Earth Sciences Commons^™

Iron And Magnesium Impregnation Of Avocado Seed Biochar For Aqueous Phosphate Removal, James Jihoon Kang, Jason Parsons, Sampath Gunukula, Dat T. Tran

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

There has been increasing interest in using biochar for nutrient removal from water, and its application for anionic nutrient removal such as in phosphate (PO₄³⁻) necessitates surface modifications of raw biochar. This study produced avocado seed biochar (AB), impregnated Fe- or Mg-(hydr)oxide onto biochar (post-pyrolysis), and tested their performance for aqueous phosphate removal. The Fe- or Mg-loaded biochar was prepared in either high (1:8 of biochar to metal salt in terms of mass ratio) or low (1:2) loading rates via the co-precipitation method. A total of 5 biochar materials (unmodified AB, AB + High Fe, AB …

Effect Of Ultraviolet Light Treatment On Microbiological Safety And Quality Of Fresh Produce: An Overview, Veerachandra K. Yemmireddy, Achyut Adhikari, Juan Moreira

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables have been associated in several foodborne illness outbreaks. Although investigations from those outbreaks reported that the contamination with pathogenic microorganisms may occur at any point in the farm to fork continuum, effective control strategies are still being widely investigated. In that direction, the concept of hurdle technology involving a sequence of different interventions have been widely explored. Among those interventions, ultraviolet (UV) light alone or in combination with other treatments such as use of organic acids or sanitizer solutions, has found to be a promising approach to maintain the microbiological safety and quality of …

Controls On Surface Distributions Of Dissolved Organic Carbon And Nitrogen In The Southeast Pacific Ocean, Mariana B. Bif, Annie Bourbonnais, Dennis A. Hansell, Julie Granger, Holly Westbrook, Mark A. Altabet

Faculty Publications

Here we use data from three meridional survey cruises that took place in 1994, 2007/2008 and 2016/2017 in the southeast Pacific Ocean to investigate controls on surface distributions of dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen (DOC and DON, respectively). While DOC and DON production occur simultaneously in the euphotic layer of the gyre margins, budgets that account for horizontal transport, production and consumption are not balanced across the region. Our results show that while DOC concentrations increase inside the gyre, DON remains at similar levels in comparison to margins. There is little interannual variability in DOC and DON trends, except near …

Wetland Soil Development Along Salinity And Hydrogeomorphic Gradients In Active And Inactive Deltaic Basins Of Coastal Louisiana, Amanda Fontenot

LSU Master's Theses

Coastal wetlands provide an abundance of ecosystem services that benefit society, such as essential habitat for commercial species, storm protection, nutrient cycling, and carbon storage. Louisiana faces rapid rates of relative sea level rise (natural subsidence and eustatic sea levels) that threaten wetland survival, which are amplified by a reduction of riverine sediment input. An important determining factor of marsh survival is the formation of wetland platform elevation, known as vertical accretion, which is determined by several processes including sediment deposition & erosion, below ground biomass (BGB) productivity, decomposition of organic matter, shallow & deep subsidence, and soil compaction. Feldspar …

Synchronous Retreat Of Southeast Greenland's Peripheral Glaciers, Julia Liu, Ellyn Enderlin, Hans-Peter Marshall, Andre Khalil

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Recently, scientific attention has focused on estimating Greenland's dynamic mass loss through changes to flow speeds, thickness, and length on its marine outlet glaciers. For the ice sheet outlet glaciers, dynamic mass loss has been found to be highly sensitive to changes in climate and individual glacier geometry. For the ice-sheet-independent marine glaciers around Greenland's periphery, dynamic mass loss is presently overlooked. Here, we apply an open-source, automated method of measuring glacier length changes using satellite imagery, to produce highly detailed records of length changes for 135 peripheral marine glaciers in southeast Greenland. We find evidence for anomalous retreat across …

Streamlined Subglacial Bedform Sensitivity To Bed Characteristics Across The Deglaciated Northern Hemisphere, Marion A. Mckenzie, Lauren M. Simkins, Sarah M. Principato, Santiago Munevar Garcia

