Canyon, Gulf Of Mexico, David Aaron Brassieur

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Sub-salt oil and gas formations in deep-water northern Gulf of Mexico are high priority targets. Advances in seismic processing allow for high-resolution, below-salt imaging. Understanding the modes of salt emplacement provide insight into sub-salt traps and potential drilling hazards.

A sub-salt sedimentary unit lies in the Keathley Canyon protraction. Autosutures created the transport-parallel lineaments of the upper surface of the unit. In addition, highly variable sediment aggradation rates created ramps, flats, and basal cutoffs along the base of the allochthon as salt and sediment competed for space. Seismic models identify modes of salt emplacement, salt/sediment interactions, and mechanisms responsible for …

Anomaly Detection From Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Imagery, Qiandong Guo, Ruiliang Pu, Jun Cheng

School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Hyperspectral remote sensing imagery contains much more information in the spectral domain than does multispectral imagery. The consecutive and abundant spectral signals provide a great potential for classification and anomaly detection. In this study, two real hyperspectral data sets were used for anomaly detection. One data set was an Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data covering the post-attack World Trade Center (WTC) and anomalies are fire spots. The other data set called SpecTIR contained fabric panels as anomalies compared to their background. Existing anomaly detection algorithms including the Reed–Xiaoli detector (RXD), the blocked adaptive computation efficient outlier nominator (BACON), the …

Microstructural Analysis Of Thermoelastic Response, Nonlinear Creep, And Pervasive Cracking In Heterogeneous Materials, Alden C. Cook

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation is concerned with the development of robust numerical solution procedures for the generalized micromechanical analysis of linear and nonlinear constitutive behavior in heterogeneous materials. Although the methods developed are applicable in many engineering, geological, and materials science fields, three main areas are explored in this work. First, a numerical methodology is presented for the thermomechanical analysis of heterogeneous materials with a special focus on real polycrystalline microstructures obtained using electron backscatter diffraction techniques. Asymptotic expansion homogenization and finite element analysis are employed for micromechanical analysis of polycrystalline materials. Effective thermoelastic properties of polycrystalline materials are determined and compared …

Soil Moduli Obtained From A Back Pressure Constant Rate Of Strain Bender Element Consolidation Apparatus, Yi Zhao

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A back-pressure saturated, constant-rate-of-strain consolidation device was modified to incorporate bender elements (BP-CRS-BE) and thus allowed for shear wave measurements during consolidation tests. This newly fabricated system has many advantages over other previous or current devices: 1) it can be utilized not only for laboratory prepared soil samples but also for field sampled soils such as Shelby tube samples, and 2) continuous compression curves, and continuous values of vertical hydraulic conductivity and coefficient of consolidation can be acquired with a significant reduction in testing time. Soil modulus values such as shear modulus and constrained modulus are also able to be …

Impact Of Spatial Averaging On Radar Reflectivity At Internal Snowpack Layer Boundaries, N. Rutter, H.P. Marshall, K. Tape, R. Essery, J. King

CGISS Publications and Presentations

Microwave radar amplitude within a snowpack can be strongly influenced by spatial variability of internal layer boundaries. We quantify the impact of spatial averaging of snow stratigraphy and physical snowpack properties on surface scattering from near-nadir frequency-modulated continuous- wave radar at 12–18 GHz. Relative permittivity, density, grain size and stratigraphic boundaries were measured in-situ at high resolution along the length of a 9 m snow trench. An optimal range of horizontal averaging (4–6 m) was identified to attribute variations in surface scattering at layer boundaries to dielectric contrasts estimated from centimetre-scale measurements of snowpack stratigraphy and bulk layer properties. Single …

Hydrocode Modeling Of Oblique Impacts Into Terrestrial Planets, Jordan D. Kendall

Open Access Dissertations

The abundance of moderately siderophile elements (“iron-loving”; e.g., Co, Ni) in the Earth’s mantle is 10 to 100 times larger than predicted by chemical equilibrium between silicate melt and iron at low pressure, but it does match expectation for equilibrium at high pressure and temperature. Recent studies of differentiated planetesimal impacts assume that planetesimal cores survive the impact intact as concentrated masses that passively settle from a zero initial velocity and undergo turbulent entrainment in a global magma ocean; under these conditions, cores greater than 10 km in diameter do not fully mix without a sufficiently deep magma ocean. I …

