Earth Sciences Commons^™

Solving The Woolly Mammoth Conundrum: Amino Acid 15n-Enrichment Suggests A Distinct Forage Or Habitat, Rachel Schwartz-Narbonne, Fred J. Longstaffe, Jessica Z. Metcalfe, Grant Zazula

Earth Sciences Publications

Understanding woolly mammoth ecology is key to understanding Pleistocene community dynamics and evaluating the roles of human hunting and climate change in late Quaternary megafaunal extinctions. Previous isotopic studies of mammoths’ diet and physiology have been hampered by the ‘mammoth conundrum’: woolly mammoths have anomalously high collagen δ¹⁵N values, which are more similar to coeval carnivores than herbivores, and which could imply a distinct diet and (or) habitat, or a physiological adaptation. We analyzed individual amino acids from collagen of adult woolly mammoths and coeval species, and discovered greater  ¹⁵N enrichment in source amino acids of woolly …

Nwa 8614: The Least Heated Winonaite, Karla Farley, Alexander M. Ruzicka, Katherine Armstrong

Student Research Symposium

Northwest Africa 8614 is classified as a winonaite on the basis of oxygen isotope ratios, mineralogy, and highly reduced chemistry. Unlike other winonaites, it contains numerous and readily apparent chondrules. Here we discuss various features of NWA 8614 and the possible significance of the meteorite.

Petrological and chemical analyses were performed using optical microscopy with a DM2500 Leica petrographic microscope and a Zeiss Sigma VP-FEG scanning electron microscope (SEM) with a high-efficiency energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). Oxygen isotopes were analyzed by Karen Ziegler at the University of New Mexico on acid-washed samples to remove terrestrial weathering products.

Owing to the …

Geochemical Analysis Of Surface Materials Surrounding The Bautsch-Gray Mine Superfund Site Near Galena, Illinois, Ryan Plath

Geology: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

The Bautsch-Gray zinc and lead mine, near Galena, IL, was in operation from the early 1900s until closing in 1975. The mine’s tailings pile has documented elevated lead and zinc concentrations in the surface materials surrounding the site. Numerous floods have caused contaminated sediment to migrate off the mine tailings pile, across Blackjack Road and into an outwash basin, and towards Smallpox Creek. Since this site was designated an EPA priority list Superfund site in 2010, the EPA has conducted numerous remediation efforts. This study attempts to develop a better understanding of the contamination within the soils of the outwash …

Sequence Stratigraphy, Depositional Environments And Geochemistry Of The Middle Cambrian Bloomington Formation In Northern Utah, Christopher Ryan Jensen

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The Bloomington Formation (~425 m thick) is a latest Middle Cambrian (~506.5-505 Ma.), mixed warm water, carbonate and shale unit on the Cordilleran passive margin in northern Utah and southern Idaho. The Hodges Shale and Calls Fort Shale Members are shale dominated and the Middle Limestone Member is a thick carbonate. Fossil diversity and abundance is surprisingly low for a Middle Cambrian carbonate/shale formation. Present, however, are 10-50 cm thrombolite mud mounds, associated with Girvanella oncoliths. These mud mounds represent shallow water carbonates that experienced a small flooding event that gives the mud mounds time and proper conditions to build …

Modeling Background Radiation Using Geochemical Data, Kara Marsac

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Aerial gamma ray surveys have many applications in geology and science in general, such as locating mining prospects, defining radioactive plumes, and detecting nuclear weapons. Unfortunately there is currently no simple way to separate the natural gamma radiation of soil and rocks from that of contaminants such as radioactive plumes. This project used geochemical data (uranium, potassium and thorium concentrations) collected from national databases, private companies, and the NURE (National Uranium Resource Evaluation) Survey, to create forward models of exposure rates measured by aerial gamma ray surveys. We developed these techniques using an area in north central Arizona known as …

Effects Of Physical Characteristics Of Urban Storm Sewersheds On Water Quality In Bloomington, Il, Alicia Terese O'Hare

