Geology Commons^™

Multiple Generations Of Phlogopite In An Alnöite Diatreme: Insights Into The Petrogenesis Of The Avon Alkaline Igneous Province, Missouri, Nathan Gregory Limbaugh

Masters Theses

“Alkaline Ultramafic Carbonatite (AUC) complexes, although rare, are valued for diamonds and REEs, and as windows into subcontinental and mantle processes as recorded by rock fabrics, mineral spatial relationships, and mineral compositions. We report specifically on olivine and phlogopite petrographic relationships and compositions from the Devonian alnoite diatreme-facies of the Avon Alkaline Igneous Province, Missouri. The diatreme alnoite is a mixture of domains of olivine magmaclasts (OM) set in a crystal-rich melilite matrix. OM are highly fractured, serpentinized olivine pseudomorphs with variable amounts of pristine olivine fragments. Larger olivine domains typically exhibit clear crystal faces and irregular “channels” indicative of …

Long-Term Geomorphic Effects Of The Glines Canyon Dam Removal On The Elwha River, Washington, Usa, Alyssa D. Demott

All Master's Theses

The Elwha River once provided vital habitat for a variety of salmonid species, but after two dams were emplaced on the river in the early 1900s, habitat diminished, and salmon populations declined. From 2011-2014, the dams were finally removed to restore the Elwha ecosystem. To understand the long-term geomorphic impacts of the Glines Canyon Dam removal on the Elwha River, I quantified changes in four parameters: in-channel large wood, main channel sinuosity, channel braiding, and sedimentation. High-resolution imagery from 2012-2020 was used to map large wood and digitize main and secondary river channels, and field surveys were completed at study …

A Reference Section For The Otavi Group (Damara Supergroup) In Eastern Kaoko Zone Near Ongongo, Namibia, P.F. Hoffman, Sara B. Pruss, C.L. Blättler, E.J. Bellefroid, B.W. Johnson

Geosciences: Faculty Publications

A reference section for the Otavi Group (Damara Supergroup) in the East Kaoko Zone near Ongongo is proposed and described. The section is easily accessible, well exposed, suitable for field excursions, and well documented in terms of carbonate lithofacies, depositional sequences and stableisotope chemostratigraphy. The late Tonian Ombombo Subgroup is 355 m thick above the basal Beesvlakte Formation, which is not included in the section due to poor outcrop and complex structure. The earlymiddle Cryogenian Abenab Subgroup is 636 m thick and the early Ediacaran Tsumeb Subgroup is 1020 m thick. While the section is complete in terms of formations …

A Karst Feature Prediction Model For Prince Of Wales Island, Alaska Based On High Resolution Lidar Imagery, Alexander Lyles

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Investigation into surface karst formation is significant to hazard prediction, hydrogeologic drainage, and land management. Southeast Alaska contains over 600,000 acres of mapped carbonate bedrock, and some of the fastest recorded karst dissolution in the world. The objectives of this study are to develop and compare multiple semi-automated models to map and delineate karst features from bare-earth LiDAR imagery using ArcGIS Desktop 10.7, and to apply a preliminary geostatistical analysis of sinkhole morphometric parameters to highlight potential spatial patterns of karst evolution on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. A semi-automated approach of mapping karst features provides a dataset that minimizes …

Ecological Controls On The Campanian Distribution Of Hesperornis (Aves: Hesperornithiformes) In The Western Interior Seaway, Blake Chapman

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

The epicontinental Western Interior Seaway (WIS) of Late Cretaceous North America provided a unique marine habitat for cephalopods, fish, marine reptiles, and the foot-propelled diving seabird Hesperornis. While several predator-prey relationships among Hesperornis or other hesperornithiforms and other WIS animals have been hypothesized based on gut contents, bite marks, and coprolites/colonites, ecological relationships have not been quantitatively tested. Paleontological species distribution modeling (SDM) studies have focused on extinct non-marine taxa and marine invertebrates, with only two marine vertebrate studies of extant taxa. Here, two SDM methods were used to test the influence of vertebrate faunas, sedimentary rock type, paleogeography, …

Policy Analysis Of Emissions Cap And Trade: The United State And The European Union, Drew Bealby

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Effects of climate change are appearing each day therefore proactive steps need to be made to reduce these effects. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) notes that humans producing greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane, and nitrous oxide are the main reason the Earth’s overall temperature is rising (NASA 2019). A policy analysis was done on the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) along with comparisons to the United States’ emissions policies that are in place currently. The European Union (E.U.) itself is both an economic and political union of 27 countries in …