Investigation Of Ambient Seismic Noise Using Seismic Interferometry In The Midwestern United States, Joshua Dakota Boschelli

Open Access Theses

The portion of the North American craton occupied by the Midwestern United States is a cratonic platform, where a veneer of Phanerozoic sedimentary strata buries the Precambrian basement up to 7 km. Due to the sediment cover and low topographic relief, the at depth structure of the region remains poorly understood. This region is of particular interest because over the past half-billion years tectonic forces have resulted in the formation of epeirogenic provinces in a stable cratonic interior. Using the OIINK flexible seismic array and the Earthscope Transportable Array, Ambient Seismic Noise Tomography was applied to investigate the crustal structure …

Using Near-Infrared Photography To Better Study Snow Microstructure And Its Variability Over Time And Space, Jesse Raymond Dean

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

The methods typically used to study snow stratigraphy, microstructure, and variability are expensive, cumbersome, and often highly subjective. Near-infrared (NIR) photography is a low-cost, portable tool to rapidly collect high-resolution, objective measurements of snow microstructure and variability. To expand its application, an active-source NIR flash was introduced to the traditionally passive-source method. NIR imagery was collected alongside proven snowpit methods such as manual observation, Snow Fork wetness, and Snow Micro-Penetrometer hardness profiles. NIR photography was also deployed in five pits along a 10.6 km transect in Grand Mesa, CO, to track stratigraphy variations in space. The NIR flash was found …

Continuous Snow Water Equivalent Measurements With Ultra-Wideband Radar: Towards A New Generation Of Real-Time Automated Snow Sensor Arrays, Mark Edward Robertson

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Snow accounts for the majority of precipitation in many areas of the Western United States, and accurate measurements of the amount of water contained in the snowpack, known as snow water equivalent (SWE), are therefore important for water resource managers. The National Resources Conservation Service Snow Telemetry (SNOTEL) sites are the current standard remote measurement of SWE, with approximately 800 sites across the Western United States. Measurements at these sites are made by snow pillows, which weigh the overburden pressure of a snowpack, and are relatively expensive to install and maintain. Spring runoff is modeled using a 30-year average of …

Using Infrasound Waves To Monitor Tropospheric Weather And Crater Morphology Changes, Hugo David Ortiz

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Infrasound waves generated during volcanic eruptions and recorded near the vent are used to study both changing atmospheric conditions and volcano eruption source characteristics. Infrasound data were recorded for a 32 month period at Volcán Tungurahua (Ecuador) by a five-station network located within 6.5 km from the vent. Infrasound detections made through cross-network correlation indicate cyclic eruptive behavior, which is corroborated by reports from the Ecuadorian monitoring agency. Cross-network correlation lag times are used to compute _10 m resolution infrasound source positions, which take into account NOAA models of local wind and temperature. Variable infrasound-derived source locations suggests source migration …

Characterization And Delineation Of Karst Geohazards Along Rm652 Using Electrical Resistivity Tomography, Culberson County, Texas, Adam F. Majzoub

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Delaware Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico is the major western subdivision of the Permian Basin and a northern extension of the Chihuahuan Desert. The major evaporite unit within the Delaware Basin is the Castile Formation, which consists of gypsum/anhydrite and is highly susceptible to dissolution and karsting. Manifestations of karst within the Castile outcrop are abundant and include sinkholes, subsidence features and caves, both epigene and hypogene in origin.

Land reconnaissance surveys conducted during the summer of 2015 documented abundant karst landforms in close proximity to a major thoroughfare, RM 652, in Culberson County, Texas. 2D …

Facies Reconstruction And Stratigraphy Of A Late Pleistocene Bald Cypress Forest Discovered On The Northern Gulf Of Mexico Continental Shelf, Suyapa Gonzalez-Rodriguez

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Facies Reconstruction And Stratigraphy Of A Late Pleistocene Bald Cypress Forest Discovered On The Northern Gulf Of Mexico Continental Shelf, Suyapa Gonzalez