Theses and Dissertations

Increasing urbanization has consequences for surface water quality. Stormwater is a large component of urban water degradation that is poorly understood. Precipitation is quickly transported via underground pipes, from the land to the stream without following water's natural flow path. Studies have correlated detention ponds with improved water quality and impervious surface cover with degraded water quality. However, other physical characteristics within a storm sewer shed including the presence of sump pumps, area and pipe miles may also affect the stormwater quality. We chose 18 storm sewer systems in Bloomington, IL. We measured pH, temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, chloride, nitrate, …

Hydroclimatic Shifts In Northeast Thailand During The Last Two Millennia — The Record Of Lake Pa Kho, Sakonvan Chawchai, Akkaneewut Chabangborn, Sherilyn C. Fritz, Minna Väliranta, Carl-Magnus Mörth, Maarten Blaauw, Paul J. Reimer, Paul J. Kusic, Ludvig Löwemark, Barbara Wohlfarth

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Southeast Asian mainland is located in the central path of the Asian summer monsoon, a region where paleoclimatic data are still sparse. Here we present a multi-proxy (TOC, C/N, δ13C, biogenic silica, and XRF elemental data) study of a 1.5 m sediment/peat sequence from Lake Pa Kho, northeast Thailand, which is supported by 20 AMS 14C ages. Hydroclimatic reconstructions for Pa Kho suggest a strengthened summer monsoon between BC 170–AD 370, AD 800–960, and after AD 1450; and a weakening of the summer monsoon between AD 370–800, and AD 1300–1450. Increased run-off and a higher nutrient supply after AD …

Geochemistry Of Travertine Deposits In The Eastern Anatolia District: An Example Of The Karakoçan-Yoğunağaç (Elazığ) And Mazgirt-Dedebağ (Tunceli) Travertines, Turkey, Leyla Kalender, Özlem Özteki̇n Okan, Murat İnceöz, Bahatti̇n Çeti̇ndağ, Vesi̇le Yildirim

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The Karakoçan-Yoğunağaç (Elazığ) and Mazgirt-Dedebağ (Tunceli) travertines, which are related to thermal springs, are situated on the right-lateral strike-slip Karakoçan Fault Zone (KFZ) and left-lateral strike-slip Pamuklu Fault Zone (PFZ) in eastern Anatolia. The surface area of the travertines varies from m2 to km2. Morphologically, the travertines are classified as ridge, banded, and terrace types due to deposition in different ways, in the releasing/restraining bends of the KFZ and PFZ and on the segments of faults. The banded travertines were dated by U-series, and an age of 160,000 ± 76 years was determined in only one sample from the Mazgirt-Dedebağ …

Petrography And Geochemistry Of The Kamlial Formation, Southwestern Kohat Plateau, Pakistan: Implications For Paleoclimate Of The Western Himalayas, Kafayat Ullah, Mohammad Arif, Muhammad Tahir Shah

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The Middle to Late Miocene Kamlial Formation that largely consists of sandstone and interbedded clay/mudstone sequences is exposed in the southwestern part of the Kohat plateau, which constitutes the westernmost extension of the Himalayan Foreland Basin. Whereas the sandstone is gray to brownish gray, fine- to medium-grained, and mostly thick-bedded, the interbedded clay/mudstone sequence is brownish gray to maroon red and occurs as continuous beds as well as lenses. Some mudstone/clay beds are bioturbated and seem to be pedogenic surfaces. Results of geochemical investigation of fresh (unaltered) representative sandstone and mudstone samples from three different sections of the formation in …

Rare Earth Element Geochemistry Of The Upper Permian Limestone: The Kanigorgeh Mining District, Nw Iran, Ali Abedini, Ali Asghar Calagari

