Geology Commons^™

A Field Trip To The Sand Hills Of Nebraska May 4-6, 1994

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

The Sand Hills of central Nebraska, covering over 50,000 sq km (19,300 sq miles) constitute a unique physiographic, geologic and hydrologic province in the United States.

Cass County Test Hole Logs, Raymond R. Burchett, Frank A. Smith

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Clay County Test Hole Logs, Raymond R. Burchett

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Stable Isotopes Of Oxygen And Hydrogen In The Truckee River-Pyramid Lake Surface-Water System. 1. Data Analysis And Extraction Of Paleoclimatic Information, Larry Benson

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

The δ¹⁸O content of streamflow discharge entering Pyramid Lake is a simple mixture of isotopically enriched Lake Tahoe discharge and isotopically depleted snowmelt. The δ¹⁸O value of Pyramid Lake water varies continuously, as isotopically depleted water evaporates from the epilimnion and isotopically depicted water enters the lake as streamflow discharge and on-lake precipitation. In a normal water year, the δ¹⁸O of Pyramid Lake surface water varies seasonally because the components of the hydrologic balance in the Pyramid Lake system are seasonally shifted. The problem of isotopic and thermal heterogeneity can be minimized by analyzing …

Stable Isotopes Of Oxygen And Hydrogen In The Truckee River-Pyramid Lake Surface-Water System, 3: Source Of Water Vapor Overlying Pyramid Lake, Larry Benson, J. W. C. White

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

During 1988 and 1989, a series of water-vapor extractions were conducted in the Pyramid Lake basin to determine the source of moisture that overlies the lake. Calculations of the isotopic and water-vapor balances were made from isotopic and meteorological data from the Pyramid Lake and Reno, Nevada, areas. The results indicate that in the warm season, most of the moisture that overlies the lake is derived from evaporation as opposed to advected moisture. Isotopic fluxes at the lake surface can be approximated by climatic data from the lake site, which simplifies the calculation of this input in numerical simulations of …

Diagenetic Controls Of Reservoir Quality In The Mississippian Wayne Beds In The Williston Basin, Bottineau County, North Dakota, Michael M. Wetmore

Theses and Dissertations

The carbonate Wayne beds of the Frobisher-Alida interval (Mississippian Mission Canyon Formation) in the Williston Basin, North Dakota, are capable of producing as much as 400,000 barrels of oil per well at depths of only 3,100 feet. Wayne production is from structural traps in the intertidal packstone-wackestone lithofacies; however, the ultimate recoverable reserves of oil per well is controlled neither by structure, nor by depositional environments.

The Wayne beds underwent cementation and micritization in the marine phreatic diagenetic environment. Hypersaline diagenesis caused minor dolomitization and anhydritization. Dissolution and minor cementation occurred in the freshwater vadose zone. Freshwater phreatic diagenesis resulted …

Periodic And Homoclinic Orbits In A Toy Climate Model, M. Toner, A. D. Kirwan Jr.

Mathematics & Statistics Faculty Publications

A two dimensional system of autonomous nonlinear ordinary differential equations models glacier growth and temperature changes on an idealized planet. We apply standard perturbative techniques from dynamical systems theory to study small amplitude periodic orbits about a constant equilibrium. The equations are put in cononical form and the local phase space topology is examined. Maximum and minimum periods of oscillation are obtained and related to the radius of the orbit. An adjacent equilibrium is shown to have saddle character and the inflowing and outflowing manifolds of this saddle are studied using numerical integration. The inflowing manifolds show the region of …

Source Rock Geochemistry Of The Southern Tyee Basin, Southwest Oregon, David E. Long

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined source rock geochemistry of the southern Tyee Basin. Total organic carbon, rock-eval pyrolysis, vitrinite reflectance, thermal alteration index and visual assessments were performed on splits from cutting samples from five wells and on outcrop samples from four measured sections. Organic matter was found to be dispersed, averaging about 0.5 weight percent. The organic matter is primarily terrestrial in origin, or type I l l , with low potential for gas production and no oil potential. Three coal samples are clearly the richest sources of organic matter examined in this study.