Regional Correlation And Depositional History Using Well Log And Core Data Of The Middle Devonian Marcellus Poseidon 8m Well, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, Usa, Emily R. Jackson

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The Marcellus Shale is the largest natural gas producing formation in the Appalachian basin, and as such, presents a unique opportunity for continued research on an area that is critical to meeting the energy needs of the current society. Although the Marcellus has historically been extensively researched, acquisition of well log and core data from the Marcellus Poseidon 8M well in Westmoreland County, PA, allows for application of a new method of data integration, which was utilized in this project to specifically understand the depositional environment and create a correlation with other study wells throughout the basin. This integration was …

The Effects Of Heterogeneities And Syn-Deformational Partial Melting On Rock Strength Evolution And Melt Migration, Nicole Wagner

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

In nature, the segregation of granitic melts at the source may be controlled by fabric and compositional heterogeneities in the source rock, such as foliation and lineation. To investigate the influence of foliation/lineation orientation and composition on rock strength and melt interconnectivity, I performed a series of experiments on cores of a fine-grained gneiss (Gneiss Minuti) and a fine-grained muscovite-bearing quartzite (Moine Thrust quartzite). These rocks were cored at six primary orientations parallel, 45 degrees, and perpendicular to the foliation and lineation and were deformed at a constant temperature of 900°C, pressure of ~2 GPa, and strain rate of ~10-6/s …

Petrogenesis And Tectonic Implications Of Cordierite-Orthoamphibole Gneisses (Cog) In The Nw Wyoming Province, Brianna K. Crenshaw Ms

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Studying cordierite orthoamphibole gneisses (COG) from five different mountain ranges across the Montana Metasedimentary Terrane (MMT) of the Wyoming Province offers a unique opportunity to elucidate the enigmatic origins and petrogenesis of the lithology in addition to gaining a further understanding of Precambrian crustal assembly processes. Geochemical analyses suggest that COG originates from a basalt that underwent metasomatic alteration, likely via seawater, prior to metamorphism. Moreover, COG is considered to represent oceanic crust that was part of the epicontinental sea adjacent to the Wyoming Province before collision with the Medicine Hat Block. Field observations of associated lithologies such as marbles, …

Diagenesis Of The Lower Permian Wolfcamp Formation, West Texas: Implications For Reservoir Quality In The Midland Basin, Kory John Talcott

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This study focuses on documenting the diagenesis and pore evolution within the lower Permian Wolfcamp B Formation in two producing wells from the Midland Basin of west Texas. Both wells are located near the northeastern margin of the Midland basin, with well A located proximal to the basin margin and well B located about 20km down depositional dip. The entire Wolfcamp B interval has been cored from both wells.

In both wells, the Wolfcamp B consists of calcareous and siliceous mudstone, skeletal wackestone, packstone, grainstone, rudstone, and floatstone facies that were deposited below wave base by a combination of suspension …

Glacial Deposits, Vol. 46, 2021, Department Of Geography, Geology, And The Environment

Glacial Deposits

Newsletter of the Department of Geography, Geology, and the Environment

Stratigraphy And Geochemistry Of Paleocene-Aged Bauxites From North Mississippi, Timothy Brendan Clark

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Bauxite is a heavily-mined aluminum ore that forms through the relative depletion of silica to aluminum. In North Mississippi, bauxite occurring within the Upper Midway and Lower Wilcox groups has been the subject of study for over a century. Despite the abundance and duration of research, controversy surrounds the subjects of bauxite genesis and economic value. The last detailed study of North Mississippi bauxite was in the 1980’s, so the goal of this project is to apply newly available technologies and modern hypotheses on bauxite formation to refine and obtain new data. Fieldwork observations yielded pisoliths, horizonation, and possible rhizoliths, …

Analysis Of Water Concentration Formed Within Deformed Synthetic Quartz Crystals, Andrew Steward

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Analyzing the strength of synthetic quartz is essential to understanding the strength of natural milky quartz, which likely controls the strength of Earth’s continental crust. Synthetic quartz is sometimes used for deformation experiments because it has a homogenous water distribution unlike natural milky quartz. The purpose of this study is to determine if annealing synthetic quartz at T = 600°C will convert the water in synthetic quartz to free water, like milky quartz, but with little water loss. Following two annealing experiments at Texas A&M University, I performed four annealing experiments to measure the water content of five synthetic quartz …

