Outcroppings, Summer 2019

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utcroppings MAGAZINE OF THE EARTH, ENVIRONMENT

Volume 3 Summer 2019

AND ENERGY

Issue Focus: The Keith-Wiess

Geological Laboratories

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 1

Keith-Wiess Geological Laboratories

W K 2 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

G logical

ss Geo The Keith-Wie Laboratories 1969

W GL Outcroppings summer 2019

EDITOR & CREATIVE DIRECTOR Linda Welzenbach

Contents

1969

EDITORIAL BOARD Cin-Ty Lee (Chair) Rajdeep Dasgupta Laurence Yeung

STUDENT BOARD Sriparna Saha (Chair) Brandee Carlson Tian Dong Debadrita Jana Jennifer Kroeger

2019

ADVERTISEMENTS Meagan McKellar

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CHAIR’S MESSAGE

ALUMNI RELATIONS Martha Lou Broussard

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DEPARTMENT NEWS

EEPS adds Jonathan Ajo-Franklin, environmental geophysicist, to the faculty

Outcroppings is an annual magazine that celebrates the science of our planet and the environment, encourages balanced discussions about energy and chronicles the paths of people from the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences.

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AWARDS

Sloan Fellow, assistant professor Mark Torres

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IN MEMORIUM

ALBERT BALLY’s life and impact on EEPS

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MEETINGS

IRESS

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PROFILES

Sylvia Dee, Meagan McKellar, Jennifer Kroeger

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ISSUE FOCUS: FACILITIES

SUBMISSIONS Outcroppings@rice.edu

ON THE COVER:

Guadalupe Box, Jemez Mountains in New Mexico.

EEPS students examine the 1.6 billion year old granite and lamprophyre dike.

(Photo by Andrew Moodie)

earthscience.rice.edu

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Part I of a two part special issue that highlights EEPS facilities. This issue covers the physical laboratories, analytical instrumentation and research facilities

RESEARCH BRIEF

Gabi Costin’s work on Hematene- a new 2D

RESEARCH BRIEF

Patrick Phelps gives us a sneak peak at his

RESEARCH BRIEF

Tian Dong shares his summer of field research on the Selenga River delta in Sibera

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RESEARCH BRIEF

Mejs Hasan introduces EEPS new NASA funded NExSS program CLEVER Planets

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DEPARTMENT ACTIVITIES

Outreach highlights and initiatives; Student pages; Owl Pellets- Lab Dirt

material

research on rapid crystal growth in pegmatites

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 3

Our Contributors

4 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Asmita Banerjee

Mejs Hasan, Ph.D.

Asmita is a Ph.D. candidate interested in climate change through the lens of paleoclimatic, paleo-oceanographic and paleo-environmental studies.

She hopes to go to Antarctica to collect her own ice samples for research.

Mejs Hasan is the website, education and public outreach lead for a NASA-funded NExSS consortium CLEVER Planets.

Mejs is from North Carolina, having completed a Ph.D. in enivronmental studies. In her spare time, Mejs likes to make animations about her research.

Joyeeta Bhattacharya

Debadrita Jana

Joyeeta Bhattacharya is a Ph.D. candidate working on ocean rocks and sediments to reconstruct the past climate of our planet. She loves travelling to new places.

Debadrita Jana is a Ph.D. student studying palaeoclimatic and paleoceanographic phenomena from the Plio-Pleistocene. She spends a lot of time with her core samples and dreams of sailing the high seas to gather data for her research.

She enjoys food, books and travel.

Brandee Carlson

Jennifer Kroeger

Brandee is a Ph.D. candidate who studies geomorphology and sediment transport. Rice has taken her all over the world to see how sedimentary processes manifest in rocks and modern systems.

Jennifer Kroeger graduated from Rice in 2019 with a degree in Earth Science. She heads to Washington D.C. for a fellowhsip to help craft science policy. She is looking forward to skating in the same arena used by the Washington Capitals hockey team.

Trevor Cole

Patrick Phelps

Trevor Cole is a Ph.D. student studying the chemistry of Icelandic rivers to better understand the effects of chemical weathering on the long-term carbon cycle. When he is not in the lab, Trevor spends his time on wood-working hobbies.

Patrick Phelps is a Ph.D. student working on crystal growth and dynamics in magmatic systems. He enjoys hiking and exploring nature.

Tian Dong

Sriparna Saha, Ph.D.

Tian Dong is a Ph.D. candidate and native Texan studying river geomorphology. He has gone as far afield as boating down a river in Russia, gathering data for his research. He enjoys playing basketball.

Sriparna Saha received her Ph.D. in 2019 working with Professor Rajdeep Dasgupta.

She leaves Rice for New Zealand where she will continue her passion for science education and outreach. She loves writing (fiction), making crafts, reading and teaching.

