Research Programs
Radiogenic Isotope Geochemistry
Radiogenic isotopes are widely employed both as tracers of geochemical processes
as well as chronometers. Studies at the University of Texas at Austin involving
radiogenic isotopes are diverse, involving projects in climate change and
hydrology, diagenesis of carbonate and siliciclastic sediments, seawater
evolution, petrogenesis of both basaltic and silicic magmatic systems from a
variety of tectonic settings, evolution of the lithospheric mantle, tectonic
development of crustal domains, formation of metallic and industrial mineral
deposits and petroleum, geochemistry of metamorphic rocks, as well as the
geochronology of igneous and metamorphic rocks and clays. For more information
on U-Pb geochronology and U-Th series dating see the home pages of Jim Connelly
and Jay Banner, respectively.
Some current research projects:
- Paleo-ground water and surface water evolution in central Texas and Barbados,
and its link to past climates (Banner, Mack, James)
- Hydrology of aquifers in central Texas, the midwestern United States and
Barbados
(Mack, James, Banner)
- Impacts of land use on stream water evolution
(Banner)
- Tectonic evolution of Archean and Proterozoic terrains in W. Greenland, N.
Labrador,
Scandinavia, W. South America and Antarctica (Connelly)
- Late Cenozoic volcanism associated with Basin and Range extension in SW North
America
(Housh) and mid-Cenozoic arc-related volcanism in the Sierra Madre Occidental of
northern Mexico (Housh, McDowell)
- Formation of post-collisional magmatic rocks and associated ore deposits in
western New
Guinea (Housh, James)
- Understanding the role of the role of crust and lithospheric mantle recycling
in the generation of mantle chemical heterogeneity (Lassiter)
- Constraining the thermal and chemical evolution of the Earth’s core and
core/mantle boundary (Lassiter).
Stable Isotope Geochemistry
"It behaves at times in a most capricious and
unaccountable manner...when by good fortune all is well the
arrangement is capable of good performance." [F. W. Aston,
speaking of his Mass Spectrometer]
The stable isotope ratios of light (H, C, O, N etc.) elements vary greatly in
nature and we can use these variations to understand geological and biological
processes. In particular, stable isotopes are potent tools for paleothermometry
and climate change,
fluid-rock interactions, tracing the hydrologic cycle, physiology, and ecosystem
ecology. At the University of Texas at Austin, some of the research areas
currently using stable isotopes are: groundwater and vadose zone hydrology,
paleoclimatology, diagenesis, metamorphism, and ore genesis.
Some current research projects:
- Diagenesis of carbonate and siliciclastic sediments (Banner, Mack, McBride)
- Origin of authigenic clays during burial diagenesis (Long, Mack)
- Formation of carbonate concretions (McBride)
- Evolution of groundwater in Barbados, central Texas and midwestern US (Banner)
- Genesis of ore-bearing fluids in porphyry copper and sediment-hosted
systems
(Kyle)
- Climate variability as revealed by the geochemistry of marine sediments and
coral reefs (Quinn)