Recent Flooding Events On The Chagrin And Cuyahoga Rivers, Ohio, Kayley Martin

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

From the 1910s through the 1980s, the number of intense daily precipitation events in the United States remained constant, however, since the 1980s there has been an increasing trend in intense single-day precipitation events (U.S Environmental Protection Agency, 2016). One outcome of intense precipitation events is river flooding, particularly in the upper Midwest region where floods have increased in magnitude and frequency (U.S Environmental Protection Agency, 2016). In this thesis project, recent flooding history on the Chagrin and Cuyahoga Rivers in Ohio was studied to expand on previous research that observed an abrupt increase in high magnitude flood events on …

It's More Than What You Know: Conceptual Understanding And Spatial Skill Impact Student Sequence Stratigraphic Interpretation Skill, Bailey Zo Kreager

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

Sequence stratigraphic interpretation and 3-D spatial and spatiotemporal skills are considered important for the petroleum industry. Despite the importance of sequence stratigraphic interpretations for student careers, students struggle to understand basic concepts such as eustasy, relative sea-level and base-level. However, little is known about the relationship between spatial skill and sequence stratigraphy or the impact of instruction on sequence stratigraphic diagrams. This study begins to fill this gap by testing 1) whether spatial skills predict success on a sequence stratigraphic interpretation task, 2) the impact of Wheeler diagram instruction on student sequence stratigraphic interpretation skill, and 3) the impact of …

Structural Analysis And Interpretation Of Deformation Along The Keweenaw Fault System West Of Lake Gratiot, Keweenaw County, Michigan, Sophie A. Mueller

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The Keweenaw fault is perhaps the most significant fault associated with the Midcontinent Rift System of the north-central United States. The fault, parallel to the south edge of the rift, has been interpreted as a rift-bounding normal fault that was inverted by subsequent compressional events, thrusting copper-bearing Portage Lake Volcanics (~ 1.1 Ga) over younger Jacobsville Sandstone. Geologic maps and cross sections published in the 1950s by the U. S. Geological Survey depict the fault with a well-defined, single, sinuous trace that is locally associated with smaller branch faults. Cross-sections from that time generally show a simple listric stratal geometry …

A Methodology For The Creation Of Volcanic Gas Hazard Maps Using Satellite-Derived Sulfur Dioxide, Sanna J. Mairet

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Sulfur dioxide (SO₂) gas has been shown to be detrimental to human and environmental health and is emitted continuously from anthropogenic and volcanic sources. Sulfur dioxide is the main target gas used for the detection of hazardous volcanic plumes due to its ease of detection by satellite sensors. However, quantitative information on potential ground-level exposure to volcanic SO₂ (i.e., a volcanic gas ‘hazard map’) is currently unavailable for the vast majority of active volcanoes. Utilizing sulfur dioxide vertical column densities retrieved from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument on NASA’s Aura satellite, Gridded Population of the World v.4, planetary …

Origin And Distribution Of Diffuse Soil Co2 Gas Emissions Across Turrialba And Irazú Volcanoes, Costa Rica, Katie Nelson

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

We characterized large-scale volatile emissions across the summit and flanks of the actively degassing Turrialba volcano, Costa Rica, using soil gas flux measurements and ¹³C isotopes. The objectives of this study were the following: 1) to monitor changes in the magmatic activity and identify source contributions over Turrialba using measurements of CO₂ soil gas emissions since the volcano last erupted in 2014-2015, and 2) to identify the location and extent of magma at depth, and the structures that allow gas transport to the surface. Degassing at the summit is concentrated along one normal fault lineament, the trace of …

2021 Nebraska Water Leaders Academy Final Report, Mark E. Burbach, Robert Matthew Joeckel, Brooke Mott, Gina S. Matkin

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

Seventeen participants completed the 2021 Water Leaders Academy bringing the total number of graduates to 153 since the inception of the program in 2011. Assessments of participants’ transformational leadership skills, champion of innovation skills, water knowledge, engagement with water issues, civic capacity, entrepreneurial leadership behaviors, and boundary spanner abilities showed significant increases over the course of the year, according to both the participants and their raters. Feedback from the participants was highly positive and constructive. Academy planners are addressing participant concerns. Only minor changes are planned for the 2022 Academy curriculum. Results of the program assessment indicate that the curriculum …

Annual Report 2020 Conservation And Survey Division, Robert Matthew Joeckel

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

The Conservation and Survey Division (Nebraska Geological Survey), the natural resource survey component of the School of Natural Resources, is a unique, multi-disciplinary research, service and data-collection organization established by state statute in 1921.