1969

The Keith-Wiess Geological laboratories have undergone many changes since the building was completed in 1958, yet two things remain constant: the quality of our faculty and the state of the art laboratories that produce some of the world’s finest geoscientists.

50 years ago, we put the first men on the Moon, thus pushing the boundaries of engineering and exploration to achieve something only imagined a few years prior.

As we imagine and work towards a reunion with our nearest celestial neighbor, EEPS researchers push against the boundaries of laboratory science to solve the most pressing needs and questions of today, right here at home.

This issue is Part I of a two part issue dedicated to the Keith-Wiess Geological Laboratories. This current effort is focused on those laboratories in which a wide array of studies take place, where scientists use, and in some cases custom build, state of the art analytical instrumentation.

Part II will provide a more data focused look at the research conducted at EEPS, from classic seismological subsurface exploration to remote sensing on another planet.

Finally, much of the success of this issue is dedicated to the enthusiastic support of our contributors who provide content and participate in photo shoots in the laboratories where they are busy with their research.

2019 Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 5

REPORT FROM THE CHAIR

August, 2019 Dear Members, Alumni and Friends of Rice EEPS,

New Faces

This was a year of ups and downs. With great sadness, I must report that Bert Bally passed away this past July. Bert was hired from Shell Oil to serve as the department chair back in the 1980s. He was instrumental in laying the foundations for our department’s future. He left a legacy of excellent students and a truly comprehensive outlook on global geology. After retiring as a professor, he continued to engage with the department, particularly in mentoring students and generously supporting many of our activities. I myself looked to his mentorship both in terms of my scientific interests as well as in how to continue building our department. For those who had the fortune of interacting with him, our lives were forever changed. He will be sadly missed by all of us.

This past year we also added two new faculty members: Sylvia Dee, a climate modeler and Jonathan Ajo-Franklin, an applied geophysicist. Sylvia received her Ph.D. from the University of Southern California and did post-doctoral stints at Brown University and UT Austin before coming to Rice. Jonathan got his undergraduate degree from Rice and then went on to Stanford for his Ph.D. He was the chair of the geophysics department at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory before coming here. We also conducted our first Pan Postdoctoral fellow candidate search this year. The Pan Fellowship was made possible by a generous endowment from Poh Hsi Pan and his family. It is in honor of Poh Hsi Pan, who received his Ph.D. from Rice under the tutelage of Jean-Claude de Bremaecker.

Scientific Advances

Alumni Support

Our department continues to get stronger ever year. We had a number of our students go on to graduate school or recruited to work in the energy industry. Some of our graduate students landed faculty positions this year, and several won prestigious awards, including NASA graduate fellowships. Our faculty continue to shine. Laurence Yeung and his group published a landmark paper in Nature on ozone levels in the atmosphere, providing key observational constraints for global climate models.

We are indebted to our alums, who continue to help us in different ways. With Kevin Biddle’s help, we upgraded our student computing facilities with state of the art computers. Michael and Judy Johnson committed $150,000 to support initiatives led by the undergraduate and graduate students. Rumor has it that the students are planning their own geology trip to the desert Southwest!

Our faculty also published papers on planetary accretion, continent formation, the ancient sulfur cycle, the role of microbes in altering the Earth’s surface, the dynamics of the Earth’s interior and much more. Our faculty members garnered prestigious awards, with Laurence Yeung receiving the Packard fellowship and Mark Torres receiving the Sloan Fellowship. Laurence is only the 7th faculty member in Rice’s history to receive the Packard. Mark is the first in our department to receive the Sloan.

Finally, Rajdeep Dasgupta along with others in the department were awarded an $8M grant from NASA to study the origins of habitability on Earth and other planets. Caroline Masiello was awarded a grant from the National Science Foundation to enhance diversity in undergraduate studies of geoscience.

6 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Rob Lavinsky and Martin Schuepbach provided support for IRESS this year. Rob Lavinsky also donated a massive geode and two state of the art display cases to jump start the building of our Museum of the Earth. Ken Abdulah is now serving as our liaison with industry with the specific goal of helping connect our students with industry recruiters. We also thank our adjuncts for their teaching and mentorship of our students this past year. Finally, I am indebted to Martha Lou Broussard for helping the department with student and alumni activities.

Martha Lou and I took a small group of alums to the Tucson gem and mineral show this past February!

While our department is doing well, we must never stop thinking about our future. Our department has great aspirations, but we also know that there are many challenges ahead. We hope to continue generating the best and most relevant students.

Towards these ends, we hope to expand into a data science with a strong geoscience foundation. We hope to strengthen in planetary and environmental science. We also hope to strengthen the applied side of the department, but with the rapidly changing landscape of the energy industry, we have been engaging with alums to better understand how we will adapt our curricula.

