Geology Commons^™

Effects Of Anthropogenic Particles On The Chemical And Geophysical Properties Of Urban Soils, Detroit, Michigan, Katharine Orlicki

Wayne State University Theses

There is a great need in many cities for a better quality of urban soil maps. This is due to the increasing interest in repurposing vacant land for urban redevelopment, agriculture, and green infrastructure. Mapping vacant urban land in Detroit can be very difficult because anthropogenic soils were often highly variable and frequently contained demolition debris (such as brick), this makes it difficult to use a hand auger. This study was undertaken in Detroit, MI to create a more efficient way to map urban soils based on their geophysical and chemical properties. This will make the mapping process faster, less …

Subsurface Geological Analyses Of The Berea Petroleum System In Eastern Kentucky, Julie Floyd

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

The Berea Sandstone is a Late Devonian, tight oil and gas reservoir that intertongues with the Bedford Shale in eastern Kentucky. In order to evaluate the Bedford-Berea interval in the subsurface, 555 well logs from the Kentucky Geological Survey’s oil and gas database were used to construct structure maps, isopach maps, and cross sections of the interval and its possible hydrocarbon source rocks. Gamma-ray logs were compared to known cores in order to separate Bedford from Berea lithologies. Maps and cross sections were compared to known basement structures to evaluate possible structural influences on the interval.

The Bedford-Berea interval is …

Inference Of Hydrogeological Conditions And Source History Of Groundwater Contaminants Using 3-D Modeling And Human Health Risk Assessment, Mary Rosanna Carnagie

Wayne State University Theses

This study was completed using data interpolation and human health risk modules in Spatial Analysis and Decision Assistance (SADA) software to model a 3-D time-series of 1,4-dioxane and vinyl chloride plumes and their associated health risks to infer hydrogeological conditions at the Ann Arbor Landfill site. Ordinary kriging estimates of contaminant distribution and human health risk distribution provide insight to groundwater flow direction, hydraulic conductivity distribution, and source history of contaminants at sites with groundwater contamination in a glacial aquifer system. More studies with larger datasets in glacial aquifer systems are necessary to prove these correlations, but this thesis illustrates …

Impacts Of Anthropogenic Watershed Activity On The Sedimentary Record Of Dams From The Midwestern United States: A Case Study From Michigan And Indiana, Jenna Hage-Hassan

Wayne State University Theses

Large-scale watershed land use changes, including urbanization, have resulted in accelerated soil erosion and sediment accumulation rates, which in turn have posed a threat to the longevity and productivity of a majority of the aging dams in the mid-western United States. In this study, we collected and analyzed 3 sediment cores each from two dams from the Mid-western United States: Webber Dam in Michigan and Goshen Pond Dam in Indiana. Cores were analyzed for 137Cs and 210Pb to establish chronology, as well as concentrations and isotopic composition of organic carbon and nitrogen to investigate the land use changes as preserved …

Evaluation Of Hygroscopic Soil Amendments And Natural Freeze-Thaw Cycling To Accelerate The Mechanical Breakdown Of Artifacts In Demolition Site Soils, Phillip Joseph Backers

Wayne State University Theses

Many cities worldwide have areas of vacant land produced by building demolition. This open space has attracted great interest as a potential resource for green infrastructure, urban agriculture, and other purposes related to urban renewal. Unfortunately, rock-like artifacts (e.g. brick, mortar, concrete) are often present in great abundance in demolition site soils. These artifacts make the soil difficult to till, create obstacles for root penetration, and limit the soil’s water-holding capacity, infiltration and aeration. As an alternative to physical removal, this study was carried out to test the feasibility of using hygroscopic compounds as soil amendments to accelerate the mechanical …

Changes In The Geometry And Volume Of Rabots Glaciär, Sweden, 2003-2011: Recent Accelerated Volume Loss Linked To More Negative Summer Balances, Keith A. Brugger, Latysha Pankratz

Geology Publications

Terminus geometry, ice margins, and surface elevations on Rabots glaciär were measured using differential GPS during summer 2011 and compared with those similarly measured in 2003. Glacier length over the eight years decreased by ∼105 m corresponding to 13 m a−1, a rate consistent with ice recession over the last several decades. Measured changes in surface elevations show that between 2003 and 2011 the glacier’s volume decreased by ∼27.6 ± 2.6 × 106 m3, or 3.5± 0.3 × 106 m3 a−1. This compares favorably with an estimate of −28.1 ± 2.6 × 106 m3 based on a mass-balance approach. The …

Schoenophyllum Aggregatum Zone: Stratigraphic Marker For Investigations Of Mississippian Limestones In Western Kentucky, Garland R. Dever Jr., Preston Mcgrain

Report of Investigations--KGS

Schoenophyllum aggregatum, a Mississippian colonial rugose coral, has a widespread geographic distribution and narrow stratigraphic range in the upper Ste. Genevieve Limestone of western Kentucky. This coral zone serves as a useful stratigraphic marker for commercial and geologic investigations of the extensive limestone deposits formed by the Ste. Genevieve and enclosing limestone units in the region. S. aggregatum is also present in rocks correlative with the Ste, Genevieve that occur in the Monteagle Limestone Slade Formation of south-central Kentucky and the Newman Limestone of southeastern Kentucky.