Speleothems As Proxy For The Carbon Isotope Composition Of Atmospheric Co2, M. Baskaran, R. V. Krishnamurthy

Environmental Science and Geology Faculty Research Publications

We have measured the stable isotope ratios of carbon in a suite of recent cave deposits (<200 >years) from the San Saba County, Texas, USA. The methodology for dating these deposits using excess ²¹⁰Pb was recently established [Baskaran and Iliffe, 1993]. The carbon isotope ratios of these samples, spanning the time period ∼1800–1990 AD, reflect the carbon isotope ratio of atmospheric CO₂ for the same period. The pathways by which the δ¹³C of atmospheric CO₂ is imprinted on these speleothems can be explained using a model developed by Cerling (1984). The results suggest that the …

Senior Theses: Department Of Physical Sciences, Frank Baldridge, Billy B. Stapleton, James Bond, Mark A. Blair

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

1993 Fall Semester Senior Theses for the class Physical Science 471:

Petrologic Classification of Igneous and Metamorphic Rocks by Frank Baldridge

X -Ray Analysis of Cave Sediments From Pigeon Water Cave of Northeastern Pine Mountain by Billy B. Stapleton

The Correlation of Stream-deposited Breccias In Bat Cave, Carter Caves, Kentucky by James Bond

Jointing and Faulting in Selected Areas of Eastern Kentucky by Mark A. Blair

Field Test Of A Calcite Dissolution Rate Law: Fort’S Funnel Cave, Mammoth Cave National Park, J. Scott Slunder

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The laboratory-derived calcite dissolution rate law of Plummer et al. (1978) is the most widely used and mechanistically detailed expression currently available for predicting dissolution rates as a function of water chemistry. Such rate expressions are of great use in understanding timescales associated with limestone karst development. Little work has gone into the field testing of the rate law under natural conditions.

This work compared measured dissolution rates measured by a crystal weight loss experiment in Buffalo Creek within Fort’s Funnel Cave, which lies within a pristine, forested catchment of Mammoth Cave National Park. Continuous water chemistry sampling over the …

Geology Newsletter- 1993, Department Of Geology

Geological and Environmental Sciences News

Vol.1, No. 18

• Faculty News
• Awards and Scholarships
• Service Staff News
• Hydrogeologic Atlas Available
• Alumni/ Friends/ Former Faculty Notes
• Geology Development and Scholarship Donations

A Study Of Aquifer Sensitivity And Vulnerability In Kalamazoo County, Michigan Based On Hydrogeologic And Agricultural Factors, Steven Douglas Chidester

Masters Theses

Groundwater in Kalamazoo County, Michigan has been impacted by human activities. This study presents a statistical method for predicting aquifer sensitivity/vulnerability within a glacio-hydrogeologic system.

Computerized data including 3620 water well records with partial chemical analyses, soil surveys, land use maps, and hydrogeologic reports were used to quantify aquifer parameters, nitrate-N contaminant concentrations, soil factors, and agricultural practices. Statistical analyses included simple t-tests , correlation, ANOV A, and multiple regression analyses.

The results indicate that there are statistically significant relationships between nitrate-N concentrations and depth of well submergence, well depth, clay thickness, partial clay thickness, land use, and soil slope. …

Spectral Analysis Of The Flow Behavior Of Big Spring, Kings Canyon National Park, California, Linda Urzendowski

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Big Spring, the resurgence of a karst aquifer in the Lilburn Cave system (Kings Canyon National Park, California), displays the uncommon phenomena of ebb and flow discharge during periods of high runoff.

Hydrograph analyses indicate that the portion of Lilburn Cave between the Z-Room and Big Spring is primarily a conduit flow aquifer. The power spectra strongly indicate a nonlinear system, with evidence of quasi-linear behavior found on a smaller scale. The transfer and kernel function indicate that no additional significant inputs or outputs to the system exist. The bench-scale model built to simulate the ebb and flow cycles in …

The Geology Of The Tuff Of Bridge Spring: Southern Nevada And Northwestern Arizona, Shirley Ann Morikawa

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The Tuff of Bridge Spring (TBS) is a regionally-widespread, andesite to rhyolite (59.50 to 74.91 wt. %) ash-flow tuff of mid-Miocene age (ca. 15.2 Ma) that is exposed in the northern Colorado River extensional corridor of southern Nevada and northwestern Arizona. Determination of the areal distribution, geochronology, lithology, geochemistry, and internal stratigraphy of the TBS is important for its establishment as a reliable stratigraphic reference horizon for tectonic reconstructions of the extensional corridor during the middle Miocene. Based on reoccurring patterns of major and trace element variation, the TBS is divided into constant Cr/variable SiO₂ and variable Cr/variable SiO …

Atmospheric Depositional Fluxes Of 7Be And 210Pb At Galveston And College Station, Texas, M. Baskaran, Charles H. Coleman, Peter H. Santschi