Looking forward As Earth scientists, we have roles to play in climate and environmental science as well as in natural resources, from energy to water to soils and minerals. Many departments across the country struggle to maintain a balance between these domains, and in many cases, climate and energy have become mutually exclusive, often politicized. Rice is not immune to these struggles. We too are going through the same internal debates, but it is my sincerest hope that we at Rice can bring all sides together to lay the foundation for a sustainable planet and society. We must recognize that there are no simple solutions.

Natural resource exploration and the environmental impacts of humans must go together, and we must proceed within the framework of Earth systems. This balance is unlikely to happen anywhere else but Houston. If we can find this balance, I have no doubt we will lead the nation in terms of planetary sustainability. Mary Anne and William Dingus continue to match any donations greater than $2,500 to the Human Impacts Fund, which will support our efforts to build a balanced view of sustaining a habitable Earth.

In the next year, we hope to engage more with you. We are always interested in hearing about the paths you took in your lives and careers. The strength of our department lies in all of its alums as well as the present faculty and students.

Drop us a line!

Fondly and sincerely,

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 7

PHOTO: L. WELZENBACH

Cin-Ty Lee, Department Chair & Martha Lou Broussard (’57)

NEW FACES

DEPARTMENT NEWS

Jonathan Ajo-Franklin Professor

Mejs Hasan Clever Planets Education and Public Outreach

Jonathan Ajo-Franklin. Ph.D. is a geophysicist and former head of Environmental and Applied Geophysics Lab (EAGLe) and the Reservoir Processes group in the Center for Nanoscale Control of Geologic Carbon (NCGC) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. His research focuses on the application of geophysical techniques, particularly novel seismic acquisition and imaging strategies, to improve our understanding of deep subsurface systems with relevance to environmental and energy applications. The bulk of his current research focuses on approaches for monitoring subsurface gas transport as part of geological carbon storage (GCS), understanding the seismic signatures of fracture dynamics in geothermal systems and utilizing passive seismology to monitor hydrogeology in temperate and arctic environments. He received his BA in Computer Science and History at Rice University (1998), MS (2003) and Ph.D. (2005) in Geophysics at Stanford University.

Mejs Hasan, Ph.D. is the new digital communications and public outreach coordinator for CLEVER Planets. Mejs is from North Carolina. She received her Ph.D. at UNC Chapel Hill, where she studied the effects of pollution, storms, drought and conflict on rivers and wetlands. While at UNC, Mejs wrote for the Daily Tar Heel and upon graduation she was a AAAS mass media fellow at WIRED magazine.

Mejs ran her own science communication program in which she taught 170 kids about science using animations. The kids made a total of 7 animated movies on topics ranging from water pollution, computer maps and composting. In her spare time, Mejs makes animations about her research, the environment and other topics.

Meagan McKellar is from College Station, Texas. Meagan brings a wealth of experience from the service industry, from working in a law firm to establishing her own events planning business. Self-styled world traveler and gourmet, with a degree in creative writing from the University of North Texas.

Photo: Alex Witus

FAREWELL

Meagan McKellar Academic Program Coordinator

Dale Sawyer Professor of Geophysics

8 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Professor Dale Sawyer retired from EEPS in May after serving as faculty member since 1988. During his tenure, he was deeply involved with students and education. He served as Magister of Will Rice College for 10 years and started a program to train high school teachers in the Earth sciences. He remains one of the broadest geophysicists of our time. After receiving his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1982, he became a pioneer in numerical modeling of crustal deformation, making important contributions to how continents break apart. He became an expert in the acquisition and interpretation of active source seismic profiles. In the decade before retirement, Dale became chief scientist of an expedition to map out the subsurface structure of the Galicia margin, an amagmatic spreading center. This remarkable dataset became the foundation for many graduate students at Rice and beyond.

AWARDS GEOCHEMISTRY FELLOW

(Photo by Jeff Fitlow)

FACULTY

SLOAN FELLOW

Professor Cin-Ty Lee was made a Fellow of the Geochemical Society in 2019. Geochemistry fellowship is bestowed upon outstanding scientists who have made major contributions to the field of geochemistry. Cin-Ty was honored for his “diverse, creative and prolific work, his provocative ideas that have inspired debate and action, and his fundamental contributions to the understanding of our planet’s continents.”

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS EXEMPLARY SERVICE AWARD

Images courtesy of Hunter Lockhart

ALUMNI

Assistant professor Mark Torres was honored for his work in the field of ocean sciences. The two-year fellowships support fundamental research and recognizes distinguished performance and their unique potential to make substantial contributions in their fields. “This fellowship gives me freedom to pursue interesting ideas and validates the work I’ve started to do at Rice,” Torres said. “At this point in my career, these are my first steps on my own, and it’s nice to know those steps are headed in the right direction.” (content by J. Boyd, Rice News)

James Hunter Lockhart II, PSM ‘13 was awarded AAPG’s Young Professional’s Exemplary Service Award. “For his commitment to the Gulf Coast Section Young Professionals. His passion for representing his peers drives his efforts to tirelessly work on their behalf.”

