Geology Commons^™

Pillars And Buttes: A Petrologic Comparison Of Modern And Ancient Hydrocarbon Seep Rock, Erica C. Morelli

Honors Papers

Purpose: Literature on the formation of authigenic rock at cold seeps focuses on the role of microbes in creating geochemically favorable environment for the precipitation of carbonate and barite minerals. Less understood is the pathway that lithified microbial patches of seafloor sediment follow to become rock formations that are identified in strata dating back to the Silurian. In this study I will compare Holocene seep rock from the Gulf of Mexico to Cretaceous carbonates that have been identified as seep rock. Through the study of rock in its early stages of formation to rock that has likely undergone multiple phases …

Facies, Architecture, And Sequence Stratigraphy Of The Devonian-Mississippian Sappington Formation, Bridger Range, Montana, Anna S. Phelps

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Late Devonian-Early Mississippian Sappington Formation in Montana is a marine unit comprised of lower and upper organic-rich shale members and a middle calcareous siltstone member. The Sappington Formation was deposited during a period of complex paleogeography in Montana, characterized by deposition in sub-basins and onlap onto structural highs, and eustatically- and tectonically-driven transgressive-regressive cycles. Detailed outcrop analysis was conducted on the Sappington Formation across the Bridger Range in southwestern Montana to better understand the Sappington Formation depositional system and changing regional paleogeography. The Sappington Formation is further interpreted in a stratigraphic architectural framework to improve the ability to predict …

Pressure-Temperature-Time Constraints For Exhumation Of Ultrahigh-Pressure Metamorphic Rocks, North Qaidam Terrane, Western China, Brittany Kristine Fagin

All Master's Theses

Ultrahigh-pressure rocks of a Paleozoic continental suture zone are exposed in the southeastern North Qaidam terrane (Dulan region). Garnetite sample D119 contains minor Czo+Qtz+Chl+Ttn; rutile inclusions in titanite suggest that titanite replaced rutile during decompression. Pressure-temperature estimates of sample D119 are 16.1-18.4 kbar and 485-520 °C. Sample D130B is a mafic band in calc-silicate gneiss, with garnet porphyroblasts in a fine-grained Hbl-Cpx-Pl-Qtz symplectite that is interpreted as former omphacite. D130B symplectite pressure-temperature estimates are 7.7-9.4 kbar and 623-708 °C. Titanite U-Pb ages of 419.7±3.1 Ma and 415.9±4.2 Ma are interpreted to date retrogression of D119 and D130B, respectively. Average exhumation …

Measuring The Cost And Performance Of Lithic Industries At The Sunrise Ridge Borrow Pit Site (45pi408), Patrick Christropher Lewis

All Master's Theses

This thesis applies a theoretically informed protocol that focuses on variation in stone tool manufacture and use as measured in the 45PI408 lithic assemblage. The model used is based on the variables of stone tool cost and performance. Guided by this model, technological and functional paradigmatic classifications are employed to measure intra­site variation in lithic frequencies. This method avoids difficulties encountered by previous archaeologists by using mutually exclusive analytical units that measure subtle variation in the archaeological record. Variability in technological and functional paradigmatic classificatory dimensions such as stone tool heat treatment, raw materials, use wear, and reduction class were …

Accelerated Glacier Melt On Snow Dome, Mount Olympus, Washington, Usa, Due To Deposition Of Black Carbon And Mineral Dust From Wildfire, Susan Kaspari, S. Mckenzie Skiles, Ian Delaney, Daniel Dixon

Geological Sciences Faculty Scholarship

Assessing the potential for black carbon (BC) and dust deposition to reduce albedo and accelerate glacier melt is of interest in Washington because snow and glacier melt are an important source of water resources, and glaciers are retreating. In August 2012 on Snow Dome, Mount Olympus, Washington, we measured snow surface spectral albedo and collected surface snow samples and a 7 m ice core. The snow and ice samples were analyzed for iron (Fe, used as a dust proxy) via inductively coupled plasma sector field mass spectrometry, total impurity content gravimetrically, BC using a single-particle soot photometer (SP2), and charcoal …

Microstructure And Geotechnical Properties Of St. Peter Sandstone In Clayton, Iowa, Amir Hossein Bagherieh

Doctoral Dissertations

"The St. Peter Sandstone is significantly different from the minerals and rocks which have been studied extensively in mining. It is brittle and characterized by an unusually high friction angle. On the other hand it is friable, and it is nearly cohesionless. The scarcity of the ground control techniques for this particular mining environment has created many difficulties for mine operators. This research aims to establish a fundamental understanding of the basic mechanical and strength properties of the St. Peter Sandstone for engineering design and scientific research. The specific objectives are 1) characterizing the strength of the St. Peter Sandstone, …