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Improved 2d And 3d Resistivity Surveys Using Buried Electrodes And Optimized Arrays: The Multi-Electrode Resistivity Implant Technique (Merit), Henok Gidey Kiflu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This thesis presents a novel resistivity method called Multi-Electrode resistivity technique (MERIT) that is used for high resolution imaging of complex geologic features at depth and near the edges of survey lines. The MERIT electrodes are especially shaped and designed to be self-driven using a robust-direct push technique. Measurements are taken using optimized arrays that are generated using a modified version of the “Compare-R” optimization algorithm. This work focused on both two-dimensional (MERIT2D) and three-dimensional (MERIT3D) applications of the buried array and show the relevance of the additional information gained by the addition of deep electrodes especially in sites with …

Miocene Contourite Deposition (Along-Slope) Near Desoto Canyon, Gulf Of Mexico: A Product Of An Enhanced Paleo-Loop Current, Shane Christopher Dunn

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A Neogene contourite depositional system was identified and mapped along the DeSoto Slope in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico, U.S.A. A series of drift deposits comprising the larger contourite depositional system were interpreted from a 2-D industry seismic data set. The now subsurface drift deposits are adjacent to the anomalous seabed feature, the DeSoto Canyon, and these data suggest contourite deposition and ocean currents are in integral part of the canyon’s depositional history. The contourite depositional system is underlain by an extensive, middle Miocene aged, erosional unconformity formed by ocean currents. The timing of this erosional surface is in alignment …

The Hydrogeologic Information In Cross-Borehole Complex Conductivity Data From An Unconsolidated Conglomeratic Sedimentary Aquifer, Andrew Binley, John Keery, Lee Slater, Warren Barrash, Mike Cardiff

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Accurate estimation of the hydrological properties of near-surface aquifers is important because these properties strongly influence groundwater flow and solute transport. Laboratory-based investigations have indicated that induced polarization (IP) properties of porous media may be linked, through either semi-empirical or fully mechanistic models, to hydrological properties including hydraulic conductivity. Therefore, there is a need for field assessments of the value of IP measurements in providing insights into the hydrological properties of aquifers. A cross-borehole IP survey was carried out at the Boise Hydrogeophysical Research Site (BHRS), an unconsolidated fluvial aquifer that has previously been well-studied with a variety of geophysical …

Plate Boundary Observatory And Related Networks: Gps Data Analysis Methods And Geodetic Products, Thomas A. Herring, Timothy I. Melbourne, Mark H. Murray, Michael A. Floyd, Walter M. Szeliga, Robert W. King, David A. Phillips, Christine M. Puskas, Marcelo Santillan, Lei Wang

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

The Geodesy Advancing Geosciences and EarthScope (GAGE) Facility Global Positioning System (GPS) Data Analysis Centers produce position time series, velocities, and other parameters for approximately 2000 continuously operating GPS receivers spanning a quadrant of Earth’s surface encompassing the high Arctic, North America, and Caribbean. The purpose of this review is to document the methodology for generating station positions and their evolution over time and to describe the requisite trade-offs involved with combination of results. GAGE GPS analysis involves formal merging within a Kalman filter of two independent, loosely constrained solutions: one is based on precise point positioning produced with the …

Investigation Of The Seismic Velocity Distribution And Crustal Structure Of Turkey By Means Of Gravity Data, Uğur Akin

Bulletin of the Mineral Research and Exploration

In this study, the apparent gravity density data was measured for Turkey using apparent density filter, and the seismic velocity distribution map was generated from this data cluster. By interpreting these two measured data clusters, three dimensional structure of the Conrad discontinuity was investigated. The apparent gravity filter is a kind of filter which is used in the apparent gravity measurements for different depth levels different than gravity data. In this study, considering previously measured distribution of the continental crustal thickness of the Anatolia, the density maps for different depth levels were formed and interpreted. The lowest and highest densities …

Geophysical Regional Gravity Maps Of Turkey And Its General Assessment, Selim Arslan

Bulletin of the Mineral Research and Exploration

In this study, the maps generated from the regional gravity data, which had been measured within scope of “Türkiye Rejyonal Gravite Haritaları Projesi” (Regional Gravity Map of Turkey) project were introduced. The topography, Free Air, Bouguer gravity, isostatic residual, isostatic regional, density and crust thickness maps of Turkey in 1/1 500 000 scale were prepared using database which started in 1973 and ended in 2011. The boundaries of the main tectonic members were determined by crust thickness, isostatic residual and Bouguer gravity maps of Turkey. Within this scope, a database that will illuminate the investigation of crustal structure, the development …

