Earth Sciences Commons^™

Effect Of An 860-M Thick, Cold, Freshwater Aquifer On Geothermal Potential Along The Axis Of The Eastern Snake River Plain, Idaho, Thomas E. Lachmar, Thomas G. Freeman, Christopher J. Sant, Jeffrey R. Walker, Joseph F. Batir, John W. Shervais, James P. Evans, Dennis L. Nielson, David D. Blackwell

Geosciences Faculty Publications

A 1912-m exploration corehole was drilled along the axis of the eastern Snake River Plain, Idaho. Two temperature logs run on the corehole display an obvious inflection point at about 960 m. Such behavior is indicative of downward fluid flow in the wellbore. The geothermal gradient above 935 m is 4.5 °C/km, while the gradient is 72–75 °C/km from 980 to 1440 m. Projecting the higher gradients upward to where they intersect the lower gradient on the temperature logs places the bottom of the cold, freshwater Snake River Plain aquifer, which suppresses the geothermal gradient at this location, at least …

December 2017 Water Blog Newsletter Now Available, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

As water researchers, we challenge ourselves to see water-related issues from a fresh perspective in our quest to find new and better solutions. Often this means either taking a much closer look or backing off to view things in a broader frame of reference. In this issue, we look at projects on both ends of the spectrum, from the microscopic to the regional.

Usarray Imaging Of Continental Crust In The Conterminous United States, Xiaofei Ma, Anthony R. Lowry

Geosciences Faculty Publications

The thickness and bulk composition of continental crust provide important constraints on the evolution and dynamics of continents. Crustal mineralogy and thickness both may influence gravity anomalies, topographic elevation, and lithospheric strength, but prior to the inception of EarthScope’s USArray, seismic measurements of crustal thickness and properties useful for inferring lithology are sparse. Here we improve upon a previously published methodology for joint inversion of Bouguer gravity anomalies and seismic receiver functions by using parameter space stacking of cross correlations of modeled synthetic and observed receiver functions instead of standard H-κ amplitude stacking. The new method is applied to estimation …

Usarray Imaging Of North American Continental Crust, Xiaofei Ma

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The layered structure and bulk composition of continental crust contains important clues about its history of mountain-building, about its magmatic evolution, and about dynamical processes that continue to happen now. Geophysical and geological features such as gravity anomalies, surface topography, lithospheric strength and the deformation that drives the earthquake cycle are all directly related to deep crustal chemistry and the movement of materials through the crust that alter that chemistry.

The North American continental crust records billions of years of history of tectonic and dynamical changes. The western U.S. is currently experiencing a diverse array of dynamical processes including modification …

Geological Characterization Of Precambrian Nonconformities: Implications For Injection-Induced Seismicity In The Midcontinent United States, Laura Cuccio

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The midcontinent United States, a region which typically does not experience many earthquakes, has experienced a significant increase in the number of earthquakes over the last decade. This increase in earthquake activity has been linked to wastewater injection, a process in which large volumes of wastewater from oil and gas extraction are injected into deep (2-3 km), high-permeability sedimentary rocks, near low-permeability Precambrian (>540-million-year-old) crystalline ‘basement’ rocks. The contact between these two rock types is referred to as the Precambrian nonconformity. Injection-induced earthquakes occur on or near basement-hosted faults due to an increase in pore fluid pressures, which implies …

Longitudinal Thermal And Solute Dynamics In Regulated Rivers, Muhammad Rezaul Haider

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Dam releases increase river stage and can reverse groundwater movement into and out of the river. As the flood, thermal, and solute waves travel downstream in a regulated river, the size of the waves is anticipated to be affected both by river processes and exchanges with near river groundwater. This study established a modeling framework to quantify the influences of the groundwater exchanges on the temperatures and solute concentration dynamics along regulated rivers. The wave properties, volume of exchanges, conservative solute mass exchanges, and heat energy exchanges were calculated as a function of time and distance downstream. Results show that …

Optimizing Barrier Removal To Restore Connectivity In Utah’S Weber Basin, Maggi Kraft