Hunter completed his graduate studies at Rice University, where he developed an interest in sequence stratigraphy.

During this time, he worked on the Great Australian Bight basin at BHP as an intern, which subsequently led to fulltime employment.

Hunter Lockhart with friends on board a drill ship in Trinidad

Since joining BHP, Hunter has held several roles, both international and domestic, where he has honed his geologic skills across four continents and nine different basins while contributing to two major play-opening discoveries.

Most recently, he served on the A&D team at BHP, where he played a leading role in the $10.8 billion divestment of BHP’s shale portfolio.

Above text from the 2019 AAPG Honors and Awards program.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 9

STUDENTS

DEPARTMENT NEWS

2019

EARTH, ENVIRONMENTAL & PLANETARY SCIENCES GRADUATING STUDENTS & AWARD RECIPIENTS Congratulations to our Graduating Students: Bachelor Degree:

Master of Science:

Kendra L. Baldwin Aitash Deepak Jennifer E. Kroeger *

* Distinction in Research and Creative Works in the Earth, Environmental & Planetary Sciences Department

Master of Science in Subsurface Geoscience: Kimberly A. Birjue Vanessa Eni Janie M. Garcia Mariaisabel Johnston Jinglin OuYang Will M. Pollard Michael E. Reed Jiaqi Yang

Keith A. Crawford Erik G. Fathy Ayooluwa I. Ijarogbe Christopher I. Odezulu Nicole Pham Mallory Ramos Zachary Steele

William C. Farrell Rahul Sudhakar Yen Sun Doctor of Philosophy: James H. Eguchi Christopher I. Odezulu Lindsay Prothro Cemile Nur Schuba Chengzu Wang Tuo Zhang

Award Recipients: Department Awards: Alison Henning Teaching Award ................................................... Alana G. Semple

The Leroy Caleb Gibbon Award ................................................... James H. Eguchi

Douglas & Martha Lou Broussard Fellowship ........................................... Joyeeta Bhattacharya

The Torkild Rieber Award in Geology .................................................Jared E. Nirenberg ............................................. Katherine L. Begland ............................................Damanveer S. Grewal ................................................................Tuo Zang

Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award ............................................... Jennifer E. Kroeger Outstanding Graduate Student Award ..................................................... Lindsay Prothro Department of Earth Science Service Award ...............................................Brandee N. Carlson ........................................................Trevor L. Cole ........................................................Sriparna Saha The Sam Worden Endowed Memorial Award in Geophysics ............................................... Cemile Nur Schuba ......................................................Chengzu Wang The Eugen Merten Memorial Prize in Geology and Geophysics ....................................................... Naod Y. Araya .................................................... Meagan N. Hale

10 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Lodieska Stockbridge Vaughn Fellowship for 201718 ............................................Damanveer S. Grewal

External Awards: AAPG Grants-in-Aid Program: David Worthington Named Grant ....... Eric Barefoot David Worthington Named GrantBrandee N. Carlson David Worthington Named Grant ... Chengliang Wu GSA Grad Student Research Grant ...................................................... Chengliang Wu AGU 2018 Outstanding Student Presentation, Geomagnetism, Paleomagnetism & Electromagnetism ............................................. Daniel T. Woodworth

AWARDS

WIESS SCHOOL OF NATURAL SCIENCES

2018 SCIENTIFIC IMAGE CONTEST: FIRST PLACE Since 2015, the Wiess School of Natural Sciences has been hosting a Scientific Image Contest to highlight the artistry that is part of the science conducted at Rice. All types of imagery are accepted, from the macro to micro world, graphical and mathematical illustrations and, in the case of Alana Semple’s prize winning image, visually compelling data science results.

Photo by Jeff Fitlow

The images will be highlighted in the School of Natural Sciences annual magazine Enquiry. An article about her paradigm shifting research will be highlighted in the next issue of Outcroppings.

Alana Semple is a graduate student working with Professor Adrian Lenardic on modeling the dynamics of the asthenosphere and its role in plate tectonics.

The award winning image above shows a unique perspective of the inside of a model planet, looking obliquely down on a hot upwelling plume (red bottle shape in the center). The arrows show flow direction, with arrowhead size relative to speed (large=fast). On Earth’s surface, the large arrows suggest where new crust is created. Warm upper mantle material (orange colored arrows) and cold crust (dark blue arrows) move away from the plume, while the lower mantle (shorter arrows moving toward the plume) moves toward the upwelling and up, feeding it material. This model image result shows that Earth’s asthenosphere can flow due to pressure differences and can even drive movement of the Earth’s top layer, the crust we stand on.

