Earth Sciences Commons^™

A Seismic Study Of An Impact Feature In Cass County, Michigan, Mancheol Suh

Masters Theses

A geophysical investigation, including a seismic study, of the subsurface structure of the Calvin-28 oil field, Cass County, Michigan, indicates that the structure's origin may be related to an impact event. The structural closures in the time structure maps and drilling results both show a central uplift. The fault system in the Trempealeau Formation shows a structure similar to other proven astroblemes. Undisturbed layers just beneath the central uplift also provide evidence of an impact structure. The result of mathematical modeling of the central uplift under the assumption that the structure is an impact structure corresponds well with the drilling …

A Gravity Investigation Of Mountain Flank Thrusting And Normal Faulting, Madison And Tobacco Root Ranges, Montana, Stephen Thomas Wigger

Masters Theses

Gravity modeling of west-dipping, Laramide mountain flank thrusts which involve Archean metamorphic rocks in the western Tobacco Root and northern Madison Ranges supports the idea that these thrusts are gently dipping.

The thrusts provided a favorable location for normal faulting during Neogene extension. The Neogene faults on the eastern portions of the Madison and Jefferson Basins are interpreted to be listric, and merge with the Laramide thrusts. Basin development occurred along a series of such faults, which dropped hanging wall blocks of the thrust sheets to progressively greater depths. The maximum depth of the Madison basin, near Ennis, was found …

Geology Of A Section Of The Northwest Tobacco Root Mountains, Madison County, Southwest Montana, Kiff James Samuelson

Masters Theses

The northwest Tobacco Root Mountains are located on the boundary between two major tectonic provinces: the fold and thrust belt and the Rocky Mountain foreland. Deformation typical of the Rocky Mountain foreland is present in the form of two major northwest trending faults with associated folds. Paleozoic rocks were passively draped over at least one of the elevated Precambrian blocks. Foliation of the Precambrian rocks also appears to have been gently folded in the process.

Folds and thrusts occur within the Precambrian and Paleozoic rocks, on the westernmost flank of the range, appearing to follow the general trend of the …

Uranium-Lead Zircon Ages And Crustal Contamination Of The Northeastern Idaho Batholith, James J. Dexter

Masters Theses

The magmas which formed the northeastern Idaho batholith were contaminated with, or derived from, old crustal material as evidenced, from previous studies, by high whole-rock ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios, relatively high ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb ages, and Archean to Proterozoic upper intercept ages for batholithic zircons.

The old zircon component has been identified in this study by separating zircons into fractions based on size and morphology. Pb/U isotopic ratios are distributed on a chord with a lower concordia intercept intrusive age of 73.6+6 m.y. Zircons from a batholithic sample located one kilometer inward from the contact were separated according …

Hydrogeologic And Geochemical Factors Influencing The Impact Of A Chromium-Arsenic-Copper Wastewater Discharge On A Glacial Outwash Aquifer, Michael J. Gallagher

Masters Theses

A discharge of chromium-arsenic-copper laden wastewater occurred periodically from 1970 to 1980 at a wood preserving company located in southwestern Kalamazoo County, Michigan. As a result of this discharge, soils at the company site became contaminated with chromium, arsenic, and copper, and a local glacial outwash aquifer became contaminated with hexavalent chromium.

Soil samples collected from the discharge site were analyzed for clay-silt-sand-gravel content, organic matter, pH, clay mineralogy, and chromium, arsenic, copper, iron, and manganese content. Background soil samples were analyzed for most of the above catagories. Pearson r coefficients of correlation were calculated to determine the correlation of …

The Depositional History Of The Point Pleasant Member Of The Cynthiana Formation In Northern Kentucky, Gary J. Stefaniak

Masters Theses

Bioclastic limestones, siltstones, and shales of the Point Pleasant Member were deposited in a shallow marine environment immediately below normal effective wave base. High-energy conditions produced by storms lowered the effective wave base and stirred the bottom sediments and redistributed them into bedforms. The different types of contacts, distribution of the faunal groups, and fabrics permit inferences regarding energy levels and assignment of samples to a mode of deposition. Vertical and lateral trends were then deduced. High-energy conditions are believed to have occurred during Early and Late Point Pleasant time, whereas, low-energy conditions prevailed during deposition of the middle Point …

Geology Newsletter- 1984, Department Of Geology

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

Vol.1 No.9

• Dear Alumni and Friends
• Advisory Council
• Geology Development Fund
• Graduate Students
• Geology & Earth Science Club
• W. David Kuenzi Scholarship Fund
• 1983-84 Awards & Scholarships
• Faculty News
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Land Use Effects On Shallow Earth Resistivity, Gary James Barton

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.