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

River barriers, such as dams, culverts and diversions are important for water conveyance, but disrupt river ecosystems and hydrologic processes. River barrier removal is increasingly used to restore and improve river habitat and connectivity. Most past barrier removal projects prioritized individual barriers using score-and-rank techniques, neglecting the spatial structure and cumulative change from multiple barrier removals. Similarly, most water demand models satisfy human water uses or, only prioritize aquatic habitat, failing to include both human and environmental water use benefits. In this study, a dual objective optimization model identified in-stream barriers that impede quality-weighted aquatic habitat connectivity for Bonneville cutthroat …

Non-Methane Hydrocarbon Source Apportionment And Btex Risk Assessment Of Winter 2015 In Roosevelt, Utah, Jerimiah Lamb

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Non-Methane Hydrocarbons (NMHC) monitored in Roosevelt Utah including Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene and Xylene (collectively known as BTEX) are associated with deleterious effects including cancer. This study was designed to assess the origin and effect of the toxicants and addressed two points: 1) Source identification using the USEPA’s Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) and NOAA’s Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model and 2) A human health risk assessment based on ambient concentrations of BTEX collected at the Roosevelt site. Model fit indicated that the primary contributor to total NMHCs was local oil and gas operations and was supported by previous …

Ncer Assistance Agreement Annual Progress Report For Grant #83582401 - Assessment Of Stormwater Harvesting Via Manage Aquifer Recharge (Mar) To Develop New Water Supplies In The Arid West: The Salt Lake Valley Example, Ryan Dupont, Joan E. Mclean, Richard C. Peralta, Sarah E. Null, Douglas B. Jackson-Smith

Civil and Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

The aims of the original proposed project remain the same, that is, to test the hypothesis that Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) for stormwater harvesting is a technically feasible, socially and environmentally acceptable, economically viable, and legally feasible option for developing new water supplies for arid Western urban ecosystems experiencing increasing population, and climate change pressures on existing water resources. The project is being carried out via three distinct but integrated components that include: 1) Monitoring of existing distributed MAR harvesting schemes involving a growing number of demonstration Green Infrastructure (GI) test sites; 2) Integrated stormwater/vadose zone/groundwater/ ecosystem services modeling; and …

Apathy And Concern Over The Future Habitability Of Earth: An Introductory College Assignment Of Forecasting Co2 In The Earth’S Atmosphere, Benjamin J. Burger

Journal on Empowering Teaching Excellence

Non-science, first year regional undergraduate students from rural Utah communities participated in an online introductory geology course and were asked to forecast the rise of CO₂ in the Earth’s atmosphere. The majority of students predicted catastrophic rise to 5,000-ppm sometime over the next 3,100 years, resulting in an atmosphere nearly uninhabitable to human life. However, the level of concern the students exhibited in their answers was not directly proportional with their timing in their forecasted rise of CO₂. This study showcases the importance of presenting students with actual data and using data to develop student forecasted models. …

Aggieair Joins The Oshkosh Aviation Festival, Aggieair

News

EAA Oshkosh AirVenture 2017 is the largest airshow in the world, with over a half million people in attendance, over the span of a week. AggieAir pilot, Dan Robinson, joined the USU airfleet and hosted the AggieAir UAV booth. Dan was available to talk about the strong history of UAVs in academia and research and the future of AggieAir's research.

David Tarboton Awarded A Nsf Grant To Improve Hydrological Data Sharing, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

Dr. Tarboton will lead a team of hydrologists to improve HydroShare, a system designed to allow scientists to collaboratively work on and share hydrological research and data, using a $4 million grant awarded from the National Science Foundation.

Toward Earthquake System Science: Western U.S. Lithospheric Stress/Strain Partitioning Of Mantle Dynamics, Anthony Lowry

Funded Research Records

No abstract provided.

Uwrl Welcomes Four New Faculty Members, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

In early 2017, the USU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Utah Water Research Laboratory announced that we were seeking “bright, creative and interdisciplinary researchers to lead and develop the next generation of resilient solutions to water problems, …creative and talented individuals that will become world leaders in water related research”—and we found them!

Collaborative Research: Facet: Quantifying The Topographic Response To Tectonic Processes In Southern Taiwan, Tammy M. Rittenour

Funded Research Records

No abstract provided.