Environmental Studies Faculty Publications

Streamlined subglacial bedforms observed in deglaciated landscapes provide the opportunity to assess the sensitivity of glacier dynamics to bed characteristics across broader spatiotemporal scales than is possible for contemporary glacial systems. While many studies of streamlined subglacial bedforms rely on manual mapping and qualitative (i.e., visual) assessment, we semi-automatically identify 11,628 sedimentary and bedrock bedforms, created during and following the Last Glacial Maximum across nine geologically and topographically diverse deglaciated sites in the Northern Hemisphere. Using this large dataset of landforms and associated morphometrics, we empirically test the importance of subglacial terrain on bedform morphology and ice-flow behavior. A minimum …

Functional Morphology And Taphonomy Of Ordovician–Silurian Diploporan Echinoderms, Stephen Ashley Hill

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Diploporan echinoderms were one of the most speciose groups of stemmed echinoderms during the Ordovician. Despite this widespread abundance, the fossil record of diploporan fauna consists primarily of incomplete specimens, with complete specimens being rare. While the theca, or body, is more commonly preserved, the feeding appendages and the attachment structures (i.e. stems or holdfasts) are seldomly preserved. Insight into these features is highly valuable to the understanding the paleoecology, like the feeding and respiratory strategies, of these enigmatic creatures.

One group of diploporan echinoderms which does have an extensive fossil record, is the Holocystites Fauna, primarily known from the …

Disaster Resilience Versus Ecological Resilience And The Proposed Second Causeway To South Padre Island, Juliet Vallejo, Katia Sanchez, Evelyn Roozee, Owen Temby

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

The barrier island of South Padre is located off the coast of Texas’s southern tip in Cameron County and is a popular tourist destination with over 4 million annual visits. The only road access to and from the island is a four-lane causeway, 2.3 miles in length, that routinely experiences heavy traffic. Twenty years ago, a barge crashed into the Queen Isabella Causeway, destroying a portion of the bridge. It quickly became apparent how reliant South Padre Island (SPI) is on the causeway and raised questions regarding its lack of disaster resilience. Local boosters and government responded by proposing and …

Single-Crystal Elasticity Of Clinopyroxenes And The Viscosity Of Kimberlite Magma Under High Pressure-Temperature Conditions, Ming Hao

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Clinopyroxene is not only an important mineral phase in the pyrolitic upper mantle, but also one of the dominated mineral phases in the subducted or delaminated eclogitic materials in the deep Earth. Identifying and locating these eclogitic materials requires the knowledge of the thermoelastic properties of clinopyroxene under high pressure-temperature conditions. In this dissertation, we have measured the single-crystal elastic properties of jadeite and omphacite, which are major clinopyroxene phases in the eclogitic materials, up to 18 GPa 700 K by Brillouin spectroscopy and utilized these data to identify the eclogitic heterogeneities in the mantle.

We also measured the viscosity …

Halogen And Non-Traditional Isotope Geochemistry Of Planetary And Terrestrial Materials, Anthony Gargano, Zachary Sharp, Justin Simon, Charles Shearer, Adrian Brearley, James Day

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

This dissertation presents the advances in non-traditional isotope geochemistry of planetary and terrestrial materials encompassing chlorine, sulfur, and zinc isotopes, as well as halogen geochemistry. A wide breadth of materials was studied throughout the completion of this work including iron meteorites, achondrites, chondrites, Apollo lunar samples, as well ancient marine chert, and carbonate sediments. Much of the focus involved the development of a method capable of simultaneously measuring the halogen contents and chlorine isotope compositions of geological materials. Here, I present these data sets to broadly characterize the process of devolatilization of planetary materials, and specifically the problem of ‘halogen-poisoning’ …

Learning From Machines: Insights In Forest Transpiration Using Machine Learning Methods, Morgan Thornwell