(Caption modified from the Wiess School of Natural Sciences. Award description provided by Alana Semple)

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 11

IN MEMORIUM

DEPARTMENT NEWS Albert Bally Harry Carothers Wiess Professor of Geology 2000

I

t is with great sadness that we must report that our beloved Bert Bally passed away in August. Bert joined Rice in 1981 as chairman of what was then the Department of Geology and Geophysics. He was appointed the Harry Carothers Wiess Professor of Geology, a position he held until he retired.

Born in The Hague, Netherlands, he spent his early years in Indonesia, Italy and Switzerland. He began as a paleontologist at the University of Zurich and mapped in the Central Apennines for his Ph.D.

Prior to his tenure at Rice, he worked for Shell Oil where he rose through the ranks to become chief geologist. He would spend many summers mapping the Canadian Rocky Mountains and foothills of Alberta. Because of this, Bert recognized the importance of combining seismic reflection records with geologic maps to reconstruct the history of mountains and basins. One of his greatest and longest lasting contributions is his two three-volume sets of seismic atlases (1983) that popularized the use of industrial reflection techniques for scientific purposes. Until his death, he was considered the world’s leading expert in using seismic records to interpret regional geology, particularly in fold and thrust belts.

Bert had an amazing ability to synthesize regional geologic and geophysical data into a continental-scale framework. He made enduring contributions to the structure and orogenic evolution of the North American Cordillera by demonstrating how regional seismic data could be used to understand fold belts. This included outlining many of the principles for making balanced cross sections, and showing that the fold belts are underlain large decollements, and revealing the intimate relationship between foredeep subsidence with tectonic activity in the fold belt.

In 1990, along with two other Rice structural geologists, John Oldow and the late Hans Ave Lallemant, Bert recognized that there was a severe deep lithosphere mass balance problem in Cordilleran type orogens and was one of the first to suggest the importance of large-scale delamination before it became popularized in the early 2000s.

With T. Cook he published the Stratigraphic Atlas for North and Central America (1975), complete with more than 250 maps showing the entire Phanerozoic stratigraphy of North America.

As a counselor with the Geological Society of America, it was Bert who proposed the Decade of North American Geology (DNAG) project, a large multivolume encyclopedia on the geology of North America. To this day, the DNAG volumes represent the most comprehensive geologic study of a continent ever done.

More impressive than his scholastic achievements were the life-changing impacts he had on his students and anyone who had the fortune of interacting with him. His former students remember him as not just a scientific mentor but a mentor in life. His curiosity was never satiated. It was so contagious that when anyone was around him, everything seemed interesting. He was an encyclopedia of geology, having seen and read so much during his long and productive life. Faculty and students, whenever they wanted to explore a new area (of research or geography), did well to pick Bert’s brain. Going on a ride with Bert, however, meant that sometimes discussions would digress into stories of his life, such as being forced to watch Mussolini march by when he was a boy, or visiting Tibet as one of the first western geologists to enter China. Then it would turn back to some of his favorite unsolved science problems, one of them being the unconformity.

In recognition of his contributions, Bert received many honors, including the William Smith medal (Geological Society of London), the Gustav Steinmann Medal (Geologische Vereinigung), the Sidney Powers Medal from the AAPG, the OTC Career Contribution Award for Structural Geology and many others.

After retirement, Bert continued at full speed ahead. He engaged with the department, showing students how to look at geologic maps. He gave generously, among many things recently helping us secure a Neoproterozoic mylonitized diamictite slab that now graces an entire wall in the foyer of our department. At the time of his death he was in the final stages of preparing and converting his global geologic maps, with accompanying text, for digital publication with the American Association of Petroleum Geologists. Bert never stopped.

Cin-Ty Lee, 2019

12 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

IN MEMORIUM SELECT RECOLLECTIONS FROM BALLY ALUMNI AND COLLEAGUES I met Dr. Bally in 1982 during my first year of graduate school at Rice University. I could have no idea of the impact of that first step into his office on my life. We were teacher and student, employer and employee, mentor and mentee and most of all, friends. I was puzzled as to why he would agree to be my advisor even though I spoke limited English and could not even identify what research I wanted to do. He said people come to school to learn and to study and he would not expect anyone to know everything or anything at all. He did not believe in an education system that is full of tests and exams. He thought that school should make it easy and not hard for students to learn. As a result, we Bally students sometimes got away with few rules and regulations and were seen by other students with envy that we were fortunate beneficiaries of the Bert Bally University. I once asked Dr. Bally “Will you really do anything for the students?” He smiled and said “No, I will not bail anyone out of jail because they should know better not to be there at the first place.” Fortunately I don’t think anyone has crossed that line yet.