A Geophysical Investigation Of A Possible Astrobleme In Southwestern Michigan, Suhas L. Ghatge

Masters Theses

A circular pattern to the oil production in Calvin Township, Cass County, Michigan, absence of about 1200 feet of Ordovician sediments and uplift indicated by a deep drill hole in the center of the productive area and absence of anomalies on the regional gravity and magnetic maps led to detailed gravity and magnetic surveys over this structure to delineate it and provide information regarding its genesis.

The Bouguer gravity and magnetic anomaly maps show no anomaly associated with the structure. The 28-mile wavelength second harmonic residual gravity and magnetic maps show linear features in the area. Two dimensional gravity modeling …

Structural Geology Of The Northern Snowcrest Range, Beaverhead And Madison Counties, Montana, Mark Kenneth Sheedlo

Masters Theses

The Snowcrest Range was uplifted in Late Cretaceous and Early Tertiary time as a consequence of thrusting in Precambrian basement and Phanerozoic cover rocks.

The Snowcrest-Greenhorn thrust system is associated with largescale overturned, eastward verging folds. Mean orientation of the thrust system is N.40°E., 35°N.W.. The trend of the thrust system and associated transverse faults appear to be controlled by earlier structures. Mesoscopic and microscopic analyses indicate that metamorphic basement rocks accommodated congressional strain largely by brittle faulting and cataclastic shearing. Kinematic indicators suggest that local stresses were directed east-southeastward.

Northeast-trending Neogene faults along the western flank of the range …

Geology Newsletter- 1983, Department Of Geology

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

Vol. 1 No. 8

• Dear Alumni and Friends
• Geology Development Fund
• Faculty News
• Geology/ Earth Science Club
• 1982-1983 Awards and Scholarships
• Alumni News
• Geology Department Graduate Students

A Magnetic And Resistivity Survey Of Cork Street Landfill, Stanislaw Leja

Masters Theses

Geophysical techniques such as magnetic and electrical resistivity methods are being increasingly applied in investigations of landfills.

For this survey, measurements of the intensity of the earth's magnetic field were taken at regular intervals along traverses. Resistivity readings were taken at selected intervals along the same or very similar traverses. Additional resistivity depth measurements or soundings were obtained at selected points in and around the landfill.

Profiles were analyzed for individual dump structures and for overall magnetic and resistivity response. Contour maps were drawn from the measurements at the site to depict broad trends or patterns. Deeper subsurface geology was …

Environment Of Deposition Of The A-1 Carbonate, Salina Group, Michigan Basin, Barbara June Leonard

Masters Theses

The lower Salina Group of the Michigan Basin is composed of a cyclic succession of carbonate and evaporite units. The lowermost Salina unit is the A-1 unit which consists of a lower A-1 evaporite and an upper A-1 carbonate. The A-1 unit is underlain by Niagara Group carbonates. The transition from Niagaran carbonates to A-1 evaporite to A-1 carbonate has not been thoroughly understood and previous models have not satisfied some of the evidence. This paper sets forth the hypothesis that the A-1 carbonate was deposited in a non-marine lake environment rather than an isolated marine environment. Findings supporting this …

The Geology Of The Southern Bull Mountain Area, Jefferson County, Montana, Michael Edward Streeter

Masters Theses

The Late Cretaceous-Early Tertiary Laramide orogeny was responsible for the northward tilting of the pre-Eocene rocks of the area. The Late Cretaceous deposition of the Elkhorn Mountains Volcanics resulted in the volcanic-Madison Group unconformity. Late Cretaceous faulting took place probably in response to caldera subsidence. Laramide uplift erosion and downstream transport resulted in the deposition of the Conrow Creek conglomerate and debris flows over the Lodgepole Limestone. Block faulting took place in response to regional extension probably during Late Oligocene-Early Miocene time resulting in the formation of the St. Paul's Gulch, Golden Sunlight, and Boulder basin faults. The Oligocene Dunbar …

A High Resolution Ground Magnetic Study Of Part Of The Albion-Scipio Trend, Steven James Hoin

Masters Theses

A detailed high resolution ground magnetic survey was conducted over part of the Albion-Scipio Oil Field Trend. The purpose of the survey was to delineate any magnetic anomalies associated with the trend. A field method using two magnetometers was employed. Sixteen simultaneous readings were taken at a mobile and a base station, and the field operator read the total field values using a 'T ', or similar pattern. This method eliminated much of the noise associated with ground surveys. The resulting residual magnetic map indicates that the basement rocks consist of mafic and felsic, dikes and plutons. Several discontinuities are …

Design, Construction, And Testing Of A Microprocessor-Controlled Interface Between Analog Geophysical Equipment And A Digital Cassette Recorder, Mohd. Nawawi Mohd. Nordin

Masters Theses

A Digital Data Acquisition System (DDAS) microcomputer was designed and constructed to interface between a six-channel analog seismograph and a digital cassette recorder. The DDAS microcomputer is a relatively inexpensive microcomputer built around the popular Z-80 microprocessor chip. It is portable and has 26K bytes of memory. It was designed to convert analog data in to digital with some processing performed before storing on the digital cassette recorder, for later analysis. The same hardware or circuitry of the DDAS microcomputer can perform other functions and work with other geophysical equipment by changing the software of the microcomputer.