Dissertations and Theses

Machine learning has been used as a tool to model transpiration for individual sites, but few models are capable of generalizing to new locations without calibration to site data. Using the global SAPFLUXNET database, 95 tree sap flow data sites were grouped using three clustering strategies: by biome, by tree functional type, and through use of a k-means unsupervised clustering algorithm. Two supervised machine learning algorithms, a random forest algorithm and a neural network algorithm, were used to build machine learning models that predicted transpiration for each cluster. The performance and feature importance in each model were analyzed and compared …

Sulfuric Acid Speleogenesis And Surface Landform Evolution Along The Vienna Basin Transfer Fault: Plavecký Karst, Slovakia, Pavel Bella, Helena Hercman, Šimon Kdýr, Petr Mikysek, Petr Pruner, Juraj Littva, Jozef Minár, Michal Gradzinski, Wojciech Wróblewski, Marek Velšmid, Pavel Bosak

International Journal of Speleology

Hypogene caves in the Plavecký hradný vrch Hill (Western Slovakia, Central Europe) were formed by waters ascending along faults in fractured Triassic carbonates related to the horst-graben structure at the contact of the Malé Karpaty Mountains and the NE part of the Vienna Basin. The Plavecká jaskyňa and Pec caves mostly contain horizontal passages and chambers with flat corrosion bedrock floors, fissure discharge feeders, wall water-table notches, replacement pockets, as well as a few other speleogens associated with sulfuric acid speleogenesis. The low-temperature sulfuric acid development phases of the Plavecká Jaskyňa are also indicated by the presence of sulfate minerals …

Climate Change And Weather Extremes In The Eastern Mediterranean And Middle East, G. Zittis, M. Almazroui, P. Alpert, P. Ciais, W. Cramer, Y. Dahdal, M. Fnais, D. Francis, P. Hadjinicolaou, F. Howari, A. Jrrar, D. G. Kaskaoutis, M. Kulmala, G. Lazoglou, N. Mihalopoulos, X. Lin, Y. Rudich, J. Sciare, G. Stenchikov, E. Xoplaki, J. Lelieveld

All Works

Observation‐based and modeling studies have identified the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East (EMME) region as a prominent climate change hotspot. While several initiatives have addressed the impacts of climate change in parts of the EMME, here we present an updated assessment, covering a wide range of timescales, phenomena and future pathways. Our assessment is based on a revised analysis of recent observations and projections and an extensive overview of the recent scientific literature on the causes and effects of regional climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions in the EMME are growing rapidly, surpassing those of the European Union, hence contributing significantly …

Isotopic Evidence For Sources Of Dissolved Carbon And The Role Of Organic Matter Respiration In The Fraser River Basin, Canada, Britta M. Voss, Timothy I. Eglinton, Bernhard Peucker-Ehrenbrink, Valier Galy, Susan Q. Lang Ph.D., M.S., B.S., Cameron Mcintyre, Robert G.M. Spencer, Ekaterina Bulygina, Zhaohui Aleck Wang, Katherine A. Guay

Faculty Publications

Sources of dissolved and particulate carbon to the Fraser River system vary significantly in space and time. Tributaries in the northern interior of the basin consistently deliver higher concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) to the main stem than other tributaries. Based on samples collected near the Fraser River mouth throughout 2013, the radiocarbon age of DOC exported from the Fraser River does not change significantly across seasons despite a spike in DOC concentration during the freshet, suggesting modulation of heterogeneous upstream chemical and isotopic signals during transit through the river basin. Dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) concentrations are highest in …

Science Of The Total Environment, Benjamin Linhoff

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Recently, the subsoils of ephemeral stream(arroyos) floodplains in the northern Chihuahuan Desert were discovered to contain large naturally occurring NO₃⁻ reservoirs (floodplain:~38,000 kg NO₃-N/ha; background:~60 kg NO₃-N/ha). These reservoirs may be mobilized through land use change or natural stream channel migration which makes differentiating between anthropogenic and natural groundwaterNO₃⁻sources challenging. In this study, the fate and sources of NO₃⁻ were investigated in an area with multiple NO₃⁻ sources such as accidental sewer line releases and sewage lagoons aswell as natural reservoirs of subsoil NO₃⁻. …