Middle Permian U-Pb Zircon Ages Of The "Glacial" Deposits Of The Atkan Formation, Ayan-Yuryakh Anticlinorium, Magadan Province, Ne Russia: Their Significance For Global Climatic Interpretations, V. I. Davydov, A. S. Biakov, J. L. Isbell, J. Crowley, M. D. Schmitz, I. L. Vedernikov

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Atkan Formation in the Ayan-Yuryakh anticlinorium, Magadan province, northeastern Russia, is of great interest because of the occurrence of deposits of apparent “dropstones” and “ice rafted debris” that have been previously interpreted as glacial. Two high-precision U-Pb zircon ages, one for an intercalated volcanic tuff (262.5 ± 0.2 Ma) and the other for a boulder clast (269.8 ± 0.1 Ma) within a diamictite of the Atkan Formation, constrain the age of the Atkan Formation as Guadalupian (middle Permian). Sedimentologic study of the Atkan Formation casts doubt on the glacial nature of the diamictites. Deposition of rocks of the Atkan …

Modeling The Thickness Of Perennial Ice Covers On Stratified Lakes Of The Taylor Valley, Antarctica, Maciej K. Obryk, Peter T. Doran, Jared A. Hicks, Christopher P. Mckay, John Charles Priscu

Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations

A 1-D ice cover model was developed to predict and constrain drivers of long-term ice thick-ness trends in chemically stratified lakes of Taylor Valley, Antarctica. The model is driven by surface ra-diative heat fluxes and heat fluxes from the underlying water column. The model successfully reproduced 16 a (between 1996 and 2012) of ice thickness changes for the west lobe of Lake Bonney (average ice thickness = 3.53 m) and Lake Fryxell (average ice thickness = 4.22 m). Long-term ice thick-ness trends require coupling with the thermal structure of the water column. The heat stored within the temperature maximum of …

The Application Of Geophysical Inversion Techniques To The Nechalacho Rare Earth Element Deposit, Nt, Derek W. Kouhi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Nechalacho deposit is a world-class rare earth element deposit located in the Thor Lake region approximately 100 kilometers southwest of Yellowknife, NT, Canada. Located within the Blatchford Lake Intrusion Complex, this deposit has the potential to be a large-scale economic asset due to its relatively shallow and sub-horizontal geometry. In this study, geophysical inversion techniques are used to model subsurface magnetic susceptibility and density in order to delineate the deposit. Isolated and joint inversion of both magnetic and gravity data provides similar models. Each inversion procedure delineates a shallow, sub-horizontal layer of high susceptibility and density in approximately the …

The Geophysical Kitchen Sink Approach To Improving Our Understanding Of Volcano-Tectonic Interactions, Ophelia Ann George

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

A multi-prong approach was taken in this dissertation to understand volcanic processes from both a long-term and more immediate hazard perspective. In the long-term, magma sources within the crust may produce measurable surficial response and long-wavelength gravity anomalies that provide information about the extent and depth of this magma. Long-term volcanic hazard forecasting is also improved by developing as complete a record as possible of past events. In the short-term, a long-standing question has been on the casting of precursory volcanic activity in terms of future volcanic hazards. Three studies are presented in this dissertation to address these issues. Inversion …

Isolating Retrograde And Prograde Rayleigh-Wave Modes Using A Polarity Mute, Gabriel Gribler, Lee M. Liberty, T. Dylan Mikesell, Paul Michaels

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Estimates of S-wave velocity with depth from Rayleigh-wave dispersion data are limited by the accuracy of fundamental and/or higher mode signal identification. In many scenarios, the fundamental mode propagates in retrograde motion, whereas higher modes propagate in prograde motion. This difference in particle motion (or polarity) can be used by joint analysis of vertical and horizontal inline recordings. We have developed a novel method that isolates modes by separating prograde and retrograde motions; we call this a polarity mute. Applying this polarity mute prior to traditional multichannel analysis of surface wave (MASW) analysis improves phase velocity estimation for fundamental and …