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

The limestone of the Ruteh Formation of Upper Permian age in the Kanigorgeh district (northeast of Bukan, NW Iran) contains several layers and lenses of bauxitic ores. Mineralogical data show that this limestone consists of calcite and quartz as major and plagioclase, kaolinite, and hematite as minor mineral phases. Geochemical analyses reveal that the proportions of ?REEs (La-Lu) in this limestone vary from 35.28 to 160.78 ppm. The values of Eu and Ce anomalies (normalized to PAAS) of the limestone have ranges of 1.11-1.68 and 0.89-1.16, respectively. The high values of ?REEs; low values of Y/Ho; strong and positive correlations …

Tracing Sediment In The Subsurface Using Beryllium-7: Green River Basin, Ky, Caroline Adams Broderick

LSU Master's Theses

As water flows through areas of limestone, karst inevitably develops, creating sinking streams and sinkholes that transport alumino-silicate particles from the surface into the subsurface. Sediment budget studies on short term scales through karst are rare. Thus, a feasibility study using beryllium-7 (7Be), which attaches to soil particles and can be used as a short-term (2-3 month) tracer of the movement of fine-grained sediment in karst was investigated. Sediment samples were collected from a karstic catchment within Green River basin, Kentucky, both on the surface and in the subsurface along a cave stream. Samples were collected prior to and immediately …

Augite In Komatiitic Basalts: A Study Of The Mobility Of Trace Elements During Rock Alteration, Alesha C. Morabito

LSU Master's Theses

Komatiitic basalts are ultramafic rocks formed from volcanic liquids containing less than 18 wt.% magnesium oxide that can be linked, spatially, geochemically and texturally to komatiites. Archean komatiites and komatiitic basalts are critical to models of early Earth’s mantle evolution. Major and trace elements in these rocks are poorly preserved due to early sub-seafloor alteration with superimposed regional metamorphism: in particular the alkali, alkaline earths, and other elements with low valence numbers. Current analytical methods focus on analyzing whole rock, fresh olivines and melt inclusions to evaluate elemental concentrations and for petrogenetic studies. Although these methods establish elemental concentrations, REE, …

Rare Earth Element Patterns In Conodont Apatite From The Upper Ordovician: Testing Enrichment Sources And Possible Oceanographic Changes, Cody Christian Schulte

LSU Master's Theses

The Mohawkian series of the Middle Late Ordovician was a time of great lithological and faunal changes that coincide with a positive ä13C excursion known as the Guttenberg Isotopic Carbon Excursion (GICE). Two prevailing hypotheses have been proposed to explain the cause of these changes. The “cold-water” hypothesis suggests that global cooling caused the tropical belt to shrink and cold water to invade the epicontinental sea while the “tectonic-forcing” hypothesis suggests that increased weathering rates led to basinal deepening, resulting in cooler oceanic waters invading the midcontinent sea. This study tests if regional tectonics caused by the Taconic Orogeny led …

Accelerated Degradation Of Chlorinated Solvents By Copper-Modified Nanoscale Zero Valent Iron (Cu-Nzvi) Stabilized With Carboxymethyl Cellulose, Andrew Franze

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

Nanoscale zero valent iron (nZVI) is a remediation technology that can be used to treat chlorinated hydrocarbons (CHCs) in contaminated aquifers. Nanoparticles remain mobile in water and can be transported with groundwater flow to contaminated zones. However, due to magnetic and van der Waals forces, unstabilized nZVI agglomerates. Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) was used as a polyelectrolyte stabilizer in this study. nZVI serves as an electron donor and can dechlorinate CHCs. nZVI reactivity with CHCs can be enhanced by addition of a secondary metal catalyst. This study evaluates the potential of copper amended nZVI (Cu-nZVI) to degrade select CHCs. The objective of …

Interpretation Of Geochemical Signatures From Modern Carbonate Springs To The Rock Record, Benjamin Maas

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Despite the importance of carbonate aquifers as reservoirs of oil, of water, and of carbon dioxide, questions remain about the diagenetic processes that enhance porosity and permeability. Some of the questions are: 1) what are the water-rock interactions that control the geochemistry of spring waters; 2) are the geochemical signatures of saline-fresh water mixing zones preserved in the carbonate rock record; and 3) how much carbon dioxide outgases along spring runs? To address these questions, two field sites, one in Oklahoma (the site of an active saline-fresh water mixing zone) and the other in Colorado, the location of a former …