Characterization Of Mumian And Host Rock In Al-Amerat Cave, Oman., Sara Alqamshouai

Honors Theses

Mumian is a sticky black-brown material found in the Mumian cave in Wadi Al Mayh, Al Amerat, Oman. Mumian has been used for centuries as traditional medicine by the local Omani people. Though commonly ingested orally to resolve a variety of common ailments, very little is known about the Mumian material in terms of its chemical composition. The principle aim of this study is to characterize the Mumian and the host rock in terms of the mineralogy and chemical characteristics using a variety of analytic instruments, including XRD, NMR, FT-IR, XRF, and UV- VIS. A secondary goal of this study …

Deformation Of Antigorite + Olivine Aggregates: Implications For Mantle Wedge Dynamics, Roselyn K. Hurlow

Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Aggregates with varying volume proportions of antigorite and olivine were deformed at mantle wedge conditions of high-pressure (P) (2.5-7.6 GPa), -temperature (T) (675 K), and strain rates from ~1.0*10^-5 to ~1.0*10^-4 s^-1 using the deformation-DIA (D-DIA) to investigate deformation mechanisms and stress/strain partitioning. Macroscopic strain, lattice strain, and texture were measured in situ using synchrotron x-ray diffraction and radiography and were modeled for olivine using Elasto-Viscoplastic Self-Consistent (EVPSC) simulations. These modeled results are coupled with microstructure images and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) measurements results to determine stress and deformation mechanisms. Previous to this study, investigations have been …

Coexistence Of Vitreous And Crystalline Phases Of H2o At Ambient Temperature, Ali K. Shargh, Aude Picard, Rostislav Hrubiak, Dongzhou Zhang, Russell J. Hemley, Shanti Deemyad, Niaz Abdolrahim, Saveez Saffarian

Life Sciences Faculty Research

Formation of vitreous ice during rapid compression of water at room temperature is important for biology and the study of biological systems. Here, we show that Raman spectra of rapidly compressed water at greater than 1 GPa at room temperature exhibits the signature of high-density amorphous ice, whereas the X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern is dominated by crystalline ice VI. To resolve this apparent contradiction, we used molecular dynamics simulations to calculate full vibrational spectra and diffraction patterns of mixtures of vitreous ice and ice VI, including embedded interfaces between the two phases. We show quantitatively that Raman spectra, which probe …

Titaniferous-Vanadiferous, Magnetite-Ilmenite Mineralization In A Mafic Suite Within The Chhotanagpur Gneissic Complex, Bihar, India, Ashmeer Mohammad, Anup K. Prasad, Kehe-U Wetsah, Mohammad Azad, Vivek Aryan, Hesham El-Askary

Mathematics, Physics, and Computer Science Faculty Articles and Research

Titanium or vanadium metals or their alloys are important industrial metals/alloys. Because these resources are in short supply, the investigation of potential titaniferous-vanadiferous deposits needs special attention to bridge the supply-demand gap. The study integrates geological, geochemical, remote sensing, and geophysical data for assessing the potentiality of titaniferous-vanadiferous, magnetite-ilmenite mineralization in and around the Sudamakund and Paharpur areas, Gaya and Jehanabad districts, Bihar, India, and delineation of specific targets for detailed exploration. Field visits for large scale mapping on (1:12,500 scale) were used to conduct a reconnaissance survey for magnetite-ilmenite mineralization in parts of toposheet number 72G/04 in the Gaya …

Response Of Surface And Atmospheric Parameters Associated With The Iran M 7.3 Earthquake, Feng Jing, Ramesh P. Singh