Sedimentation Rate Of Salt Determined By Micrometeorite Analysis, James Matthew Barnett

Masters Theses

The sedimentation rate of the A-l Evaporite of Michigan was determined by analysis of micrometeorites found as inclusions in the halite deposit. The samples were obtained from the Dow Chemical Company salt well number eight. The residue from the dissolved salt was magnetically separated and later analyzed by Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE), X-ray diffraction , and microprobe techniques. The amount of extraterrestrial material was determined from the quantity of nickel present.

A sedimentation rate of .01 to .4 centimeters per year was calculated for the salt based on a constant influx rate of meteoritic material of 1 x 10 …

The Geology And Geochemistry Of The Summit Creek Molybdenum Prospect, Custer County, Idaho, Thomas Murray Hanna

Masters Theses

The Summit Creek stock, a molybdenum prospect located in the Pioneer Mountains of central Idaho, is a 46.7 m.y. old medium grained, slightly porphyritic quartz monzonite, which has intruded the late Ordovician Phi Kappa formation. Trend surface analysis shows that the stock is the product of one intrusive event. Pervasive mineral alteration usually associated with such porphyry (stockwork) molybdenum deposits is not present in this pluton, and the alteration that is present is confined to local faults and fractures.

Geochemical and petrographic evidence suggest that the pluton is a felsic differentiate from a melt which originated at a depth of …

Electrical Resistivity Survey Near The "Kl" Avenue Landfill, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, David W. Hall

Masters Theses

The KL Avenue Landfill near Kalamazoo, Michigan has recently become an area of ground water contamination. As of April, 1979, the landfill was closed due to contaminated wells to the west. This area was chosen to study because preliminary electrical resistivity surveys indicated that the approximate areal extent and depth of the contamination may be located without the additional cost of drilling wells. It is the intent of this study to use the Schlumberger Vertical Electrical Sounding method to construct a hydrogeologic model for this area.

This study is a rather critical test of the Schlumberger VES method in a …

The Geology Of Burnt Ridge Quadrangle And Vicinity Ravalli County, Montana, Randall Reichert

Masters Theses

Peltitic schist, quartzofeldspathic gneiss, and calc-silicate rocks of the Precambrian Belt Supergroup hav ebeen intruded by granatic plutons of the northeastern Idaho batholith within the vicinity of the southern Bitterroot Range, Montana. These units were mylonitized along the eastern margin of the intrusive complex, with shear surfaces presently dipping approximately 20° to the east. Rhyolitic ash flows and associated mafic to felsic dikes developed on and within the granitic-metamorphic terrance during Tertiary time. Numerous northeast- trending and northwest-trending faults and joints are present throughout the mapped region.

The following events play a major role in the geologic history: 1) amphibolite- …

Geology Newsletter- 1982, Department Of Geology

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

Vol. 1 No. 7

• Dear Alumni and Friends
• Capital Fund Drive
• Geology/ Earth Science Club News
• Faculty News
• Alumni News

Pennsylvanian Deltaic Sedimentation In Grand Ledge, Michigan, Jeffrey R. Martin

Masters Theses

Pennsylvanian outcrops along the Michigan Basin's southern/margin are composed of fluvial-deltaic and marine shelf sediments. Constructive deltaic facies include point-bar sandstones displaying erosional bases, channel lag, and upward decreasing grain size and sedimentary structures. Cross-stratification data indicate a unimodal, highly variant, northward-trending, paleocurrent pattern that deviates from regional paleoslope. Point-bar sandstones record delta plain deposition by meandering distributary channels. Channel margin facies include Lingula-bearing, interdistributary bay shales; overlain gradationally by laminated, flaser-bedded and rooted marsh shales and siltstones; and subbituminous swamp coal. Bay-fill facies are interrupted by lens-shaped, quartz-poor, fine-grained, crevasse-- splay sandstones.

Delta destructive facies--quartz -rich bioturbated sandstone-- suggest …

The Origin Of Carbonate Cements In Bahama Escarpment Limestones, Katharine D. Fulker

Masters Theses

Limestones recovered from Bahama Escarpment dives (DSRV Alvin, 1978) were expected to contain shallow marine, freshwater, and deep marine cementation since the limestones had been fractured, bored, and cemented at depth. Magnesium and trace element concentrations, carbon-oxygen composition, cathodoluminescence, and petrographic study indicated the presence of all three cement types.