Palynological Interpretations Of Deep Sea Drilling Projects Cores In The Gulf Of Mexico And Bahamian Platform, Adam Patrick Barron

Masters Theses

"One hundred drill core samples were from Deep Sea Drilling Project (DSDP) Sites 94, 98, and 540 were investigated for their palynological contents (pollen, spores, acritarchs, dinoflagellate cysts, and dispersed organic matter) to infer the paleoenvironmental and paleoceanographic history of the Gulf of Mexico and the Bahamian Platform during the middle Eocene to middle Miocene interval. At Sites 94 and 540, abundant dinoflagellate cysts (chiefly Operculodinium centrocarpum, Lingulodinium machaerophorum, Impagidinium sp., Nematosphaeropsis sp., and Spiniferites spp.) were used as paleoenvironmental indicators. Two alternating palynofacies assemblages were identified from dispersed organic matter analysis: terrestrially influenced assemblage A and marine dominated assemblage …

A Geochemical Investigation Of Co₂ Sequestration And Site Characterization At Two Missouri Locations, Robert Allen Swain

Masters Theses

"The feasibility of sequestering CO₂ in saline aquifers of Lamotte Formation sandstone was investigated at wells located near Thomas Hill power plant, Moberly, MO and Sioux City Power Plant in Florissant, MO. Governing factors of using aquifers for CO₂ disposal include water salinity, potential for carbonic acid buffering, rate of precipitation of carbonate minerals following CO₂ introduction into the host aquifer, and the integrity of the Davis and Derby-DoeRun shale as a trap rock to prevent migration of the CO₂ phase and carbonic acid into the overlying potable Ozark Aquifer.

Both in situ and laboratory methods …

Paleogeographic And Paleoenvironmental Evolution Of Lacustrine And Fluvial Upper Triassic Zhangjiatan Shale Sequence, Ordos Basin, China, Qiuwan Yu

Masters Theses

"Detailed sequence stratigraphic and depositional systems analyses can effectively delineate factors and processes controlling deposition of fine-grained lacustrine sediments. Upper Triassic Zhangjiatan (ZJT) Shale Bed and adjacent strata in Ordos foreland basin was used as an example. A new depositional sequence model shows that the maximum regressive shoreline was more landward than that at the lowest lake-level. The study area is on the ramp margin, covering 100x90 km². Thin sections, cores and well-logs of 80 wells are used to calibrate log signatures, document lithofacies, and interpret depositional facies in a sequence stratigraphic context. The entire sequence thickens from …

Timing And Source Of Alkali Enrichment At Mt. Etna, Sicily: Constraints From Clinopyroxene Geobarometry And In Situ Sr Isotope Data, Kaitlyn Nelson

All Master's Theses

Since 1971, Mt. Etna, Europe’s largest and most active volcano, has exhibited increased eruption frequency and explosivity. Associated with this increased activity, researchers have documented higher abundances of alkali elements (K, Rb, Cs) as well as elevated ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr in Etnean lavas. The source of this alkali-enrichment has been hotly debated, with end-member hypotheses involving mantle vs. crustal contributions. To further characterize the evolution of the subvolcanic magma storage and transport system, as well as the timing and source of alkali-enrichment, clinopyroxene from ten samples erupted between 1329 and 2004 was targeted for in situ textural, major element …

Total Variation Regularization Of Geodetically And Geologically Constrained Block Models For The Western United States, Eileen L. Evans, John P. Loveless, Brendan J. Meade

Geosciences: Faculty Publications

Geodetic observations of interseismic deformation in the Western United States provide con- straints on microplate rotations, earthquake cycle processes, and slip partitioning across the Pacific–North America Plate boundary. These measurements may be interpreted using block models, in which the upper crust is divided into microplates bounded by faults that accumulate strain in a first-order approximation of earthquake cycle processes. The number and geometry of microplates are typically defined with boundaries representing a limited subset of the large number of potentially seismogenic faults. An alternative approach is to include a large number of potentially active faults bounding a dense array of …

Maritime Exposure And Economic Prosperity: Why Location Matters, Jesse M. Lane

Theses

No abstract provided.