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Multiparameter observed from satellite, including microwave brightness temperature, skin temperature, air temperature, and carbon monoxide, have been analyzed to identify the anomalous signals associated with the M 7.3 Iran earthquake of November 12, 2017. Besides removing the multiyear variability of parameters as background, the effect of surface and atmosphere of a dust storm event in Middle East region during October 29–November 1 is considered to distinguish the possible anomalies associated with the earthquake. The characteristic behaviors of surface and atmospheric parameters clearly show the signals associated with the M 7.3 earthquake and the dust storm event. The multiple parameters at …

Spatial Variations In The Stress Field Near The Wilmington Blind-Thrust, An Earthquake Source Beneath Los Angeles, California, Justin Kain

LSU Master's Theses

A newly identified blind-thrust fault in the southern Los Angeles basin may have substantial implications for earthquakes in the region. A previous study suggests that the Wilmington blind-thrust may link up with nearby faults to produce a multisegment (M_w 6.6–7.4) earthquake rupture. These estimates are based on the joint rupturing of the Wilmington blind-thrust, Compton, Newport Inglewood, and the Huntington Beach fault segments (~85 km total length). However, stress heterogeneity near these faults may limit the size and intensity of earthquakes when incorporated into earthquake hazard modeling. This study presents a detailed model of the stress field in this …

Droughtscape, Summer 2022, National Drought Mitigation Center

DroughtScape: Quarterly Newsletter of the National Drought Mitigation Center (2007–2023)

DroughtScape, Summer 2022

Episodes Of Early Pleistocene West Antarctic Ice Sheet Retreat Recorded By Iceberg Alley Sediments, Ian Bailey, Sidney Hemming, Brendan T. Reilly, Gavyn Rollinson, Trevor Williams, Michael E. Weber, Maureen E. Raymo, Victoria L. Peck, Thomas A. Ronge, Stefanie Brachfeld, Suzanne O'Connell, Lisa Tauxe, Jonathan P. Warnock, Linda Armbrecht, Fabricio G. Cardillo, Zhiheng Du, Gerson Fauth, Marga Garcia, Anna Glueder, Michelle Guitard, Marcus Gutjahr, Iván Hernández-Almeida, Frida S. Hoem, Ji Hwan Hwang, Mutsumi Iizuka, Yuji Kato, Bridget Kenlee, Yasmina M. Martos, Lara F. Pérez, Osamu Seki, Shubham Tripathi, Xufeng Zheng

Department of Earth and Environmental Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Ice loss in the Southern Hemisphere has been greatest over the past 30 years in West Antarctica. The high sensitivity of this region to climate change has motivated geologists to examine marine sedimentary records for evidence of past episodes of West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS) instability. Sediments accumulating in the Scotia Sea are useful to examine for this purpose because they receive iceberg-rafted debris (IBRD) sourced from the Pacific- and Atlantic-facing sectors of West Antarctica. Here we report on the sedimentology and provenance of the oldest of three cm-scale coarse-grained layers recovered from this sea at International Ocean Discovery Program …

Assessing Impact Of Unconventional Oil And Gas Development On Groundwater Quality In The Northern Appalachian Region With Mixed Land Uses, Favour C. Epuna

Theses - ALL

Over the past decade, the rapid growth of unconventional oil and gas development (UOGD) has raised public concerns about its potential impact on groundwater quality. High methane and salt levels in groundwater have been the most widely cited UOGD-related impairments. The attribution of these contaminants to UOGD is usually complex, especially in regions with mixed land uses. Here, we compiled a large hydrogeochemistry dataset containing 13 geochemical analytes for 17,794 groundwater samples from the rural northern Appalachia, i.e., 19 counties located on the boundary between Pennsylvania (PA; UOGD is permitted) and New York (NY; UOGD is banned). With this dataset, …

The Potential Of Citizen Science Data To Complement Satellite And Airborne Lidar Tree Height Measurements: Lessons From The Globe Program, Josh Enterkine, Brian A. Campbell, Holli Kohl, Nancy F. Glenn, Kristen Weaver, David Overoye, Deanna Danke