Composition, Alteration, And Texture Of Fault-Related Rocks From Safod Core And Surface Outcrop Analogs: Evidence For Deformation Processes And Fluid-Rock Interactions, Kelly Keighley Bradbury, Colter R. Davis, John W. Shervais, Susanne U. Janecke, James P. Evans

Geosciences Faculty Publications

We examine the fine-scale variations in mineralogical composition, geochemical alteration, and texture of the fault-related rocks from the Phase 3 whole-rock core sampled between 3,187.4 and 3,301.4 m measured depth within the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) borehole near Parkfield, California. This work provides insight into the physical and chemical properties, structural architecture, and fluid-rock interactions associated with the actively deforming traces of the San Andreas Fault zone at depth. Exhumed outcrops within the SAF system comprised of serpentinite-bearing protolith are examined for comparison at San Simeon, Goat Rock State Park, and Nelson Creek, California. In the Phase …

Carbon Cycling Dynamics Inferred From Carbon Isotope Sourcing In A Mid-Latitude Karst-Influenced River, Kegan N. Mcclanahan

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

As ever-increasing levels of carbon dioxide alter the chemistry of the Earth’s atmosphere, understanding the global carbon cycle becomes increasingly important. A particularly important component is the riverine carbon cycle, as rivers are the primary conduits for dissolved inorganic carbon from terrestrial watersheds to ocean basins. Stable carbon isotopes (13C/12C) were collected weekly and input into the mixing model IsoSource to delineate seasonal carbon sourcing along two nested basins in the upper Green River System, Kentucky. In the more siliciclastic upstream catchment, dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) was primarily derived from soil respiration (34%). Groundwater dissolving carbonate bedrock and carbonate dissolution/precipitation …

An Examination Of Radionuclide Transport In The Vadose Zone Using Field Lysimeters, Michael Witmer

All Theses

Understanding how radionuclides interact in the subsurface is important for the remediation of contaminated sites, assessment of risk due to radioactive waste disposal, and designing new radioactive waste management strategies. The current understanding of the geochemical behavior of radionuclides in the subsurface and more specifically the vadose zone has been developed through reactive transport modeling supplemented by laboratory experiments. Interactions between radionuclides with the mineral particles and organic matter in the vadose zone can be very complex and while laboratory experiments produce valuable data, few controlled, intermediate scale transport studies have been performed. In order to accurately predict vadose zone …

Hf-Nd Isotopic Variability In Mineral Dust From Chinese And Mongolian Deserts: Implications For Sources And Dispersal, Wancang Zhao, Youbin Sun, William Balsam, Huayu Lu

Dartmouth Scholarship

Mineral dust provenances are closely related to the orogenic processes which may have distinct Hf-Nd isotopic signatures. Here we report the clay-sized (<2 μm) Hf-Nd isotope data from Asian dust sources to better constrain the source and transport dynamics of dust deposition in the North Pacific. Our results show that there is a more positive radiogenic Hf isotopic composition with clay-sized fractions than the corresponding bulk sample and a decoupling of the Hf-Nd couplets in the clay formation during the weathering process. The clay-sized Hf-Nd isotopic compositions of the desert samples from the Sino-Korean-Tarim Craton (SKTC) are different from those of the Gobi and deserts from the Central Asian Orogeny Belt (CAOB) due to varying tectonic and weathering controls. The Hf-Nd isotopic compositions of dust in the North Pacific central province (NPC) match closely with those from the Taklimakan, Badain Jaran and adjacent Tengger deserts, implying that the NPC dust was mainly transported from these potential sources by the westerly jet. Our study indicates that dusts from the CAOB Gobi deserts either didn't arrive in NPC or were quantitatively insignificant, but they were likely transported to the North Pacific margin province (NPM) by East Asian winter monsoon.

