Earth Sciences Commons^™

Structural Geology Of Eastern Part Of The Malad Summit Quadrangle, Idaho, Jay Nevin Shearer

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mapped area represents the eastern three-fourths of the Malad Summit Quadrangle, Idaho. It lies mainly in the Bannock Range of southeastern Idaho. The northern and southern margins of the area are 25.5 miles and 17.0 miles, respectively, north of the Idaho-Utah State Line.

The Caddy Canyon Formation of Late Precambrian age is the oldest exposed stratigraphic unit. The youngest unit, exclusively of Precambrian age, is the Mutual Formation. The Brigham Formation is considered to be of Late Precambrian to Early Cambrian(?) age. Younger formations of Cambrian to Silurian age are present. The Precambrian units, as well as the Brigham, …

Geology And Mineralization Of The Southeastern Part Of The Black Pine Mountains, Cassia County, Idaho, Don E. French

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The southeastern part of the Black Pine Mountains is located in the southeastern part of Cassia County, southern Idaho. The Utah-Idaho state line is three miles south of the studied area and the Cassia-Oneida county line bounds it on the east. The area is nearly square and encompasses about 30 square miles.

Devonian, Mississippian, Pennsylvanian, Permian, Tertiary and Quaternary sedimentary rocks are exposed within the area. Limestone, dolomitic limestime, quartzite, and bedded chert represent the Jefferson (?) Formation of Devonian age. It is 400 feet thick, however, the base is not exposed. The Milligen Formation is Early Mississippian in age …

Structural Geology Of Eastern Part Of Richmond And Western Part Of Naomi Park Quadrangles, Utah-Idaho, Arthur J. Mendenhall

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mapped area, which includes the eastern part of the Richmond and the western part of the Naomi Peak quadrangles, Utah-Idaho, is located in the central part of northern Utah and southeastern Idaho. It is located along the eastern side of Cache Valley and western side of the Bear River Range. Cache Valley is in the Basin and Range province and the Bear River Range is in the Middle Rocky Mountain province. The mapped area is about 8.6 miles long, in the north-south direction, and 7.8 miles long, in the east-west direction.

The Mutual Formation of Precambrian age is the …

Some Aspects Of Geochemistry Of The Water And Sediment Of Bear Lake, Idaho-Utah, Richard H. Fuller

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Development by man through the last half century has caused a number of changes in Bear Lake. These changes include the diversion of Bear River water into Bear Lake, the pumping of lake water back into the river, and the building of breakwaters and other obstructions along the shore of Bear Lake.

The diversion of Bear River water into the lake has resulted in a yearly addition of an estimated 36,000 metric tons of calcium into the lake, which has caused the precipitation of an estimated minimum 90,000 metric tons of aragonite. The pumping of Bear Lake water back into …

Mineralization In The Bear River Range, Utah-Idaho, John C. Chappelle

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The purpose of this thesis is t o describe the occurrences, interrelationships, and possible origin of the metallic mineral deposits of the Bear River Range. In this study, 21 mineral deposits containing minerals of lead, iron, copper, manganese, and zinc with quartz and carbonate gangue minerals, are described and classified as low temperature epigenetic hydrothermal deposits. The deposits predominantly occur in Cambrian limestone and dolomite formations located below formations with a high shale content. The deposition occurred as fracture filling and replacement along fractures associated with Teritary Basin and Range normal faults and joints which generally trend northerly in the …

Structural Geology Of The Southern Part Of Clarkston Mountain, Malad Range, Utah, Wayland E. Gray

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mapped area, in north-central Utah, is located west of Clarkston, Utah. It includes the southern part of Clarkston Mountain and part of the Junction Hills, which extend southward from Clarkston Mountain. The area is represented on the southeastern part of the Portage quadrangle, Utah-Idaho, and the southwestern part of the Clarkston quadrangle, Utah-Idaho. It measures about 8.3 miles in the east-west direction and 4.0 miles in the north-south direction.