Microtremor Recordings In Northern Mississippi: Evaluating Site Effect And Correlating With Wave Climate, Zhen Guo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Site effects is considered as one of the main reasons that cause enormous damages in earthquakes and it is mainly controlled by the local geological condition. The main research area, Northern Mississippi, is located in Mississippi Embayment (ME) where is mainly composed of unconsolidated sediments which can be as thick as 1400m along the Mississippi River floodplain, and is favorable to have significant site effects. Meanwhile Northern Mississippi is also located in the moderate to heavy potential damage area of the New Madrid Seismic Zone, which is in the northern section of ME. Therefore, it is very necessary to evaluate …

Identifying A Mechanism For An Infiltration Threshold From The Sunflower River, Ms To The Underlying Alluvial Aquifer, Austin Cole Patton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Long-term groundwater level and stream stage measurements at a USGS coupled groundwater stream-gaging station located on the Sunflower River in Sunflower, MS show an apparent stage-threshold for infiltration to the underlying alluvial aquifer. This site is located near the center of a large regional groundwater cone of depression in the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer. The USGS well (termed well 3 in this study) was thought to be completed in the regional shallow aquifer, though often recording anomalously high water levels relative to other wells in the region. The purpose of this research was to identify the responsible mechanism for …

Use Of Esi-Fticr-Ms To Characterize Dissolved Organic Matter In Headwater Streams Draining Forest-Dominated And Pasture-Dominated Watersheds, Yuehan Lu, Xiaping Li, Rajaa Mesfioui, James E. Bauer, R. M. Chambers, Elizabeth A. Canuel, Patrick G. Hatcher

Chemistry & Biochemistry Faculty Publications

Electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (ESI-FTICR-MS) has proven to be a powerful technique revealing complexity and diversity of natural DOM molecules, but its application to DOM analysis in grazing-impacted agricultural systems remains scarce. In the present study, we presented a case study of using ESI-FTICR-MS in analyzing DOM from four headwater streams draining forest-or pasture-dominated watersheds in Virginia, USA. In all samples, most formulas were CHO compounds (71.8-87.9%), with other molecular series (CHOS, CHON, CHONS, and CHOP (N, S)) accounting for only minor fractions. All samples were dominated by molecules falling in the lignin-like region (H/C …

Strata-Bound Vein Array In The Basal Pierre Shale, Lake Francis Case, South Dakota, U.S.A, Harmon D. Maher Jr., Sarah Ferguson, Ryan Korth, Justine Marshall, Laura Pickett

Geography and Geology Faculty Publications

A distinctive strata-bound vein array occurs in the basal Pierre Shale exposed along the shores of Lake Francis Case, a reservoir on the Missouri River in south-central South Dakota. Typically 2–4 meters in thickness, the array consistently outcrops over a >50-km distance, a significant areal footprint. Ash layers define the upper and lower bounds of the vein array. Two, suborthogonal, preferred directions of vertical veins (northeast and southeast strike) define a regional pattern. By volume, vertical veins comprise 1–2% of the rock. Thinner, more discontinuous, and irregular horizontal veins also occur. Comparisons between array orientations and the joint/vein pattern in …

Sequence Stratigraphy And Depositional Environment Of The Cambro-Ordovician Bliss Sandstone, Franklin Mountains Of El Paso, Texas, Drew Adam Chenoweth

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The Bliss Formation formed along the Southwestern continental shelf of

Laurentia during the Late Cambrian and records the craton]wide Cambrian

transgression previously described by Sloss. This study divides the Bliss into five facies associations which were used to determine the depositional environments: 1) The Basal Transgressive Lag (BTL) was interpreted to be a high energy fluvial deposit the top of which has been reworked and winnowed during transgression. 2) The Lower Cyclic Sandstones and Silty Sandstones (LCSS) were interpreted to be be tidal delta or tidal estuary deposits composed of delta deposits, slackwater deposits, and tidal dunes within tidal channels. …

Dynamic Triggering In The Coso Geothermal Field, 2004-2013, Richard A. Alfaro-Diaz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

We take advantage of EarthScope’s USArray Transportable Array (TA), regional seismic networks to investigate 154 M ≥ 7 earthquakes over a ten-year period (2004- 2013), in search of remotely triggered seismicity within the continental United States. We conduct an automated search to detect high frequency signals (which may indicate triggering of small local earthquakes) using a time window of 5 hours before and after each mainshock. The automated detection applies a short-term average (STA) to long-term-average (LTA) algorithms, to create a catalogue of detections. Using the catalog we search for an increase in detection rates after each main-shock. Sharp increases …

Lithospheric Structure And Stress Field Orientations In The Northern Libya And East-Central Mediterranean Region, Abdusalam Ali Agail