Is There Space Inside Solid Rock?, Stephen F. Greb, David C. Harris, J. Richard Bowersox

Map and Chart--KGS

No abstract provided.

Mapped Karst Groundwater Basins In The Hopkinsville 30 X 60 Minute Quadrangle, James C. Currens, Joseph A. Ray, Phillip W. O'Dell, Robert J. Blair

Map and Chart--KGS

No abstract provided.

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 …

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 …

Spatial Incidence Of Adult Obesity In The State Of Alabama, Mary G. Odhiambo

Theses

No abstract provided.

Assessing The Relative Mobility Of Submarine Landslides From Deposit Morphology And Physical Properties: An Example From Kumano Basin, Nankai Trough, Offshore Japan, Zachary T. Moore

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

A prominent landslide deposit in the Slope Basin seaward of the Megasplay Fault in the Nankai Trough was emplaced by a high-mobility landslide based on analysis of physical properties and seismic geomorphology. Slide acceleration is a critical variable that determines amplitude of slide-generated tsunami but is many times a variable with large uncertainty. In recent controlled laboratory experiments, the ratio of the shear stress to yield strength (defined as the Flow Factor) controls a wide spectrum of mass movement styles from slow, retrogressive failure to rapid, liquefied flows. Here, we apply this laboratory Flow Factor approach to a natural landslide …

Dynamic Surface Water-Groundwater Exchange In Tidal Freshwater Zones: Insights From The Christina River Basin (Delaware, Usa), Cole T. Musial

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

In coastal rivers, tides can propagate for tens to hundreds of kilometers inland beyond the saltwater line. Yet the influence of tides on river-aquifer connectivity and solute transport in tidal freshwater zones (TFZs) is largely unknown. We estimate that along the TFZ of White Clay Creek (Delaware, USA), more than 17% of river water exchanges through hyporheic and riparian storage zones due to tidal pumping alone. Additional hyporheic processes such as flow through bedforms likely contribute even more exchange. The turnover length associated with the tidal pumping process is 39 km, similar to turnover lengths for all hyporheic exchange processes …

The Environmental Effects Of Coal Fires, Trent Garrison

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

There are thousands of subterranean coal fires in the world that, because of incomplete combustion, emit a wide variety of volatile and semivolatile organic compounds to the atmosphere, water, and soil at concentrations that could pose health risks to humans and wildlife. The main goals of this study were to (1) review methods that are used to characterize physical and chemical characteristics of coal-fire sites, (2) determine relationships between gas emissions and physical and chemical characteristics of coal-fire sites, using a combination of regression and multivariate statistical methods, and (3) determine the concentrations of volatile and semivolatile organic compounds in …

Bedrock Geologic Mapping And Structural Analysis Of The Western Half Of The Petersham Quadrangle, Central Massachusetts: Further Tests Of The Model For Middle To Late Paleozoic Ductile Transpression, Vertical Extrusion, And Lateral Escape In The Northern Appalachians, Lucas P. Rohrer

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

Bedrock mapping, structural analysis, and geochronology reveal the distribution of lithologies and timing of metamorphism and deformation in the western half of the Petersham 7.5’ quadrangle, western Massachusetts. Underlying lithologies are: (from west to east) the Ordovician Monson granitic orthogneiss, Silurian Rangeley migmatitic paragneiss, and Late Devonian (357 Ma) Hardwick tonalitic orthogneiss. Their tightly folded contacts strike north to south. The 361 Ma, unfoliated, strike-parallel Nichewaug quartz-diorite (10-100 m wide) intrusion spans the map area within the Rangeley. Evidence for vertical and lateral extrusion/escape of the Monson orthogneiss, as observed in the Palmer MA area, is absent. Instead, petrofabrics (foliations …

Fluvial Responses To Growth Faulting In The West Pearl River, Louisiana, Stephen A. Prosser

Theses and Dissertations--Earth and Environmental Sciences

The Pearl River Delta (PRD) in southeastern Louisiana is an actively deforming deltaic complex displaying surface and near-surface evidence of growth faulting. Active growth faults in these environments are rarely identified at the surface, in part because the downthrown blocks often experience increased rates of sediment deposition leading to an obscured and low-relief, or entirely absent, surface expression. Faulting can be expressed in fluvial systems as changes in channel gradient, which often result in coincident changes in channel sinuosity, migration rates, planform deflections, and/or ponding features within the deformed zone. The study area is focused on a meander bend of …