The southern part of Clarkston Mountain consists of stratigraphic units that range in age from Cambrian to Silurian. The Nounan Formation of Cambrian age is the oldest. The St. Charles …

Effect Of Drilling Fluid Components And Mixtures On Plants And Soils, Shahnaz Honarvar (Asad Sangabi)

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Using greenhouse pot techniques, 32 drilling mud components were tested to see if, at a high rate of addition, they reduced plant growth. Green beans and sweet corn were the test plants. The excellent black, silt loam, slightly acidic, uncultivated Dagor soil (Cumulic Haploxeroll) was used for most tests. Rates used were considered to be abnormal level (high rate) and usual (low rate) amounts that might be added in commonly used drilling muds.

Drilling mud components that caused no observable or statistically significant reductions of plant yield are the following: Super Visbestos, (Asbestos), asphalt, Ben-Ex (a vinyl acetate and maleic …

Evaluating The Availability Of Organic Nitrogen In Soils, Saleh M. Romaih

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The main objective of this study was to evaluate the organic N in silty clay loam soil as an indicator of soil fertility. The incubation method was used in this study. The NO₃ -N, the total N percent, and the organic matter were determined. The soil which was used in this study came from Evans Research Farm. The samples were taken from two different N experiments which were adjacent to each other. The soil samples were taken in October-November, 1973, after the crop had been harvested. These two experiments had different cropping histories.

The results of the first experiment …

The Contribution Of Subsoil Phosphorus To The Nutrition Of Alfalfa As Influenced By Soil Temperature, Reuel E. Lamborn

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

High bicarbonate-soluble phosphorus (P) in some Utah subsoils may affect the validity of fertilizer recommendations based on plow layer samples. The primary objective of this experiment was to determine the proportion of plant P derived from subsoils at typical Utah soil P levels and soil temperatures.

A calcareous soil very low in bicarbonate-soluble P was treated with various amounts of P and packed into deep pots to provide 24 centimeters of "topsoil" and 27 centimeters of "subsoil". Water baths in a growth chamber were used to control soil temperatures at 14 centigrade and 20 centigrade. Light, air temperature and humidity …

Geology Of Southern Part Of The James Peak Quadrangle, Utah, Jan G. Blau

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mapped area, in north-central Utah, is centered about 22.6 miles south of Logan, Utah. It measures about 3.8 miles in the north-south direction and 6.6 miles in the east-west direction. Stratigraphic units of Precambrian and Cambrian age underline most of the area. The Precambrian units are as follows: (1) Maple Canyon Formation, (2) Kelley Canyon Formation, (3) Orthoquartzite unit, (4) Argillite unit, (5) Mutual Formation, and (6) Volcanic unit. The Brigham Formation, which overlies the Precambrian volcanic unit, is probably of Cambrian age; however, the lower part may be Precambrian. The overlying Cambrian carbonate unit is not differentiated. The …

Residual Nitrogen As It Affects Soil Fertility Under Irrigated Agriculture In A Tropical Wet-Dry Climate, Don Carlos Kidman

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In the Zapotitan Valley near San Andres, El Salvador, Central America, an experiment was conducted to determine the availability of residual soil N to corn grown during the rainy season. This was an extension of an experiment conducted during the preceding dry season. The variables of the dry season experiment were irrigation method, crop, and rate of fertilizer N application. Soil NO₃-N and NH₄-N were determined by soil sample analysis to a soil depth of 120 cm by 30 cm depth increments. The samples were taken at the end of the dry season experiment and again …

Distribution Of Available Phosphorus In The Subsoil Of Selected Pedons Of The Warm Springs Series, Duane Altman Lammers

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Warm Springs soil series which contained variable amounts of subsoil available (sodium bicarbonate extractable) phosphorus was studied to explain the variability and distribution of the NaHCO₃-P in the subsoil. Four pedons ranging in subsoil NaHCO₃-P from less than 10 ppm to greater than 30 ppm were selected in an area of less than 200 ha located on a nearly level, low lake terrace east of the Great Salt Lake in Weber County, Utah.