Students and visitors came to see him from all around the world. There were people from Italy, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, France, Germany, Switzerland, China, India, Hungary, Taiwan, Argentina, Nigeria, just to name a few. He always welcomed everyone with the same enthusiasm regardless of their nationalities, religions, finances and abilities to learn. That large office at the corner on the first floor in the geology department, we called it the Barrio, was where we would gather. It was a common scene with Dr. Bally sitting next to that huge table in the center of the room with seismic sections laying out in the front and students huddling around. There were discussions and arguments sometimes in multiple languages; there was shouting and laughter; there were fingers pointing from one end of the section to another and color pencils flying across the table. At 5:45 in the afternoon, we would stop and watch Dr. Bally dashing out of the office, followed by his big sky blue sedan spinning out of the parking lot. We all knew that there was a 6pm dinner rule at the Bally’s household that cannot be violated. Of course he would return after dinner and worked until late night. We often ended the night with a gelato at Dolce Freddo in the village.

When Dr. Bally decided to retire he told me that it’s time for me to get a real job. It is true that I had enjoyed working with him and that I never thought of it as a job.

When I was worried about starting a career in industry, he said “use your common sense and you will do great”. When I was having difficulty in a personal relationship, he said “be in the driver’s seat’. This advice helped me overcome many obstacles and struggles over the years.

PHOTO: ANDRÉ DROXLER

Dr. Bally always encouraged us to get out and to enjoy life in America. He took a group of visitors to the Houston Rodeo, he invited us to his beach house at Bolivar to relax and to his house to watch a Democratic convention on TV. He said US politics is an interesting phenomenon that any foreigner should not miss the opportunity to watch. He would take a student for a walk in the zoo during a difficult time and he encouraged anyone to take time off for family. He was never shy of giving his opinions but he always would listen to yours as well. We were always amazed by his knowledge and curiosity of not only geology but of history, culture and much more. I remembered one time, a student from Saudi Arabia, ran back to our shared office full of excitement and with a handful of books. He said “I was so embarrassed! Dr. Bally knows more about my country’s history than I do. He loaned me all these books to read.”

Rice graduate students Heath Hopson and Pankaj Khanna with Bert Bally.

2016

Dr. Bally was always there for me and for anyone that came seeking help. It is hard to image a life without him around and I will miss him dearly. Thank you, Dr. Bally, I will do my best to use my common sense and stay in the driver’s seat.

C.J. Liu If I can tell a story….. I experienced Dr. Bally when I was a Senior taking his graduate seminar with three other people in 1986. My favorite memory, and it definitely left an indelible and important impression on me, was when we were reviewing one of our “Crayola Projects” with him. From what I remember, this one had something that looked like a reef build-up on seismic and it appeared to be breached. Dr. Bally looked at the four of us (and with just four of us there was nowhere to run or hide) and asked whether we would drill this prospect based on what we knew. He tricked us a bit though, and told us how much the well would cost and the risks associated with it. Considering I was living on roughly $300 a month then, the millions it was going to take seemed astronomical – and not just to me, but to everybody. He stared us down waiting a response and none was proffered at which point he stood up and slammed his fist on the table and said (with emphasis) “of course you would!!! You have no other way of knowing what is there!!!!” – Essentially, how else will you discover oil?!!! What a memory!

I am so thankful for that experience with Dr. Bally. I experience a world I could not have otherwise and learned a lot on these Crayola journeys that helped me in my graduate studies and in my career.

Many thanks and rest in peace, Lesley Evans

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 13

Dr. Bally is beyond a GeoLegend. He was not only my advisor and professor, but my inspirational mentor who believed in me, encouraged me, and bestowed priceless time, support, knowledge, history, and laughter. Between 2001-2003, Dr. Bally was there for me through excitements and tears, through all ups and downs, as a friend and even the ‘grandfather’ I never had. He single-handedly substantially impacted my academic success, career, and development into who I ‘am’ today.

He pushed me way beyond my comfort zone, fed my passion for geology, taught me to believe and value myself, to think outside the box, to have faith in myself and in the universe, and so much more. I particularly enjoyed his war stories and our conversations on modern day civilization. To quote, upon completion of my Master of Science thesis 12/2003 at Rice University, “Lanette, you made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear and that is one of your greatest strengths.” Till this day, I often remember his words, quoting him even, to push through the continuous hurdles life throws, and add to the collection of my sows’ ears.

On my ‘hopeless’ days during grad school (I look back and laugh now, as he predicted I would), he introduced me to the Rothko Chapel and to the Menil Collection, which I still visit for peace, tranquility, and remembrance of him and the thought that I will get through “this or that,” stronger and wiser.