The Division's mission is to investigate and record information about Nebraska's geologic history, its rock and mineral resources, the quantity and quality of its water resources, land cover and other aspects of its geography, as well as the nature, distribution and uses of its soils.

Terrestrial Ecological Risk Analysis Via Dietary Exposure At Uranium Mine Sites In The Grand Canyon Watershed (Arizona, Usa), Jo Ellen Hinck, Danielle Cleveland, Bradley E. Sample

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The U.S. Department of the Interior recently included uranium (U) on a list of mineral commodities that are considered critical to economic and national security. The uses of U for commercial and residential energy production, defense applications, medical device technologies, and energy generation for space vehicles and satellites are known, but the environmental impacts of uranium extraction are not always well quantified. We conducted a screening-level ecological risk analysis based on exposure to miningrelated elements via diets and incidental soil ingestion for terrestrial biota to provide context to chemical characterization and exposures at breccia pipe U mines in northern Arizona. …

Metabarcoding Assays For The Detection Of Freshwater Mussels (Unionida) With Environmental Dna, Katy E. Klymus, Catherine A. Richter, Nathan Thompson, Jo Ellen Hinck, Jess W. Jones

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Freshwater mussels of the order Unionida are a widely distributed taxon that are important in maintaining freshwater ecosystems and are also highly imperiled throughout the world. Monitoring of mussel populations with environmental DNA (eDNA) is an attractive alternative to traditional methods because it is noninvasive and requires less labor and taxonomic knowledge from field personnel. We developed eDNA metabarcoding assays specific to freshwater mussels and tested them at six sites in the Clinch River, located in the southeastern United States. Our objective was to determine the utility of eDNA metabarcoding for future monitoring of mussel populations and restoration efforts in …

The Marine Terraces Of Santa Cruz Island, California: Implications For Glacial Isostatic Adjustment Models Of Last-Interglacial Sea-Level History, Daniel R. Muhs, R. Randall Schumann, Lindsey T. Groves, Kathleen R. Simmons, Christopher R. Florian

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) models hypothesize that along coastal California, last interglacial (LIG, broadly from ~130 to ~115 ka) sea level could have been as high as +11 m to +13 m, relative to present, substantially higher than the commonly estimated elevation of +6 m. Areas with low uplift rates can test whether such models are valid. Marine terraces on Santa Cruz Island have previously been reported to occur at low (<10 m) elevations, but ages of many such localities are not known. Using lidar imagery as a base, marine terraces on Santa Cruz Island were newly mapped, elevations were measured, fossils were collected for U-series dating (corals), strontium isotope compositions and amino acid geochronology (mollusks), and paleozoogeography (all taxa). Sr isotope compositions of mollusks from the highest of three marine terraces give ages of ~2.5 Ma to 1.9 Ma, along with Pliocene ages, fromshells interpreted to be reworked. U-series ages of corals fromthewestern part of the island indicate that low-elevation terraces north of the Santa Cruz Island fault correlate to the LIG. Where corals are lacking, amino acid ratios and faunal aspects support terrace correlation to the LIG high stand of sea. Elevations of most terrace localities north of the east-west trending Santa Cruz Island fault, in both thewestern and eastern parts of the island, range from5.75mto 8mabove sea level, well belowthe modeled paleo-sealevel range. Subsidence is ruled out as a mechanism for explaining the lower-than-modeled elevations, because higher-elevation terraces are present alongmuch of the Santa Cruz Island coast north of the fault, indicating longterm tectonic uplift. The low elevations of the LIG terrace fragments are, however, consistent with a low rate of uplift derived from the higher, ~2.5–1.9 Ma terrace. A number of other localities on the Pacific Coast, also dated to the LIG, have marine terrace elevations below the modeled level. GIA models may have overestimated last interglacial sea level by a substantial amount and need to be revised if used for forecasts for future sea-level rise.