The morphology of each pedon was described in the field and samples collected from each genetic horizon or contrasting layer. Each soil …

Petrology Of The Upper Nounan - Worm Creek Sequence, Upper Cambrian Nounan And St. Charles Formations, Southeast Idaho, Lillian Donley Wakeley

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The upper member of the Nounan Formation and the Worm Creek Member of the St. Charles Formation, both late Cambrian in age, were studied in the Bear River Range and the Fish Creek Range in southeast Idaho. Lithology and sedimentary structures of these units were compared with characteristics of similar modern sediments and ancient rocks, to determine the environments of deposition and effects of diagenesis for the interval studied.

On the basis of widely traced marker horizons, the two-member interval is divided into three parts, with parts 1 and 2 comprising the upper member of the Nounan Formation, and part …

A Model To Predict The Effect Of Salinity On Crop Growth, Stuart W. Childs

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A model is developed to predict the effects of soil salinity on crop growth. As an outgrowth and extension of the modelling efforts of Nimah and Hanks (1973a) and Gupta (1972), this model makes these principal assumptions in order to arrive at a quantitative relationship: 1) relative yield for a growing season is directly related to the ratio of actual and potential transpiration. 2) Water uptake by plants is in response to the water potential gradient between the plant at the soil surface and the soil surrounding the plant roots. 3) the effect of salinity on crop growth is solely …

Environmental Analysis Of The Upper Cambrian Nounan Formation, Bear River Range And Wellsville Mountain, North-Central Utah, Larry L. Gardiner

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Nounan Formation in north-central Utah thickens northward from 696 feet near Causey Dam to 1147 feet at High Creek in the Bear River Range, and northwestward to 1149 feet at Dry Canyon in Wellsville Mountain. The basal contact of the Nounan Formation is sharp, but dolomite extends irregularly downward into limestones of the Bloomington Formation as much as 6 feet.

The Nounan Formation is divided into three members based on lithologic characters: (1) a lower member composed of dark, medium-crystalline dolomite; (2) a middle member composed of white, coarse-crystalline dolomite with tongues of dark dolomite; and (3) an upper …

Phosphate Exploration And Property Evaluation In Southeastern Idaho, Illustrated By The Dry Valley Area, James Simon Spalding

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The western phosphate field produced about 15 percent, in 1970, of the nation's domestically consumed phosphate rock and contains an estimated 58 percent of the nation's indicated phosphate reserves. The central portion of the western phosphate field, which contains the Dry Valley area of southeastern Idaho, encompasses the greatest amount of mineable phosphate reserves in the smallest geographic area within the western field.

Exploration of properties in the area should follow an orderly sequence of literature search, area reconnaissance, detailed target appraisal, and detailed three-dimensional sampling to effectively evaluate each property. Present exploration techniques include topographic analysis, vegetative investigation, profile …

Characteristics And Genesis Of The Parleys And Mendon Soils Series In Northern Utah, Khalid I. Al-Amin

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The study was designed to test the genetic theory of soil development of two soils derived from different geological material, but developed under conditions of similar climate, topography, biological activity, and age. An attempt was made to relate the soils characteristics to their present classification. Parleys and Mendon series which developed from Bonneville and Salt Lake Formation, respectively, were selected for that purpose. Along the east side of Cache valley, two pedons representing each of the studied series were selected to have similar soil formers except for their parent material.

Evidently, these studied soils have been developed from different heterogenous …

A Study Of The Radiation Quality Under Plant Canopies In The Wave Range 0.4 To 2.5 Microns, Nolasco G. Baldazo

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The spectral distribution of the global radiation from 0.4 to 2.5 microns penetrating deciduous and coniferous canopies were measured during clear days between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. using a double-quartz monochromator.

In the visible region (0.4 to 0.7 micron) the average relative spectral transmissions under both canopies are about one percent beginning at 0.4 micron and decreasing to about half a percent at 0.67 micron. There is only a small peak in the green (0.55 micron) transmission under deciduous stands while there is none under coniferous canopies. The slightly higher transmission in the blue (0.4 micron) is attributed to …

Determination Of Crop Production Functions As Related To Soil Moisture And Nitrogen, James W. Bauder

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Soil moisture and nitrogen are often the primary controlling factors of crop production. Production functions are valuable in describing crop responses to such controlling factors. Such functions are also needed for determining the economic reliability of crop production.