Geochemistry And Stable Isotopes Of Surface Water And Groundwater In The Continental Pit In Butte, Montana, Usa, Amber Mcgivern

Graduate Theses & Non-Theses

The Continental porphyry Cu‐Mo mine, located 2 km east of the famous Berkeley Pit lake of Butte, Montana, contains two small lakes that vary in size depending on mining activity. In contrast to the acidic Berkeley Pit lake, the Continental Pit waters have near-neutral pH and relatively low metal concentrations. The main reason is geological: whereas the Berkeley Pit mined highly‐altered granite rich in pyrite with no neutralizing potential, the Continental Pit is mining weakly‐altered granite with lower pyrite concentrations and up to 1‐2% hydrothermal calcite. The purpose of this study was to gather and interpret information that bears on …

Contact Zone Mineralogy And Geochemistry Of The Mt. Mica Pegmatite, Oxford County, Maine, Kimberly T. Clark

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

This study focuses on exocontact mineral assemblages to determine composition, thermal signatures, and the extent of exomorphism that occurred between the Mt. Mica pegmatite and the migmatite host rock at the contact. Biotite-garnet thermometry of country rock samples resulted in an average temperature estimate of 630 °C. Measured biotite Fe/(Fe+Mg) ratios were used to calculate an fO2 of -18. The results indicate that the country rock and pegmatite formed under similar oxidizing conditions near the quartz-fayalite-magnetite (QFM) equilibria buffer. Whole rock (REE) analysis indicates an interaction trend between the country rock and pegmatite. Exomorphism does not appear to have …

Slides: Thoughts On Regulatory Mechanisms For Natural Resource Development: Alternatives To Command And Control, Including A Look At Open Source Approaches, Stanley Dempsey

Natural Resource Industries and the Sustainability Challenge (Martz Winter Symposium, February 27-28)

Presenter: Stanley Dempsey, Chairman, Royal Gold

17 slides

Linking Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (Inaa) With Geology In The Ancestral Caddo Region, Robert Z. Selden Jr.

CRHR: Archaeology

This poster illustrates the success of a novel method of INAA that was employed to reveal geochemical signatures in Caddo ceramic vessel sherds that correlate with local surficial geology. The geochemical data from the sherd assemblage were used within an exploration of potential ceramic provenance, which was successful at demarcating sherds from ceramic vessels made from clays in either the Claiborne or Wilcox Groups. Further geochemical segregation was also apparent between the Recklaw Formation in the Claiborne Group, and the Weches Formation in the Wilcox Group. These results point to a high degree of geochemical variability within the East Texas …

At The Confluence Of Gis And Geochemistry: Identifying Geochemical Correlates Of Ripley Engraved Caddo Ceramics, Robert Z. Selden Jr., Timothy K. Perttula

CRHR: Archaeology

In this poster, we discuss a new approach to the identification and definition of spatial trends in archeologically-recovered ceramics associated with geochemical results produced using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). Using all of the Ripley Engraved INAA samples, we posit that clays in the Claiborne and Wilcox Groups can be successfully demarcated by sodium (Na), cerium (Ce), and zinc (Zn). Using a subset of those data from the Big Cypress Creek basin, we find that ceramics manufactured in three different Caddo political communities can be successfully demarcated based upon differential concentrations of arsenic (As), iron (Fe), and vanadium (V) found …

Testing Of The Recently Developed Tectonomagmatic Discrimination Diagrams From Hydrothermally Altered Igneous Rocks Of 7 Geothermal Fields, Kailasa Pandarinath

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Recently developed multidimensional tectonomagmatic discrimination diagrams based on log-ratio variables of chemical elements, discordant outlier-free databases, and probability-based boundaries have been shown to work better than the earlier diagrams. Hydrothermally altered drilled well rock cuttings obtained from different depths of geothermal fields were used to test these diagrams to compare the inferred tectonic setting with the expected one. In spite of the hydrothermal alteration effects, these diagrams provided the following expected tectonic settings: (1) an arc setting for Ahuachapán and Berlin geothermal fields, El Salvador; (2) a rift setting for Cerro Prieto geothermal field, Mexico, and Tendaho geothermal field, Afar …