Before I graduated, I had a handful of job offers. According to Dr. Bally, it was a “no brainer.” “Finish your masters and go work for Shell! Come back later in life with all that practical experience to be the best teacher you can be. You will never see so much data as you will in the oil & gas business. Exposure to data is key!” No doubt, “Oh Captain! My Captain!” I followed his orders and never regretted it.

Bert Bally at the Maiella massif in the Central Apennines, Italy 1946

Dr. Bally you are more than a GeoLegend: you’re an amazing man with a fascinating life history who has impacted the lives of so many at so many fronts and levels. I am eternally grateful, and you will always be remembered.

Rest in Peace.

Lanette Marcha MS, ‘03, Rice University

Thanks to all of you on these pages for your recollections of Bert.

As a scientist, teacher, and explorer of new frontiers he was unique in the breadth of his contributions. He was also generous and candid, which made him a great mentor. I benefited from his advice as a grad student at Rice and MIT. Then my passion was tectonics, and Bert advised me to go to work for industry because “that’s where the data is”. I joined Shell’s Global Geology organization that Bert helped establish and have never regretted that decision during the subsequent 38 years in industry. So thank you Bert, you were right (of course). Thanks too for setting high expectations, for yourself and those of us you worked with. We became better for it.

With more than 20 posts on our website about the passing of Bert Bally, it was difficult to decide what to put in print. All of them were wonderfully detailed, heartfelt and conveyed the depth of the impact Bert had on their lives and careers.

David Lawrence sums it up nicely in one sentence: “Beautiful history of the remarkable life of a groundbreaking, prolific, brilliant geologist and outstanding mentor to so many.”

Scott Cameron

All of them can be read here:

https://earthscience.rice.edu/2019/08/01/the-passing-of-albert-bally/

14 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Caro Maestro, It seems to me that, with your passing, Geology has lost some of its poetry: The stories, the fun to tell them; the maps, the space to keep them; the books, the time to read them; the field campaigns, the will to organize them.

I feel I hear you…

“Fly me over the rocky mountains. I need to know the regional context” “Don’t specialize too much, be a generalist” “Remember the importance of common sense” “Communicate with your colleague directly, not in a meeting” “Avoid bamboozling managers by too much information, simplify the message” “We need information, no hypotheses” “Drilling a dry hole is the most important experience you can have, it is important to be wrong” “Learn to forgive” “Enjoy people and respect people” “La vita del geologo e’ una vita santa: si mangia, beve e canta!”

Crossection from the 1966 publication “Structure, Seismic Data and Orogenic evolution of the Southern Canadian Rocky Mountains” A.W. Bally, P.L. Gordy, G.A. Stewart

Daniel Minisini

Many of us lost a dear friend and colleague with Bert’s passing.

He was a generous man and esteemed scientist.

I am one of the few remaining faculty who was here when Bert took over as Department Head. At that time the department had lost some of its most prominent faculty and was struggling to get back on track. Bert wasted no time in negotiating with the administration for new faculty positions and funding that allowed us to avoid what could have been a downward spiral. He did so by uniting every member of the department and convincing us that our department was destined to be one of the best in the country.

I have many fond memories of Bert and our time together. One of my most vivid memories is the time we drove to the Woodlands together for a meeting at the Houston Area Research Center. On our trip to the Woodlands I could not help but notice a loud bumping sound. Bert insisted on continuing to the Woodlands because we were running late. When we arrived I was amazed to observe a large knot on the tire easily half a football in size. When the meeting ended I offered to replace the tire only to discover that there was no spare or jack. Bert insisted that we drive back to Houston by avoiding the interstate. I did not know that you could drive from the Woodlands to Houston mostly on back roads, but we managed to make it back to Rice after what was a long but enjoyable trip of storytelling and reassurances from Bert that we would be fine. Being Bert, I never doubted. I wonder if he ever got a spare or jack after that incident.

The man simply did not have the time for mundane things like changing tires.

Our department has many new faculty and students who never had the opportunity to know Bert well.

He was a kind and gentle giant within our field. His legacy will live on through his work and his students.

Rest in peace Bert, we will miss you.

Rice University Geology & Geophysics faculty (seated L to R): John Valley, Jean-Claude DeBremaeker, Hans Avé Lallemant, John A. S. Adams, John Anderson, Robert Dunbar and Albert Bally (Chair of Department) (standing L to R): William Leeman, Richard Casey, Donald Baker, John Oldow and H. C. Clark.

1983

John Anderson Emeritus Maurice Ewing Professor of Oceanography

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 15

201

INDUSTRY-RICE EARTH SCIENCE SYMPOSIA

IR In March, 2019, EEPS and the Baker Institute’s Center for Energy Studies ran the 6th annual industry-academia

workshop (IRESS) on Minerals and Energy. The goal of this meeting was to bring experts in energy, mineral resources and engineering to discuss the energy transition.