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis is a combination of three studies including tomography using surface wave group velocities, stress orientations from focal mechanisms, and receiver functions. The study area covers northern Libya and the east central Mediterranean region. I utilized new data from the Libyan National Seismic Network to better understand the crustal thickness and stress orientation of northern Libya as well as the east central Mediterranean region. In the first study, I conducted surface wave group velocity tomography implementing the Gaussian beam method for obtaining 2-D velocity variations assuming an isotropic model. I constructed surface wave group velocity maps over a range …

Evaluating Methods Of Field-Based 3d Visualization And Their Application To Mapping Metamorphic Terranes: An Example From The Panamint Mountains, California, Jade Ashley Brush

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Field geology has traditionally relied on 2D, paper-based workflows, but digital mapping techniques are rapidly replacing these outdated methods because they allow for more efficient and accurate mapping. This research applies digital mapping techniques and two terrestrially-based 3D visualization technologies, photogrammetry and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), to the study of metamorphic terranes in the Panamint Mountains, California. This study reports on the spatial accuracy of TINs (triangulated irregular networks) generated from both photogrammetry and ground-based LiDAR using a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) and discusses how spatial accuracy can be increased. Two levels of comparison were used to test spatial …

Reinterpretation Of The Mesozoic Thrust Complex Of The Southern Spring Mountains, Nevada, Warren Harding Allen

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

The east verging Keystone thrust fault in the southern Spring Mountains west of Goodsprings, Nevada, is mapped with a sharp bend in its trace near Keystone Wash. This bend was previously explained in the context of out-of-sequence thrusting and a salient-recess relationship along the thrust system; a simple redirection of the Keystone thrust to a north verging thrust. Recent geochronological studies indicate that the east verging Keystone thrust to the north of Keystone Wash formed between 83-103Ma. Approximately 5 kilometers to the east a north verging branch of the fault system overlies rocks as young as 99Ma. At the location …

Evaluation Of Rock Fall Hazards Using Lidar Technology, Norbert H. Maerz, Travis Kassebaum, Kenneth J. Boyko, James Otoo

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Lidar (light detection and ranging) is a relatively new technology that is being used in many aspects of geology and engineering, including researching the potential for rock falls on highway rock cuts. At Missouri University of Science and Technology, we are developing methods for measuring joint orientations remotely and quantifying the raveling process. Measuring joint orientations remotely along highways is safer, more accurate and can result in larger and more accurate data sets, including measurements from otherwise inaccessible areas. Measuring the nature of rock raveling will provide the data needed to begin the process of modeling the rock raveling process. …

Electrical Resistivity Imaging For Long-Term Autonomous Monitoring Of Hydrocarbon Degradation: Lessons From The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, Jeffrey W. Heenan, Lee D. Slater, Dimitrios Ntarlagiannis, Estella A. Atekwana, Babu Z. Fathepure, Sonal Dalvi, Cameron Ross, D. Dale Werkema, Eliot A. Atekwana

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Conceptual models for the geophysical responses associated with hydrocarbon degradation suggest that the long-term evolution of an oil plume will result in a more conductive anomaly than the initial contamination. In response to the Deepwater Horizon (DH) oil spill into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, an autonomous resistivity monitoring system was deployed on Grand Terre, Louisiana, in an attempt to monitor natural degradation processes in hydrocarbon-impacted beach sediments of this island. A 48-electrode surface array with a 0.5-m spacing was installed to obtain twice-daily images of the resistivity structure of the shallow subsurface impacted by oil. Over the course …

A Potential Long-Lived Upper Cretaceous Paleodrainage System In The U.S. Southwestern Georgia-Southeastern Alabama Region, Daniel L. Black

Theses and Dissertations

The Gulf Coastal Plain unconformity separates crystalline basement of the Appalachian core from sedimentary units of the Coastal Plain. In the Columbus, Georgia region, basement rocks of the Uchee terrane are typically overlain by sands and gravels of the Tuscaloosa Formation. Sediments within the Tuscaloosa Formation indicate partial derivation from gneiss of the Columbus Metamorphic Complex, the nearby Pine Mountain belt and potentially rocks of Inner Piedmont-eastern Blue Ridge terranes. Mapping along the Coastal Plain unconformity near the Lower Chattahoochee River Valley indicates the presence of one or more large paleovalleys in the Upper Cretaceous sub-Coastal Plain surface that occupy …

Quantifying The Stratigraphic Completeness Of Delta Shoreline Trajectories, Robert C. Mahon, John B. Shaw, Katherine R. Barnhart, Daniel E. J. Hobley, Brandon Mcelroy