Controls On Erosion In The Western Tarin Basin: Implications For The Uplift Of Northwest Tibet And The Parmir, Peter D. Clift, Hongbo Zheng, Andrew Carter, Philipp Böning, Tara N. Jonell, Hannah Schorr, Xin Shan, Katharina Pahnke, Xiaochun Wei, Tammy M. Rittenour

Geosciences Faculty Publications

We present here bulk sediment major element chemistry, Nd and Sr isotope ratios, and detrital apatite fission-track (AFT) and U-Pb zircon ages to characterize the provenance of the southwestern Taklimakan Desert (northwest China) and the three major rivers draining this region. We establish the spatial and temporal controls on erosion and sediment transport in the modern Tibetan rain shadow. The Hotan River drains the North Kunlun block and is characterized by zircon populations at 160–230 Ma and 370–520 Ma. The Yarkand River shares these grains with the Hotan, but also has a very prominent zircon population at 40–160 Ma, which …

Single-Grain Optically Stimulated Luminescence Ages Of Brownware Pottery In The Central Rocky Mountains And The Spread Of Numic Ceramic Technology, Judson Byrd Finley, Carlie J. Ideker, Tammy M. Rittenour

Geosciences Faculty Publications

This study presents the results of a single-grain optically stimulated luminescence (SG-OSL) analysis of brownware pottery from four Late Prehistoric-period sites in the Middle Rocky Mountains, Wyoming, USA. SG-OSL of quartz ceramic temper provides improved age control for sites where radiocarbon dating has proven problematic due to old wood, recent wildfires, and calibration uncertainties. SG-OSL results are compared to fine-grain infrared stimulated luminescence (FG-IRSL) results from the same sherds and associated radiocarbon ages. We find that the single-grain technique applied to quartz sand temper provides improved accuracy and precision over both FG-IRSL and radiocarbon. We compare our results to directly …

Stratigraphy, Petrology, And Paleontology Of The Late Cretaceous Campanian Mesaverde Group In Northeastern Utah, Christopher Ward

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This project examines a poorly studied sandstone ridge called Snake John Reef located 22 miles southeast of Vernal, in northeastern Utah. Previously this ridge was mapped as exposures of late Cretaceous, undifferentiated Mesaverde Group, and recently unidentified dinosaur fossils have been found along the ridge by the Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum. Stratigraphic sections, petrographic thin sections, and collection and study of fossils from Snake John Reef were undertaken to understand the stratigraphic relationship as well as to reconstruct the depositional environment of the dinosaur bearing units. Snake John Reef represents exposures of three late Cretaceous …

Analysis Of The Hite Fault Group, Southeast Utah: Insights Into Fluid Flow Properties In A Reservoir Analog, Daniel J. Curtis

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the subsurface faults can act as both barriers and conduits for fluids or gases such as CO₂, hydrocarbons, or water. It is often thought that faults in porous rocks such as sandstone are barriers to fluid flow. In this study we show that this is not always the case. In sandstones like the Cedar Mesa Sandstone it is very important to understand the relationships between this history of fault slip and fluid flow. Better understanding of how fluids migrate through faults and the damaged areas surrounding these faults has strong significance to the oil and gas industry. …

Quantifying Riverbed Sediment Using Recreational-Grade Side Scan Sonar, Daniel Hamill

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Colorado River in Glen, Marble, and Grand Canyons is subject to a complex regulatory framework, including the Colorado River Compact, the Endangered Species Act, and the Grand Canyon Protection Act of 1992. Physical, biological, and cultural resources are extensively monitored by the Glen Canyon Dam Adaptive Management Program (GCDAMP) to assess the effect of Glen Canyon Dam (GCD) operations on the downstream environment. The GCDAMP consists of a diverse group of stakeholders who identify priority resources and agree upon water releases at GCD. Large expenditures of money have been devoted to monitoring physical and biological resources in Grand Canyon. …

Stratigraphy Of The Middle Cambrian Lincoln Peak Formation And Evolution Of The House Range Embayment, Eastern Nevada, Ibrahim Zallum