Soil moisture and nitrogen fertilizer were maintained at various levels to determine the response of field corn to these controlling factors. A conventional split plot design, a continuous function experimental design, and a confined barrel plot design were used to obtain data for determining production functions.

The complete factorial, conventional split plot data was successfully used to generate reliable production functions in …

Bromegrass Productivity In Relation To Precipitation, Shrub Canopy Cover And Soil Nitrogen Content, Lawrence G. Kline

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

In seasons of above normal precipitation, populations of annual weedy species increase in great abundance in semi-arid desert plant communities. These increases in biomass tie up a considerable portion of the available nitrogen of such ecosystems and may depress subsequent annual grass germination.

A big sagebrush-annual bromegrass plant community was irrigated to simulate a spring growth period of abundant precipitation amenable to annual bromegras s productivity. Productivity and nitrogen content parameters were monitored throughout the spring and summer to evaluate the short and potential long term effects of this seasonal increase in "precipitation".

Irrigation increased annual bromegrass productivity almost 50 …

Petrology And Regional Relationships Of The Ordovician Kinnikinic Formation And Equivalents, Central And Southern Idaho, William Calvin James

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Kinnikinic Formation of central Idaho is a sedimentary unit consisting principally of orthoquartzite. From its maximum measured thickness of 2285 feet in the central Lemhi Range near Gilmore, Idaho, it thins westward to 376 feet at the type section and southward to 326 feet near Arco, Idaho. Northeast of the Lemhi Range it occurs only as erosional remnants, due to pre-Devonian erosion. Both the lower and upper contacts of the Kinnikinic Formation are disconformable.

The Kinnikinic Formation is light colored, predominately fine to medium grained, thin to medium bedded, and largely cemented by silica overgrowths. Some metamorphic recrystallization has …

Petrology And Geochemistry Of The Morrison Formation, Dinosaur Quarry Quadrangle, Utah, Sue Ann Bilbey

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Mineralogical and petrographic analyses of the upper Jurassic - lower Cretaceous units in the vicinity of the Dinosaur National Monument quarry near Jensen, Utah, have elucidated their characteristics and the locations of formational boundaries. The lower part of the Morrison Formation is distinguished by a decreased amount of illite and an increased amount of kaolinite. In contrast, the underlying Curtis Formation contains an approximately equal mixture of illite and kaolinite. The lower Salt Wash Member and the upper Brushy Basin Member of the Morrison are both lithologically and mineralogically identifiable in this area. Above the boundary between the two, kaolinite …

Structural Geology Of The Northern Part Of Clarkston Mountain, Malad Range, Utah-Idaho, Steven Mark Burton

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The northern part of Clarkston Mountain, in northern Utah and southern Idaho, is located about 23 miles northwest of Logan, Utah. It extends across the Malad Range from Malad Valley on the west to Cache Valley on the east. The mapped area measures 4.8 miles in the north-south direction and 6.8 miles in the east-west direction.

The Brigham Formation of Cambrian age is the oldest exposed stratigraphic unit. It consists mainly of quartzite. Younger Cambrian units include the Langston, Ute, Blacksmith, Bloomington, Nounan, and St. Charles Formations. The Garden City Formation of Ordovician age is the youngest Paleozoic unit. The …

An Intensive Edaphological Characterization Of The Soils Of Malambito Experimental Station And Its Implications In Future Agricultural Research, William L. Rubink

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Malambito Experiment Station, in the Atlántico III project area, Department of Atlántico, Colombia, had almost no quantitative edaphological data on which to base agricultural research. Unexplainably low general yields as well as problem areas of deficient plant growth only confounded the results of field plot experiments. Intensive soil sampling and subsequent measurements of pH, EC_e of the saturation extract, and the four major cations disproved the previous suggestions that the crop growth problems were related to saline, sodic, or degraded soil conditions. The Ca/Mg+K+Na ratio, although significant when correlated with plant height, was sufficient explanation for only a small …

