Towards Automated Mineral Identification In Martian Rocks From X-Ray Diffraction Patterns, 2023 The University of Western Ontario
Towards Automated Mineral Identification In Martian Rocks From X-Ray Diffraction Patterns, Luke Tambakis
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
The CheMin (Chemistry and Mineralogy) instrument on the Curiosity rover has provided a rich set of X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns from Martian rocks and regolith. These XRD patterns have allowed geologists to make exciting new discoveries about the mineralogy and the geological history of Mars. These discoveries pave the way for further Martian exploration and provide a deeper understanding of Martian geology. The Curiosity rover is very slow by design, travelling at about 4 cm/s. New, faster rovers are being developed to increase scientific throughput and exploration. XRD is valuable for future missions as it can produce new discov- eries …
Architecture Of Extraction: Imagining New Modes Of Inhabitation And Reclamation In The Mining Lifecyle, 2023 University of Massachusetts Amherst
Architecture Of Extraction: Imagining New Modes Of Inhabitation And Reclamation In The Mining Lifecyle, Erica Dewitt
Masters Theses
Mining is the primary method through which modern society obtains the minerals needed to fuel the global economy, provide for modern energy requirements, and support the built environment. Presently, mining accounts for nearly 1% of the global ice-free land surface, with a dramatic increase anticipated in the coming decades. Mining permanently changes and often destroys the pre-existing topography, hydrology, and ecology of the ground, and efforts to reclaim mining landscapes—with the aim of encouraging reforestation and soil replenishment—are often unsuccessful, rendering the land of abandoned mines both unusable and uninhabitable.
This thesis addresses the current state of mining in the …
A Predictive Flood Model For Urban Karst Groundwater Systems, 2023 Western Kentucky University
A Predictive Flood Model For Urban Karst Groundwater Systems, Trayson Lawler
Masters Theses & Specialist Projects
Urban karst environments are often plagued by groundwater flooding, which occurs when water rises from the subsurface to the surface through the underlying caves and other karst features. The heterogeneity and interconnectedness of karst systems often makes them very unpredictable, especially during intense storm events; urbanization exacerbates the problem with the addition of many impervious surfaces. Residents in such areas are frequently disturbed and financially burdened by the effects of karst groundwater flooding. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) offers limited protection to citizens living near flood-prone areas as they primarily focus on the areas near surface bodies of water. …
Seismic Shadow Zone Investigation In The Upper Magma Reservoir Of The Yellowstone Caldera, 2023 University of New Mexico
Seismic Shadow Zone Investigation In The Upper Magma Reservoir Of The Yellowstone Caldera, Sarah Nolt-Caraway
Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs
This study investigates whether the Yellowstone Caldera has enough melt to mute S-waves, creating a seismic shadow zone. Using a dense nodal deployment of ~650 stations, 7-9 earthquakes during the nodal deployment, and 21 broadband stations with 3,000-4,000 events per station; amplitude and noise maps, seismograms, and automatic phase picks probabilities from a deep learning model were analyzed to assess the potential role of melt, crustal attenuation, and noise in affecting body waves, particularly S-phases. The results are inconclusive, with unclear evidence whether observed amplitude decay is normal signal decay due to distance, noise-related, melt, or from scattering and intrinsic …
Seismic Analysis Of The Upper & Lower Falls Of The Yellowstone River, 2023 University of New Mexico
Seismic Analysis Of The Upper & Lower Falls Of The Yellowstone River, Loring Schaible
Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs
Twelve years of concurrent hydrologic and continuous seismic data along with temporary seismic data demonstrate that the Upper and Lower Falls of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River comprise a highly localized source of 0.5-5 Hz seismic energy that overwhelms anthropogenic contributions. In aggregate, seismic amplitude from 2008-2019 is linearly related to discharge with a correlation coefficient of 0.96. Repeated deviations from this linear relationship persist for 1-2 weeks prior to the date that Yellowstone Lake becomes clear of winter ice coverage. Seismic efficiency increases by ~50-250% during this period of ice-breakup, during which lake ice flows into the …
Growth Of Purple Sulfur Bacteria Allochromatium Vinosum On Solid Phase Metal Sulfides As Sulfur And Electron Sources, 2023 University of Texas at El Paso
Growth Of Purple Sulfur Bacteria Allochromatium Vinosum On Solid Phase Metal Sulfides As Sulfur And Electron Sources, Hugo Alarcon
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