Lithification may have proceeded by allochem deposition, major shallow marine cementation, sparse freshwater cementation leaving porosity, fracturing, and final deep marine cementation leaving minor porosity. According to this interpretation, the pore space remained open for an unlikely 75-115 million years. In an alternative interpretation, pore space is occluded after freshwater …

Nitrate Levels In The Groundwater Of Kalamazoo County, Michigan, William Robert Norman

Masters Theses

Nitrate levels from 1,978 wells were compiled and analyzed to identify areas having levels above the Federal and State Drinking Water Standards of 10 ppm, identify possible sources of nitrate in each area and determine factors that produce high concentrations of nitrate in groundwater.

Eighteen areas in which nitrate concentrations exceeded 10 ppm were identified. County-wide, 465 (23 percent) of the wells for which data were available produced water with nitrate concentrations above drinking water standards.

Septic tank effluent is thought to be the most common source of nitrate in the problem areas. Agricultural practices are also likely nitrate contrbutors; …

The Effects Of Precipitation On The Quality Of Ground Water And Leachate Seeps At A Stabilizing Landfill, Nicholas C. Pogoncheff

Masters Theses

A monitoring program was established at a landfill in Kalamazoo County, southwestern Michigan to determine the effects of precipitation on selected parameters in landfill lechate as surface seeps and ground water. Approximately 280 ground-water and surface-water samples were collected from monitoring wells and leachate seeps during more than 11 precipitation events throughout the summer and fall of 1981 and analyzed for specific conductance, pH, chloride, and iron.

Results of the study indicate that infiltration through the refuse due to precipitation is a major factor in controlling the levels of selected leachate characteristics and that with high infiltration rates concentrations will …

Ground-Water Flow Along The Total Shoreline Of Austin Lake And Its Environmental Contribution To Pollution Of The Lake, William Thomas Williams

Dissertations

The vertical direction of ground-water flow in Austin Lake was determined by placing minipiezometers along the entire shoreline at fifty randomly selected sites. Ground-water samples were taken at each site and the specific conductivity of the water samples was determined along with the chloride and phosphate content. The data were analyzed to determine if there were any relationships among water movement, chemical content, and the presence or absence of an onshore septic tank. The minipiezometer data show that the primary direction of water movement through the sediment-water interface is downward but may become reversed at localized regions as conditions vary. …

The Features And Significance Of Layering And Shearing Within The Zone Of Mylonitization, Northeastern Idaho Batholith, Jon Michael Hermann

Masters Theses

The northeastern border zone of the Idaho batholith contains a north-south trending zone of myionitized gneiss, schist, and granite-granodiorite. The schist and gneiss contain plagioclase augen surrounded by crushed and recrystallized biotite, quartz, feldspar, + muscovite, + hornblende. The granite grades upward from porphyritic rock into augen-bearing mylonitic rocks interlayered with schist and gneiss.

Geology Newsletter- 1981, Department Of Geology

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

Vol. 1 No. 6

• Dear Alumni and Friends
• Faculty News
• Alumni News
• Geology Club News

Petrology Of Fluvial And Shoreline Sands In A Modern Arc-Trench Gap, Guatemala, James Robert Bartel

Masters Theses

Petrographic studies of modern sands, derived from areas with known source rocks, climate, relief, environments of deposition, and tectonic setting, are essential for compiling compositional models for ancient sandstones. The Pacific coastal plain of Guatemala is terminated 25-60 km inland by the steep slopes of a row of active Quaternary volcanic and granitic rocks.

Sands being deposited on the coastal plain by the Rio Nahulate, which drains the older volcanic and granitic terrane, show significant compositional differences with those supplied by the Rio Samala, which drains an area dominated by active volcanism: Q₉F₃₅L₅₆ vs. Q …

Structural Analysis Of Precambrian Metasedimentary Rocks Of The Swede Gulch Formation, Nahant, South Dakota, Richard G. Cookman

Masters Theses

Precambrian X tectonites deformed between thermal domes in the northern Black Hills 1.7 B.Y.B.P. display variably trending isoclinal folds cross-cut by southeast trending slip-folds developed in discrete shear zones. Eugeosynclinal sedimentary rocks consisting of shale, quartzarenite , sublitharenite, and graywacke were metamorphosed to phyllite, quartzite, and metagraywacke during two syntectonic phases and one post-tectonic phase. The earliest syntectonic metamorphism was associated with development of isoclinal folds and may have produced amphibolite or greenschist facies. It was succeeded by retrograde metamorphism of greenschist facies syntectonic with and post-tectonic to development of southeast trending folds.

Mica, chlorite, iron oxides, and graphite are …