A Measure Of The Amount Of Phosphate Adsorption And The Rate Of Release Of Indigenous Phosphate From A Desert Soil, Robert Lindsey Evans

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The capacity of a calcareous desert soil, Thiokol silt loam, to retain natural, as well as added, orthophosphate-P was measured by equilibrium adsorption employing a batch technique and evaluated using the two-slope Langmuir adsorption isotherm. From these data, corrected to account for indigenous soil P, a hypothesis was formulated as to the nature of retention of P by the soil, including the identification of two interfacial reactions involving P, and a value calculated for the adsorption maximum as defined by the Langmuir isotherm equation for P with soil at each of two soil depths and three constant temperatures within the …

Mineral And Chemical Content Of The Deep-Water Sediment Sequences Of Bear Lake, Utah-Idaho, James C. Biesinger

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Twenty-five piston cores 6 to 12 feet long were obtained from the deepwater sediments of Bear Lake, Utah-Idaho. Analyses of these cores revealed that the deep-water sediments of the lake are divided into two major sequences: a younger sequence rich in carbonate minerals, here called the carbonate sequence, and an older sequence rich in silicate minerals, referred to in this paper as the silt sequence. The carbonate sequence is composed of clay-sized quartz, aragonite, calcite, dolomite, montmorillonite, illite, kaolinite, chlorite, and amorphous material. The silt sequence consists of both silt- sized and claysized particles of quartz, calcite, dolomite, montmorillonite, illite, …

Model For Predicting Simultaneous Distribution Of Salt And Water In Soils, Satish C. Gupta

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Knowledge of water and salt movement in soils is necessary for development of a management scheme for controlling the quality of irrigation return flow. A computer model was developed to predict the distribution of water and salts in the root zone under varying initial and boundary conditions. The model consists of water flow and salt flow sub-models. The water flow sub-model considers the numerical approximation of the general water flow equation with modification for water loss by evapotranspiration (and thus root extraction). The salt flow sub-model considers the mass flow of salts, chemical exchange, precipitation or dissolution of CaCO_{3 …}

Model For Estimating Soil Water Flow, Water Content, Evapotranspiration And Root Extraction, Musa N. Nimah

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

A mathematical model was developed to predict water content profiles, evapotranspiration, water flow from or to the water table, root extraction and root water potential at the surface as functions of time under unsteady state conditions.

The model was tested in the field at The Hullinger Farm near Vernal, Utah, in 1970 and 1971. Comparison of water content-depth profiles show excellent agreement at the end of a 9- day run in 1970 on oats seeded to alfalfa. In 1971 with alfalfa as the crop, the data show best agreement, between predicted and computed water content-depth profiles, 48 hours after any …

Effect Of Early Growth Cultivation On Beans And Sweet Corn, Raymond L. Cartee

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Investigations involving four cultivation treatments were conducted at the Utah State University Greenville Experimental Farm to determine the effect of these treatments on yields of beans and sweet corn. The effects of the different treatments on soil water content, soil temperature, and weed control in beans and corn were investigated. The effect of cultivation on the degree of root rot infection and the effect of different planting dates were also investigated in the bean study.

The pre-emergence treatment (ridged just before the plants emerge) produced a 48 percent greater bean yield and a 40 percent greater corn yield than the …

An Examination Of The Inorganic Nitrogen Status Of A Soil Of The Alaskan Coastal Tundra Plain, Norton R. Munn

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

This experiment was designed to measure in situ concentrations of NH₄⁺ and NO₃^--N in a soil of the arctic coastal tundra plain, to determine if nitrification was taking place in this soil and to determine if the vascular plants growing in this soil could assimilate NH₄⁺-N.

The extractable NH₄⁺-N concentration was approximately 40 μg/g in the 0₁ horizon and 10 μg/g in the 0₂ horizon. The NO₃^--N concentration was approximately 5 μg/g in the 0¹ horizon and 4 μg/g in the 0_{2 …}