Environmental Science and Geology Faculty Research Publications

The bulk depositional fluxes of ²¹⁰Pb and ⁷Be were measured at a coastal (Galveston) and an inland (College Station) station for about 3 years, between 1989 and 1991. The annual depositional fluxes of ⁷Be and ²¹⁰Pb at Galveston during this period varied by a factor of about 2.5, between 8.9 and 23.2 disintegrations per minute (dpm) cm⁻² yr⁻¹, with a mean of 14.7 dpm cm⁻² yr⁻¹ for ⁷Be, and 0.67 and 1.71 dpm cm⁻² yr⁻¹, with a mean of 1.03 dpm cm⁻² yr⁻¹ for ^{210 …}

Strategic Minerals In The New World Order, Kent H. Butts

Books, Monographs & Collaborative Studies

The author discusses U.S. dependence on overseas sources of strategic minerals essential to sustain its economy and defense sector. U.S. vulnerability to a loss of access to important mineral supplies is more pronounced now than at any time since World War II. The uneven distribution of strategic mineral reserves and their concentration in a handful of politically unstable countries make it essential that U.S. policymakers ensure mineral availability in the new world order. The author considers the geographical imbalance of mineral trade patterns, evaluates the stability of the major strategic mineral producing countries, and assesses the potential for mineral supply …

An Integrated Surface Seismic/Seismic Profile Case Study: Simonette Area, Alberta, Ronald C. Hinds, Neil Lennart Anderson, Richard Kuzmiski

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

On the basis of conventional surface seismic data, the 13-15-63-25W5M exploratory well was drilled into a low-relief Leduc Formation reef (Devonian Wood-bend Group) in the Simonette area, west-central Alberta, Canada. The well was expected to intersect the crest of the reef and encounter about 50-60 m of pay; unfortunately it was drilled into a flank position and abandoned. The decision to abandon the well, as opposed to whipstocking in the direction of the reef crest, was made after the acquisition and interpretive processing of both near-and far-offset (252 and 524 m, respectively) vertical seismic profile (VSP) data, and after the …

An Integrated Surface And Borehole Seismic Case Study: Fort St. John Graben Area, Alberta, Canada, Ronald C. Hinds, Richard Kuzmiski, Neil Lennart Anderson, Barry R. Richards

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The deltaic sandstones of the basal Kiskatinaw Formation (Stoddard Group, upper Mississippian) were preferentially deposited within structural lows in a regime characterized by faulting and structural subsidence. In the Fort St. John Graben area, northwest Alberta, Canada, these sandstone facies can form reservoirs where they are laterally sealed against the flanks of upthrown fault blocks. Exploration for basal Kiskatinaw reservoirs generally entails the acquisition and interpretation of surface seismic data prior to drilling. These data are used to map the grabens in which these sandstones were deposited, and the horst blocks which act as lateral seals. Subsequent to drilling, vertical …

Probable Glacial Climatic Conditions In Source Areas During Deposition Of Parts Of The Ash Hollow Formation, Ogallala Group (Late Tertiary), Of Western Nebraska, Patricia E. Helland, Robert F. Diffendal Jr.

Robert F. Diffendal, Jr., Publications

Evidence of the climatic conditions in the mountain sediment source areas for the late Tertiary Ash Hollow Formation of the Ogallala Group in western Nebraska has been sought in an SEM (scanning electron microscope) study of surface features on detrital quartz grains from these deposits. The following lines of indirect evidence raised the possibility of glacial conditions: uplift of up to 3500 m in the source areas, paleohydrologic parameters indicative of a transport system analogous to the modern North Saskatchewan River, and possible cold climate surface features on cobbles from the deposits. SEM analysis shows that five of the nine …

Mapping The Distribution Of Vesicular Textures On Silicic Lavas Using The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner, Jaime Ondrusek, Philip R. Christensen, Jonathan Fink

Geology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TlMS) is a potentially powerful tool for mapping detailed chemical variations in silicic lava flows which in turn could expand knowledge of pre-eruption compositional gradients and mixing processes in silicic magma bodies. However, thermal infrared image data may be greatly influenced by the range of vesicular textures which occur on silicic flows . To investigate the effect of vesicularity on TIMS imagery independent of chemical variations, we studied Little Glass Mountain at the Medicine Lake Volcano of northern California, a large rhyolitic flow of uniform composition but textural heterogeneity. The imagery was recalibrated so that …

An Overview Of Some Of The Large Scale Mechanisms Of Salt Dissolution In Western Canada, Neil Lennart Anderson, Ralph W. Knapp

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Well log and seismic data indicate that the bedded rock salts of the Devonian Prairie Formation were widely distributed and uniformly deposited in the Lloydminster area, Western Canada; however, as a result of extensive leaching, the distribution of these salts is not now what it once was. The Lloydminster area is now bisected by the north-south trending main dissolutional edge of the Prairie salt. Thick salt (up to 150 m) is preserved to the west of this edge; to the east the salt is mostly absent. The paper presents an overview of the envisioned principal mechanisms of salt dissolution. The …