Purple sulfur bacteria (PSB) are photosynthetic microorganisms known for their vital roles in geochemical cycles, especially the sulfur cycle, within anoxic photic environments. PSB are also key contributors to the nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen cycles. This study focuses on the autotrophic growth of Allochromatium vinosum, a model strain of PSB, that utilize solid-phase metal sulfides (MS) as both sulfur and electron donors. Through characterizing the growth profiles of A. vinosum on pyrite (FeS2), nickel sulfide (NiS), and iron monosulfide (FeS) nanoparticles, respectively, and investigating the bacteria-MS interaction mechanisms, this work expands our current knowledge of the metabolic capabilities and flexibility …
High-Energy Storm Events And Their Impacts On Carbon Storage In Tidal Wetlands Of South Carolina, 2023 Clemson University
High-Energy Storm Events And Their Impacts On Carbon Storage In Tidal Wetlands Of South Carolina, Gavin Gleasman
All Dissertations
Atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations have been increasing at an accelerating rate for the past two centuries, profoundly impacting global climate change. Atmospheric CO2 concentrations are influenced by the global carbon cycle through physical and biogeochemical pathways. Tidal wetland environments play a vital role in the global carbon cycle by offsetting atmospheric CO2 concentrations through their natural physiochemical processes of high autotrophic productivity, allochthonous organic matter deposition, anoxic soils, and continuous accretion which promotes carbon sequestration with long-term storage at the land-ocean margin. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and United States Global Change Research …
Quantifying The Contribution Of Atmospheric And Land Surface Characteristics To The Prediction Of Sub-Pixel Scale Surface Soil Moisture In The Jornada Experimental Range Through Interpretable Machine Learning, 2023 University of Texas at El Paso
Quantifying The Contribution Of Atmospheric And Land Surface Characteristics To The Prediction Of Sub-Pixel Scale Surface Soil Moisture In The Jornada Experimental Range Through Interpretable Machine Learning, Stephanie Nicole Marquez
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
This study presents machine learning-based approaches for understanding and predicting plot-scale soil moisture's spatial variability using hydrometeorological and biogeophysical data from in-situ, multi-sensor and remote sensing sources. The high-resolution input features include numerical and categorical data such as land surface temperature, ground albedo, 1-day, 1-week and 2-week antecedent precipitation, soil type, land cover type, distance to nearest vegetation individual, terrain slope and elevation, and normalized differenced vegetation index (NDVI). Soil moisture measurements are collected within a 3 km x 3 km desert grid with Campbell Scientific Hydrosense II-12 soil moisture sensors and validated with a gravimetric method of measuring volumetric …
Paradox Diapir Inclusions As A Window Into Diapiric Processes In Proximity To The Uncompahgre Uplift And The Early History Of The Paradox Basin, Utah And Colorado, 2023 University of Texas at El Paso
Paradox Diapir Inclusions As A Window Into Diapiric Processes In Proximity To The Uncompahgre Uplift And The Early History Of The Paradox Basin, Utah And Colorado, Madison Clare Woelfel
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
Layered evaporite sequences, cyclic, kilometer-thick deposits of salt, are among the most unusual and fascinating lithologies that geologists encounter. There is no recent analogue to their formation, and their ability to flow when subject to differential pressure makes them unique. Salt structures serve as sources for halite, bittern salts, metals, and hydrocarbons and can be used for storage of materials, including hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, hydrogen, and nuclear waste. Basins in which layered evaporite sequences are deposited receive detrital input sporadically from adjacent areas, depositing inclusions of non-evaporite lithologies that are entrained when salt flows. These inclusions are exposed in a …
Evaluating How Well Active Fault Mapping Predicts Earthquake Surface-Rupture Locations, 2023 Arizona State University
Evaluating How Well Active Fault Mapping Predicts Earthquake Surface-Rupture Locations, Chelsea Scott, Ramon Arrowsmith, Rachel Adam, Christopher Madugo, Joseph Powell, John Ford, Brian Gray, Ashley Streig, Multiple Additional Authors
Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations
Earthquake surface-fault rupture location uncertainty is a key factor in fault displacement hazard analysis and informs hazard and risk mitigation strategies. Geologists often predict future rupture locations from fault mapping based on the geomorphology interpreted from remote-sensing data sets. However, surface processes can obscure fault location, fault traces may be mapped in error, and a future rupture may not break every fault trace. We assessed how well geomorphology-based fault mapping predicted surface ruptures for seven earthquakes: 1983 M 6.9 Borah Peak, 2004 M 6.0 Parkfield, 2010 M 7.2 El Mayor–Cucapah, 2011 M 6.7 Fukushima-Hamadori, 2014 M 6.0 South Napa, 2016 …