Biotic Paleothermometry Constrains On Arctic Plates Reconstructions: Carboniferous And Permian (Zhokhov Island, De-Longa Group Islands, New Siberian Archipelago), Vladimir I. Davydov

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

A warm-water fauna and flora from a Carboniferous limestone xenolith that was captured during penetration of deep intraplate Cenozoic basalts through a Paleozoic carbonate platform have been found on Zhokhov Island, New Siberian Archipelago (NSA). This limestone xenolith contains a very high taxonomic diversity of Moscovian (Middle Pennsylvanian) tropical foraminifera and calcareous algae. As this warm-water biota never occurs north of the forbiddance line, i.e., 30–35°N/S, this fauna and algal flora constrain the paleogeography and interpretation of the paleotectonics in the region. Thus, the location of the most of the New Siberian Archipelago islands at that time must have been …

Using Physical And Social Sensors In Real-Time Data Streaming For Natural Hazard Monitoring And Response, Yelena Kropivnitskaya

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Technological breakthroughs in computing over the last few decades have resulted in important advances in natural hazards analysis. In particular, integration of a wide variety of information sources, including observations from spatially-referenced physical sensors and new social media sources, enables better estimates of real-time hazard. The main goal of this work is to utilize innovative streaming algorithms for improved real-time seismic hazard analysis by integrating different data sources and processing tools into cloud applications. In streaming algorithms, a sequence of items from physical and social sensors can be processed in as little as one pass with no need to store …

Anisotropic Waveform Tomography: Application To Crosshole Data For Transversely Isotropic Media, Shaun Michael Hadden

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Anisotropic Traveltime Tomography and Full Waveform Inversion were applied first to synthetic and then to real data following the development of a transversely isotropic model for handling anisotropy. Best-fitting models of seismic velocity and Thomsen's anisotropy parameters were initially obtained from traveltime tomography, and then used as the starting models for Full Waveform Inversion. The use of a Laplace transform approach effectively damps late arriving S-wave artifacts that introduce errors into the modelling process. The results of the synthetic study highlights the tradeoffs in resolution between the two parameter classes, but verify anisotropic traveltime tomography as a valid method for …

3d Post-Stack Seismic Inversion Using Global Optimization Techniques: Gulf Of Mexico Example, Elijah A. Adedeji

University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Seismic inversion using a global optimization algorithm is a non-linear, model-driven process. It yields an optimal solution of the cost function – reflectivity/acoustic impedance, when prior information is sparse. The inversion result offers detailed interpretations of thin layers, internal stratigraphy, and lateral continuity and connectivity of sand bodies. This study compared two stable and robust global optimization techniques, Simulated Annealing (SA) and Basis Pursuit Inversion (BPI) as applied to post-stack seismic data from the Gulf of Mexico.

Both methods use different routines and constraints to search for the minimum error energy function. Estimation of inversion parameters in SA is rigorous …

Particle Swarm Transport In Porous Media, Alison R. Hoe, Laura J Pyrak-Nolte

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

In recent years, interest in particulate transport in the subsurface has increased with the increased use of micro-particulates in consumer products. In this research, we study particulate swarm transport through porous media that depends on the complexity of the flow paths, on the size and shape of the particles and on the physical interactions among the particles, fluids, and matrix. Specifically, we investigate the effect of pore geometry and grain wettability on swarm evolution under gravity. Swarms were composed of 3 micron polystyrene beads in either water or water with KCL (%). Two types of grains are used to simulate …

Seismic Body-Wave Interferometry Using Noise Autocorrelations For Crustal Structure And A Tutorial On 3d Seismic Processing And Imaging Using Madagascar, Can Oren

Open Access Theses

Seismic body-wave interferometry is applied to selected seismic stations from the USArray Earthscope Transportable Array (TA) by autocorrelating ambient seismic noise recordings to construct effective zero-offset reflection seismograms. The robustness of the auto-correlations of noise traces is first tested on a TA station in Nevada where body-wave reflections similar to those found in an earlier study are identified. This approach is then applied to several TA stations in the central U.S., and the results are compared with synthetic data. Different stacking time periods are then examined to find the shortest time intervals that provide stable correlation stacks.

A tutorial on …