Earth and Environmental Sciences Faculty Publications

Understanding the incomplete nature of the stratigraphic record is fundamental for interpreting stratigraphic sequences. Methods for quantifying stratigraphic completeness for one-dimensional stratigraphic columns, defined as the proportion of time intervals of some length that contain stratigraphy, are commonplace; however, quantitative assessments of completeness in higher dimensions are lacking. Here we present a metric for defining stratigraphic completeness of two-dimensional shoreline trajectories using topset-foreset rollover positions in dip-parallel sections and describe the preservation potential of a shoreline trajectory derived from the geometry of the delta surface profile and the kinematics of the geomorphic shoreline trajectory. Two end-member forward models are required …

Stratigraphy And Porosity Modeling Of South-Central Illinois (Usa) Chester (Upper Mississippian) Series Sandstones Using Petrel, Darren Kimple, Eric W. Peterson, David H. Malone

Faculty Publications - Geography, Geology, and the Environment

Maximizing resource extraction from mature oilfields requires enhanced and secondary recovery techniques. The success of these methods relies on knowledge and understanding of the reservoir geology and hydraulics. At the Loudon Oilfield (Illinois, USA), enhanced oil recovery is being used to extend the production life of the reservoir. The suitability and placement of additional wells for oil recovery processes required three-dimensional (3D) facies and porosity modeling of the oilfield. The purpose of this work was to assess the ability of a porosity model to predict sandstone facies. The facies model for the Loudon field was generated using data obtained from …

Three-Dimensional Geologic Model Of The Pecatonica Gas Storage Field, Winnebago County, Illinois, Nicole D. Kron, David H. Malone, Eric W. Peterson

Faculty Publications - Geography, Geology, and the Environment

This study involves the construction of a three-dimensional (3D) geologic model of Paleozoic strata that are part of an underground gas storage field in northern, Illinois, USA. The Pecatonica Anticline trends 60W and plunges gently to the southeast. It is 10 km long and 3 km wide, and verges to the NE. Six water wells and 22 gas wells were used to create the 3-D geologic model in Petrel using well tops as determined from wire-line logs. The following horizons were created for the Cambrian and Ordovician strata: the Ancell, Trempealeau, Franconia, Ironton-Galesvilles, Eau Claire Proviso A and B, Eau …

Understanding The Contractional History Of Surprise Canyon, California Through Digital Field Mapping, 3d Modeling, And U-Pb Zircon Geochronology, Joshua A. Cobb

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Detailed digital mapping of lower-middle Surprise Canyon has revealed a more complex structure than previously interpreted. Rock units derived from the metamorphosed equivalents of the Pahrump Group exposed in Surprise Canyon display juxtapositions inconsistent with stratigraphic variations suggested in previous studies. This study proposes a contractional history of the central Panamint Mountains defined by two kinematically distinct and geochronologically constrained deformation events. D1 is characterized by a shallow dipping, NNW striking L and LS tectonite fabric ubiquitously observed in all metasedimentary and basement units. F1 folds are mesoscopic in scale and isoclinal with an axial planar S1 foliation. A prominent …

Depositional Facies And Interpretation Of Salt-Sediment Interaction In The Lower Triassic Moenkopi Formation Adjacent To The Castle Valley Salt Wall, Paradox Basin, Utah, Ann Marie Foster

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Stratigraphic, sedimentologic and compositional data collected from the Triassic Moenkopi Formation adjacent to the Castle Valley salt anticline, Paradox Basin, Utah indicate passive diapirism of the salt wall with well-developed topography and exposed salt during the Early Triassic. Moenkopi strata thin to 150m on to the Castle Valley salt anticline and thicken to an estimated 275m away from it, indicating control of sedimentation by salt-generated topography. The distribution of nine terrestrial facies assemblages within Moenkopi Formation strata on the margins of Castle Valley Salt Wall, in combination with identification of three halokinetic sequences interpreted from stratal architecture adjacent to the …

4-D Evolution Of Anticlines And Implications For Hydrocarbon Exploration Within The Zagros Fold-Thrust Belt, Kurdistan Region, Iraq, Mjahid M. Zebari, Caroline M. Burberry

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

The Zagros Fold-Thrust Belt, extending from southern Iran, through northern Iraq and into Turkey, is characterized by elongate NW-trending anticlines that house large hydrocarbon accumulations. In recent years, the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq has become an area of interest for both structural studies and petroleum exploration-related investigation. Key questions to be answered concern the nature of the anticlines and whether the geometry of any associated thrusts can be predicted from surface geomorphology, as well the 4-D evolution of the area and along-strike continuity of the anticlines. To address these questions, this study combines field data, remote-sensing data concerning the …