Evaluating The Feasibility Of Using Strain Measured During Sinusoidal Rate Pumping Tests To Characterize An Aquifer, 2023 Clemson University
Evaluating The Feasibility Of Using Strain Measured During Sinusoidal Rate Pumping Tests To Characterize An Aquifer, Riley Blais
All Theses
Pumping tests with sinusoidal variation in pumping rate have been proposed as a method for improving aquifer characterization. These tests can interrogate a larger aquifer volume than slug tests and they can be more sensitive to small variations in drawdown. Current methods of using sinusoidal variations of rate are based on measuring pressure signals from the reservoir or aquifer, which requires access to monitoring wells. An alternative approach has been developed that measures the strain in the vadose zone instead of pressure in the reservoir. An instrument has been developed at Clemson University that can measure small strains using optical …
Lidar Monitoring Of Annual And Storm-Driven Episodic Erosion At Rainsford Island, 2023 University of Massachusetts Boston
Lidar Monitoring Of Annual And Storm-Driven Episodic Erosion At Rainsford Island, Alan H. Bartels
Graduate Masters Theses
Boston Harbor and its thirty-four islands are subject to erosion, driven by rain, winds, and waves. Climate change threatens to increase erosion over time as sea levels rise and the frequency and intensity of storms increase. Understanding the dynamics of coastal erosion is key to guiding the design of coastal shoreline protections, the research of which a goal of Stone Living Laboratory at the University of Massachusetts Boston. To better understand the impact of both annual weather and episodic severe storms, the high-resolution Riegl VZ400i LiDAR was deployed four times over 14 months from July 22, 2021 to October 19, …
Volatile Cycling And Metasomatism In Flat-Slab Subduction Zones Of The Central Andes, 2023 Utah State University
Volatile Cycling And Metasomatism In Flat-Slab Subduction Zones Of The Central Andes, Coleman Hiett
All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023
Flat-slab subduction, where an oceanic plate subducts horizontally below a continental margin for hundreds of kilometers, is an enigmatic but prevalent tectonic configuration in which chemical cycling and alteration of the continental plate is poorly constrained. Geochemical investigations in regions of modern and ancient flat-slab subduction in the Central Andes afford an opportunity to study this process. Certain elements naturally occur with varying number of neutrons in their nuclei (isotopes), and measurements of isotope ratios within geologic materials inform on chemical sources and geologic processes. This research leverages stable isotope analyses and other geochemical tools to investigate volatiles and other …
Reservoir Characterization Of The Utica Shale Play Using Well Log Data In Columbiana, Ohio, 2023 Stephen F Austin State University
Reservoir Characterization Of The Utica Shale Play Using Well Log Data In Columbiana, Ohio, Tyler L. West
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The Ordovician Utica shale play is rapidly developing throughout the Appalachian Basin. The play is a mixed carbonate-siliciclastic system that grades from primarily carbonates at its base in the Lexington/Trenton limestones into primarily shale within the Utica shale. As of January 2021, it is the third highest-producing dry shale gas play in the contiguous U.S., although it is known to produce wet gas and oil in various parts of the basin. In addition to being an unconventional reservoir, the Utica shale, an informal unit in Ohio where the main fairway is located, is a known source rock for much of …
Origin Of The Mega-Streamlined Morphology In Ne Africa And Arabia: Remote Sensing And Field-Based Investigations, 2023 Western Michigan University
Origin Of The Mega-Streamlined Morphology In Ne Africa And Arabia: Remote Sensing And Field-Based Investigations, Mohamed Samy Mohamed Elhebery
Dissertations
Mega-streamlined landforms on Earth and Mars have been attributed to aeolian, glaciogenic, fluvial, and tectonic processes. Identifying the forces that shaped these landforms is paramount for understanding landscape evolution and constraining paleo-climate models and ice sheet reconstructions. Exhumed Late Ordovician glacial deposits and landscape of the North Gondwana are reported here for the first time from SE Egypt. Using field and remote sensing (Advanced Land Observing Satellite [ALOS], Phased Array L-band Synthetic Aperture Radar (PALSAR) radar, multispectral Landsat TM datasets, and digital elevation models (DEMs) I mapped the distribution of the Late Ordovician glacial features (i.e. deposits and landforms) in …
Measurement Of Microplastics In A Freshwater Micro-Watershed, 2023 Clemson University
Measurement Of Microplastics In A Freshwater Micro-Watershed, Cole Bowman