Artisanal Mining Impacts In Urbanized Semi-Arid Environments: Lessons From Historic Arsenic Mining Near San Diego, California, James A. Wright

Theses

Anomalously elevated arsenic concentrations occur at an abandoned artisanal mine site in an open space recreational park in urban San Diego County, California. Although mining at the site ceased 100 years ago little to no remediation efforts took place leaving shafts, adits, waste piles and derelict infrastructure accessible by inquisitive hikers and adventurers frequenting Black Mountain Open Space Park. This study evaluates the geochemical mechanisms of As transport downgradient from the mine and examines the contribution of both climate and urbanization on the restriction of As mobility. Sediment As concentrations reach 2,320 mg/kg (483 times background crustal concentrations; n=73) along …

Refining The Sedimentology And Geochemistry Of The Mid-Permian Blaine Formation Of The Rebecca K. Bounds Core From Greeley County, Kansas, Brigitte Petras

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Red siliciclastics and evaporites of Permian Nippewalla Group in mid-continental US were deposited in western equatorial Pangea. Previous studies of these rocks record Permian air temperatures as high as 73 °C, saline lake waters with a pH as low as ~1, and sedimentology that shows arid conditions. This current study conducts detailed sedimentological observations and geochemical analyses of the Blaine Formation of the Nippewalla Group. The Rebecca K. Bounds core from west-central Kansas is used to interpret the depositional environments and diagenetic history of the Blaine Formation.

The lithologies of the Blaine Formation, listed in order of most to least …

A Snapshot Of Ancient Microbial Life: Microorganisms And Organic Compounds In Primary Fluid Inclusions In Bedded Halite, Neoproterozoic Browne Formation Of Central Australia, Sara I. Schreder-Gomes

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Modern shallow brine environments contain an abundance of microorganisms. Microorganisms, mineral crystals, and air bubbles can be trapped with those brines in primary fluid inclusions in bedded halite as it grows in shallow saline surface waters. Primary fluid inclusions and their contents can be preserved, unaltered, for millions of years.

The ~830 million-year-old Browne Formation of central Australia contains intervals of bedded halite with unaltered primary fluid inclusions. Intervals of bedded halite were sampled in the Empress 1A core from ~1480 m – 1520 m depths. Here, I used petrography to describe suspect microorganisms and organic compounds that were trapped …

Variations In Produced Water Chemistry And Relation To Regional Geology And Production In The Marcellus Shale, Northcentral West Virginia, Jonathan M. Brady

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

An investigation of 74 Marcellus Shale wells across northcentral West Virginia indicates changes in produced water chemistry and quantity can be related to geologic conditions based on well logs and core data. These changes are determined by reviewing multiple produced water analyses for individual wells for periods up to ten years. Results show variations among the areas in this study. From west to east across central Harrison County to central Taylor County, then north into Monongalia County, gamma-ray logs show increasing intensity, especially in the middle and lower Marcellus. XRD mineralogy from core data shows increasing clay content from west …

Effect Of Oxidative Breakers On Organic Matter Degradation, Contaminant Mobility And Critical Mineral Release During Shale-Fracturing Fluid Interactions In The Marcellus Shale, Shaun Donmoyer

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Production of oil and gas from organic-rich shale formations has become viable through advancements in multi-stage hydraulic fracturing. The decline of shale gas production after the initial days of fracturing operations coupled with falling oil and gas prices, has pushed industry operators to use new chemical additives as an attempt to increase hydrocarbon production. The implementation of highly reactive fracturing fluids that include strong oxidizing agents, pose as a potential solution to increase well productivity. Strong oxidizing chemicals commonly known in fracturing operations as breakers, are used to improve the viscosity of gel-based fluids after the proppant is transported into …

Application Of 3d Seismic Signal And Geomechanical Attributes For Subsurface Fracture Characterization: A Case Study In Clearfield County, Central Pennsylvania, Iman F. Zulkapeli

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Hydrocarbon exploration in unconventional reservoirs is highly risky due to the nature of the reservoirs and the variability in fractures and reservoir geomechanical properties in the subsurface. The reservoir needs to be fully characterized to avoid any complication such as frac hit, wellbore failure, blowout, or even a dry hole. The Clearfield reservoir produces an exceptionally low amount of gas, compared to the neighboring region in the proximity, which has been poorly understood. This raises the question as to what causes the reservoir to have low productivity.

This study focuses on the natural fracture characterization using high-quality 3D seismic signal …

Workshop Outcomes Report: 1st International Workshop On Seismic Resilience Of Arctic Infrastructure And Social Systems, Majid Ghayoomi, Katharine Duderstadt, Alexander Kholodov, Alexander Shiklomanov, Matthew Turner, Elham Ajorlou

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.