A Microscopic Approach To The Pedogenic Formation Of Palygorskite Associated With Quaternary Calcretes Of The Adana Area, Southern Turkey, Meryem Yeşi̇lot Kaplan, Muhsi̇n Eren, Selahatti̇n Kadi̇r, Seli̇m Kapur, Jennifer Huggett

Turkish Journal of Earth Sciences

Quaternary calcretes in the Adana area (southern Turkey) are widespread and occur in a variety of forms such as nodular, columnar/tubular, fracture-infill, laminated hardpan, and conglomeratic crusts. Palygorskite associated with calcrete nodules, tubes, and fracture-infills in the columnar horizon and adjacent host-rock mudstones suggests a cogenetic formation. The Beta-fabric (biogenic) constituents and stable isotope values of calcretes support a pedogenic origin for calcretes and also palygorskite. Extensions of palygorskite fibre and fibre bundles from euhedral to subhedral calcite crystals in calcretes and from smectite flakes in adjacent host-rock mudstone suggest an authigenic origin related to calcretisation in which precipitation and …

Exploring The Hydrogeologic Controls On Brackish Water And Its Suitability For Use In Hydraulic Fracturing: The Dockum Aquifer, Midland Basin Texas, Francisco Ruben Reyes

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Water scarcity in arid regions can limit or impede certain hydrocarbon production activities, such as hydraulic fracturing and well drilling. The Midland Basin, a major oil-producing area in semi-arid far west Texas and the eastern sub-basin of the Permian Basin, is already impacted by limited freshwater availability. A typical tight oil well in the Midland Basin requires ~3.8-11.4 x 103 m3 of water per fracture treatment (Nicot et al., 2012). Despite draught conditions and limited resources, data for 2011 indicate freshwater comprises ~70% of the water used in hydraulic fracturing in the Midland basin. Thus, the Midland Basin represents an …

Surface Complexation Of Monosubstituted Organoarsenicals On Hematite: Atr-Ftir Investigations, Md Abdus Sabur

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Little is known about the surface chemistry of organoarsenic compounds with iron-containing materials commonly found in geosorbents and arsenic removal technologies. In this thesis, these organoarsenicals include aliphatic and aromatic arsenicals that historically have been used as herbicides, pesticides and in the poultry feed industry, respectively. Attenuated total internal reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy has been used to study the surface interactions of organoarsenicals at the molecular level under various environmentally-relevant conditions. Kinetic and thermodynamic parameters extracted from these molecular level experiments provide trends that are not observed in any published bulk experiments. Apparent initial rates of adsorption and desorption …

Sources Of Co2 Controlling The Carbonate Chemistry Of The Logsdon River, Mammoth Cave, Kentucky, Bruce Elliott Hatcher

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Logsdon River is a major, base-level stream within the Turnhole Bend Drainage basin of the Mammoth Cave System. The Logsdon River system has provided a unique opportunity to examine the geochemical evolution of a stream flowing through a major karst conduit that can be traversed for 10 km. This study examines CO₂ inputs at the upstream portion of the river, which provide major control for the river’s hydrochemistry. Samples were collected from the upstream portion of Logsdon River at what is referred to as the S-188 sump and also nearby at Crowbar Dome over the course of 44 weeks …

Spectroscopic Study Of Uranium (Vi) Reduction By Plant Biomass, Margaret C. Murphy, John Bargar, Noémie Janot

STAR Program Research Presentations

Uranium is a common and problematic groundwater contaminant at Department of Energy legacy sites. At the former uranium ore processing plant at Rifle, Colorado, sediments rich in decayed plant biomass contain large concentrations of uranium that are slowly being released back to the aquifer. To simulate the reaction that occurs in organic rich sediments of the Rifle aquifer, biomass was incubated in U (VI) bearing groundwater. Carbon X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) was then used to measure if uranium was bound to the biomass. When uranium binds to biomass the peaks in the C XAS spectra will change shape. Uranium L …