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program is an international science, citizen science, and education program through which volunteers in participating countries collect environmental data in support of Earth system science. Using the program's software application, GLOBE Observer (GO), volunteers measure tree height and optional tree circumference, which may support the interpretation of NASA and other space-based satellite data such as tree height data from the Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) and Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation instrument. This paper describes tree heights data collected through the GO application and identifies sources of error in …

From Soils To Streams: Connecting Terrestrial Carbon Transformation, Chemical Weathering, And Solute Export Across Hydrological Regimes, Alejandro Flores, Katie Murenbeeld

Geosciences Faculty Publications and Presentations

Soil biota generates carbon that exports vertically to the atmosphere (CO₂) and transports laterally to streams and rivers (dissolved organic and inorganic carbon, DOC and DIC). These processes, together with chemical weathering, vary with flow paths across hydrological regimes; yet an integrated understanding of these interactive processes is still lacking. Here we ask: How and to what extent do subsurface carbon transformation, chemical weathering, and solute export differ across hydrological and subsurface structure regimes? We address this question using a hillslope reactive transport model calibrated using soil CO₂ and water chemistry data from Fitch, a temperate forest …

Differentiating Pleistocene Alloformations In The South Carolina Coastal Plain Through Lithologic, Textural, Mineralogical, And Cluster Analyses, Charles Andrew Wykel

Theses and Dissertations

Currently, there is no textural or mineralogic basis for identifying and differentiating Pleistocene strand deposits in the South Carolina (SC) Lower Coastal Plain (LCP). Historically, geologic mapping of the SC coastal plain uses geomorphologic and biostratigraphic techniques for identifying and mapping LCP surficial strand deposits. While useful, both approaches have problems. The aim of this study is to develop a cost-effective approach to differentiate and identify strand deposits of different Pleistocene alloformations occurring in the SC LCP. To accomplish this task, four strand samples were taken from the Ten Mile Hill, the Ladson, and Wicomico alloformations in Horry County, SC. …

Patterns Of Dissolved Methane In Groundwater And Its Contribution To Emissions Inventories, Amanda E. Campbell

Dissertations - ALL

The Marcellus Shale is the largest shale gas play in the U.S. production of natural gas using high-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) and production is prevalent throughout the play except in New York (NY), where it is currently banned. High concentrations of methane, the main component of natural gas, in groundwater, as well as its presence in the atmosphere, can have negative consequences. In this dissertation, three aspects of this issue are explored: 1) how and why naturally-occurring methane concentrations vary through time; 2) how elevated naturally-occurring methane concentrations in domestic water wells can be predicted from commonly observed well characteristics; …

Studying Redox Conditions Of Devonian And Neoproterozoic Oceans Using I/Ca Proxy From Bulk Carbonate Rocks, Ruliang He

Dissertations - ALL

Iodine is an important trace element in biogeochemical and redox reactions. It has a nearly consistent concentration of ~0.46 μmol/L in the seawater and the inorganic speciation (IO3− and I−) of iodine is primarily controlled by redox conditions in water columns. Iodate (IO3−), not iodide (I−), is the only species that can be incorporated into carbonate minerals. Therefore, I/Ca ratio from carbonate rocks can be used to constrain the redox condition in the water column over a range of time scale. This dissertation contains three chapters that utilizes I/Ca ratio from bulk carbonate rocks to reconstruct ocean redox changes during …

Arkansas Corn And Grain Sorghum Research Studies 2021, Victor Ford, Jason Kelley, Nathan Mckinney Ii

Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station Research Series

The 2021 edition of the Arkansas Corn and Grain Sorghum Research Studies Series includes research results on topics pertaining to corn and grain sorghum production, including weed, disease, and insect management; economics; sustainability; irrigation; post-harvest drying; soil fertility; mycotoxins; cover crop management; and research verification program results. Our objective is to capture and broadly distribute the results of research projects funded by the Arkansas Corn and Grain Sorghum Board. The intended audience includes producers and their advisors, current investigators, and future researchers. The Series serves as a citable archive of research results.