Chloroform Contamination In The Louisville Aquifer: An Investigation Of Its Occurrence And Propagation, Sergio E. Serrano

KWRRI Research Reports

This report presents the main results of an investigation on the nature and propagation of an accidental spill of chloroform in the Louisville aquifer, Kentucky. Much of the effort is concentrated on the development of mathematical models to either reconstruct the history of evolution of the plume, or forecast its propagation in the future. Chloroform is a dense halogenated solvent which exhibits a special migration pattern in porous media: Because of this and the relative absence of a conceptual theory on its hydrodynamics in porous media, meaningful predictive models will have to deal with many unresolved theoretical aspects of contaminant …

Geology, Geologic Time And Nebraska, Marvin P. Carlson

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Hydrogeochemical Characterization Of The Alvord Valley Known Geothermal Resources Area, Harney County, Oregon, Anna Maria St. John

Dissertations and Theses

The Alvord Valley Known Geothermal Resources Area (KGRA), located east of the Steens Mountain-Pueblo Mountains fault block in southeastern Oregon, is within the northern Basin and Range province. This investigation focuses on three thermal areas in the Alvord Basin: Borax Lake and the hot springs north of Borax Lake, Alvord Hot Springs and Mickey Springs.

Acoustic Properties Of Fine‐Grained Sediments From Emerald Basin: Toward An Inversion For Physical Properties Using The Biot–Stoll Model, Robert C. Courtney, Larry A. Mayer

Affiliate Scholarship

Acoustic data from two long cores, comprising marine clays and silts taken from Emerald Basin off Nova Scotia, are presented. High‐resolution measurements of compressional wavevelocity,attenuation, and power law exponent are made using ultrasonic frequencies between 100 to 1000 kHz. The observed values of the frequency dependence of attenuation suggest that a nonconstant Q mechanism is needed to explain these data, and Biot–Stoll theory is used to model the experimental results. An inversion scheme is used to constrain physical parameters in the Biot–Stoll dispersion relation. The inversion shows that there is a restricted range of permeability and grain size. By assigning …

Westhazel General Petroleums Pool: Case History Of A Salt- Dissolution Trap In West-Central Saskatchewan, Canada, Neil Lennart Anderson, Dale A. Cederwall

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Westhazel General Petroleums (GP) Pool of west-central Saskatchewan, Canada, produces from the GP member of the Lower Cretaceous Mannville Group. This reservoir is structurally closed across the updip, eastern dissolutional edge of the underlying Middle Devonian rock salt of the Leofnard Member, Prairie Formation. The leaching of these salts occurred in post-Mannville time in the Westhazel area and caused the regional southwest dip of the General Petroleums member to be locally reversed.The Westhazel GP Pool, from a geophysical perspective, is characteristic of many of the shallow Lower Cretaceous pools situated along the dissolutional edge of the Prairie salt. The …

Information And Regulations Pertaining To Industrial Minerals In Nebraska, Raymond R. Burchett

Conservation and Survey Division: Faculty and Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

The Hydrogeology Of Bonnie Castle And Dustin Lakes And Its Relationship To Groundwater Contamination From The Kl Avenue Landfill, Kalamazoo County, Michigan, Joseph S. Hobin

Masters Theses

The objectives of this investigation were to explain the hydrogeology of Bonnie Castle and Dustin Lakes and to assess the water quality of the lake environments with respect to possible impact from the KL Avenue Landfill.

The surface water/groundwater relationship was determined by the installation of mini-piezometer nests and seepage meters at selected study stations along the shoreline of each lake. Field data were augmented with groundwater and surface water chemical analyses, lake depth profiles and geologic cross-sections.

The result of this research was the characterization of Bonnie Castle Lake as a perched recharge lake and Dustin Lake as a …

Laboratory Studies Of Filter Pack Grain-Size Distributions And Hydrophobic Treatments To Enhance The Recovery Of Free-Phase Floating Hydrocarbons, Hugh Garret Heuvelhorst

Masters Theses

Experiments were conducted in laboratory sand tanks to evaluate filter pack design criteria in an effort to improve free-product hydrocarbon recovery from sand aquifers. Filter sands were prepared and installed in the test tanks to examine the relative efficiency of two different grain sizes and two different grain-size distributions to imbibe kerosene from the formation sand and release it to their respective wells. Treatments of different chemical products were applied to other filter sands to create a hydrophobic coating on the grains. The hydrophobic coatings were tested on filter sands of different grain sizes and grain-size distributions and compared to …