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

This study examined the Middle Cambrian (c. 500 MA) Lincoln Peak Formation and Patterson Pass Shale. The initial goal was to create a stratigraphic model for these units. This model was then compared to those from already studied units in western Utah, which combined with the Nevada units form the rock record of an ancient feature known as the House Range Embayment, which was an area of greater water depth superimposed on the continental shelf. This study found that the Nevada units exhibit a series of depositional sequences similar to those in western Utah, but at a lower resolution. This …

The Dynamic Relationship Between The Bear River, Quaternary Basaltic Center, Normal Faults, And The Resulting Rearrangement Of Rivers In The Northeast Edge Of The Great Basin, Southeast Idaho, Brady Utley

All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023

The objective of this research project in Gem Valley graben, southeast Idaho is to identify the location, age and history of the Quaternary diversion of the Bear River into paleo-Lake Thatcher, and then into the Lake Bonneville basin from the Columbia River basin. Mapping, geochemical analysis, cross-cutting relationships, and five new age determinations, together with prior published research, shed new light on the complex history of interaction between the volcanic rocks, rivers, lakes, and faults in Gem Valley. Research goals were to test the hypothesis that local faulting and volcanism drove the diversion of the Bear River and controlled the …

Herald Journal Article About Iutah Team Symposium, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

A team of researchers from USU and other Utah universities, government agencies, industry partners, and non-rofit organizations came together 5 years ago to establish iUTAH (Innovative Urban Transition and Aridregion Hydro-sustainability) as a way to strengthen science for Utah's water future. This 5-year interdisciplinary research and training program was funded by the National Science Foundation through July 2017. These researchers, including UWRL faculty members Jeff Horsburgh, Bethany Neilson, and David Rosenberg recently presented a symposium to present their progress and accomplishments over the course of this enormous undertaking.

Aggieair Begin The 2017 Flight Season, Aggieair

News

The AggieAir team kicks off a busy 2017 in Sunny California by placing strategically placed targets across the Gallo Family vineyards. These targets are crucial to georectify UAV imagery.

David Rosenberg Received An Ewri Award For Best Associate Editor, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

David Rosenberg recently received the Best Associate Editor Award for the Journal of Water Resources Planning & Management. The award was presented at the 2017 EWRI Awards at the World Environmental & Water Resources Congress in Sacramento, CA, on May 22, 2017. The award is presented by the Environmental & Water Resources Institute (EWRI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Asce Recently Featured An Article On Improving Flow From Irrigation Splitter Boxes, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

Irrigation splitter boxes are used in piped gravity-flow systems to divert water from the main supply line to local users, but when flow is high and turbulent, the split isn't uniform. In the paper, the authors show how to implement a solution they designed and tested successfully; this paper is available in ASCE's Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering for free for a limited time, courtesy of ASCE Library.

Oroville Dam Scale Model At The Uwrl Helps Test Repair Plans Before Construction, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

Engineers at the Utah Water Research Laboratory at Utah State University have constructed a 1:50 scale model of the Orovill Dam spillway. The model initally featured the terrain conditions that were formed following the damaging flow events in February, and later tested the designs for the reconstruction plans. Lead engineers Dr. Michael Johnson and Dr. Zachary Sharp worked with a team of 15 engineers and technicians to construct the approximately 100-foot-long by 60-foot-wide model in just 40 days.

Randy Martin Joins Utah Air Quality Board, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

UWRL researcher and professor, Randy Martin, has been named to a four year term to the Utah Air Quality Board. Martin was chosen by Utah Gov. Gary Herbert to provide scientific insight and opinion on air quality and legislative policy.

Mac Mckee Named Engineering Faculty Researcher Of 2017, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

UWRL Director, Mac McKee, was nominated as a Faculty Researcher of 2017 for the College of Engineering. McKee's research has taken him all over the world and has included work on flood control and planning in the Philippeans to water quality management in India. Currently Dr. McKee's research focuses on small unmanned aerial systems solve natural resource problems using remote sensing and data analysis.

Congratulations To 2017 Usu Engineering Graduates, Utah Water Research Laboratory

News

Congratuations to all 2017 Engineering graduates! The UWRL is proud of our talented and diverse students and wish them all the best in their futures.