All Theses
The role of microplastics as an emerging contaminant can be complex to study because of the lack of standardization in the collection and analysis of microplastic particles. The purpose of this manuscript is to detail an iterative process of different collection methods in trying to understand microplastic deposition and transport in a freshwater micro-watershed through lab-based and field-based studies. A flume experiment was conducted to test the trapping efficiency of a sediment trap design at two different velocities (1.12 m/s and 2.24 m/s). Eight types of microplastics varying in morphology and density were introduced to the flume in order to …
Structural And Kinematic Investigation Of The Dadeville Complex-Brevard Zone Contact (Southern Appalachians): Polyphase Emplacement Of An Allochthonous Terrane On The Laurentian Margin, 2023 The University of Southern Mississippi
Structural And Kinematic Investigation Of The Dadeville Complex-Brevard Zone Contact (Southern Appalachians): Polyphase Emplacement Of An Allochthonous Terrane On The Laurentian Margin, Andrew Williams
Master's Theses
The Dadeville Complex (DC) lies in the Inner Piedmont of eastern Alabama and western Georgia. The DC formed as a volcanic island arc during the Taconic orogeny (Ordovician Period) and was accreted onto Laurentia during the Acadian orogeny (Devonian-Mississippian Periods); however, the mechanism and role of accretion during the Acadian orogeny is not well constrained. Three proposed emplacement mechanisms for the DC include: (1) orogen-perpendicular translation; (2) orogen-parallel translation; (3) orogenic channel flow.
Today, the DC is a major (over 100 kilometers long) allochthonous terrane composed mostly of meta-igneous rocks. This study investigated structural fabrics and kinematic indicators in the …
Constraining High Temperature Deformation And Metamorphism In The Southern Wet Mountains, Colorado, Usa: Implications For The Regional Extent Of The Picuris Orogeny, 2023 University of Arkansas-Fayetteville
Constraining High Temperature Deformation And Metamorphism In The Southern Wet Mountains, Colorado, Usa: Implications For The Regional Extent Of The Picuris Orogeny, Sarah Morse
Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The Wet Mountains of Colorado are underlain by exhumed Proterozoic metamorphic rock that lies north of the recently identified 1.46 to 1.40 Ga Picuris orogen in northern New Mexico. The Picuris orogen is inferred to have formed in response to a Mesoproterozoic (ca. 1.49-1.40 Ga) contractional to transpressional event extrapolated to be regional in extent. It has been proposed that the Picuris orogen composes the westernmost tectonic segment of the Pinware-Baraboo-Picuris orogen that formed along an evolving convergent margin that becomes younger from northeast to southwest. This study is focused on the record of high temperature deformation, metamorphism, and plutonism …
Numerical And Experimental Constraints On Trace Element Fractionation During Lunar Magma Ocean Solidification, 2023 University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Numerical And Experimental Constraints On Trace Element Fractionation During Lunar Magma Ocean Solidification, Dian Ji
Masters Theses
Traditional lunar magma ocean (LMO) theory suggests the anorthositic lunar crust formed by floating of buoyant plagioclase, one of the major products of LMO solidification, on the surface of LMO. To test this model, after applying experimentally determined LMO solidification sequences, we compared calculated Rare Earth Element (REE) concentrations of lunar plagioclase to plagioclase in Apollo ferroan anorthosites and lunar anorthositic meteorites. Several initial LMO compositions, and lunar-relevant mineral-melt partition coefficient predictive models were tested (where the partition coefficient is the concentration ratio of a specific element between two phases). Compared with plagioclase in the natural samples, modeled plagioclase directly …
A Hybrid Lateral Flow Sand Filter Wastewater Treatment System: An Evaluation On The Treatment And Disposal Capabilities Of A Modified Sand Filter, 2023 University of South Alabama
A Hybrid Lateral Flow Sand Filter Wastewater Treatment System: An Evaluation On The Treatment And Disposal Capabilities Of A Modified Sand Filter, Harry Mccaskill Iv
Theses and Dissertations
Decentralized wastewater treatment exists primarily in suburban and rural areas where centralized treatment is not an option. Traditional on-site treatment systems usually include the use of a septic tank and a drain field. This orthodox method works well when implemented into environments that are accommodating for the infiltration of effluents, and thus allowing for soil treatment. Unfortunately, there are some circumstances that prevent traditional systems from working such as impermeable soil conditions. The Wastewater Treatment System analyzed in this thesis was created to overcome such inhospitable environments. More specifically, this system is catered towards the rural residences of The Alabama …