The workshop began with an introduction on the geopolitics and economics of strategic mineral resources by Ken

2019 IRESS MINERALS AND ENERGY: SCIENCE, ECONOMICS AND POLICY The sixth annual workshop brought together a

diverse set of experts from academia and industry to follow carbon from geology to biology, to the energy that sustains the people of our planet. Four themes were presented for the two day event: 1) whole Earth carbon cycling; 2) unconventional science; 3) energy, economics and environment; 4) unconventional technologies.

Medlock and Michelle Foss of the Baker Institute. This was

followed by VPs Dirk Smit from Shell, Shandell Szabo of Anadarko, and Cindy Yeilding of BP America. Dirk talked

about Shell’s goal of diversifying its energy portfolio as well as efforts to better understand the environmental impacts of the hydrocarbon industry. Shandell, in a talk entitled

“Augmented Intelligence”, discussed the importance of

rapid big data analysis in unconventionals. Cindy talked about BP’s projections of energy use in the next decade.

We also had Graham Lederer from the U.S. Geological

Survey give a fascinating overview of strategic minerals and the challenges ahead. Along with talks by Kevin Biddle and

Cin-Ty Lee, it was clear that many of the elements necessary to support a transition to a renewable energy platform,

such as Li and Co, are either in short supply or come with their own environmental and sociopolitical challenges. We

were fortunate to hear about new Li prospects in the form of byproducts of geothermal projects in the Imperial Valley (Jason Czapla).

SPONSORED BY

Lisa Biswal from Rice’s Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department gave a fascinating talk on the current state of Li-Co battery research. Policy and strategy

sessions were followed with a series of talks on the cycling

of metals and the origin of various mineral deposits. We learned about the geology of cobalt, lithium, and rare earth elements. Robert Hazen and Shaunna Morrison from the Carnegie Institute of Washington discussed how artificial

intelligence could be used to expedite the exploration

of mineral deposits. Francis Albarede, a Wiess Visiting Professor in EEPS, talked about how his work on metal

isotope geochemistry of ancient coins helped work out the ancient trade routes between Europe, Latin America and Asia.

16 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

19

RESS Kirsten Siebach, former IRESS speaker and now an EEPS assistant professor, gave the dinner keynote on how the geology of Mars can be used to better understand our own planet.

In the Baker Institute for Public Policy, meeting attendees were given the opportunity to view displays of fine minerals from the Arkenstone collection, owned by former Rice alumn Rob Lavinsky (irocks.com).

Rob Lavinsky donated the two state of the art display cases as part of building a future museum in the Keith-Wiess Geological Laboratories called the Museum of the Earth.

PHOTOS: CIN-TY LEE

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 17

The climate scientist who breaks climate models

By Sriparna Saha

A

t a time of burgeoning interest in understanding future climate change through research using climate modeling, climate scientist Sylvia Dee has taken a different approach: she tries to break the climate models.

By stretching climate models to their limit, her research helps us gain better understanding of the accuracy of existing climate predictions.

Sylvia’s research uses general circulation models (GCMs) and proxy system models (PSMs) to understand and explore dynamics of the tropical climate system in the past, present and future.

“I compare paleoclimate data sets with climate model simulations to evaluate how well these models replicate different climate conditions. What I do is basically try to ‘break’ these climate models to find what is lacking in their underlying physics.” She says. “For example, if we understand how clouds behaved in past climates warmer than the present day, we may be able to use this information to improve our model physics, resulting in better predictions of future climates.”

Sylvia is the developer of a climate model known as SPEEDY-IER which stands for Simplified Parameterizations, primitivE-Equation DYnamics with Isotope-Enabled Reconstructions, and a public platform called PRYSM i.e. proxy system modeling development. The climate model, SPEEDY-IER, allows for multi-centennial simulations of climate and allows comparison of model output to paleoclimate data such as ice cores, corals and tree-rings. The model simulates the hydrological cycle and water isotope ratios in the atmosphere.

Sylvia believes that in climate modeling, working with experts from different areas is crucial. She describes her work’s progression as a result of the buddy system, where there is simultaneous collaboration between climate modelers, paleoclimate data generators and anthropologists studying ancient civilizations to truly understand how climate varied over different periods of Earth’s past.

Interestingly, it was only in the last year of her undergraduate education that she had any exposure to Earth science or geology; she took a course in atmospher-

18 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

ic and ocean dynamics with George Philander, who specializes in the El Niño-Southern Oscillation. “I had no exposure to Geology in my K-12 education, and this one course in college really changed my perspective and got me interested in climate science.”

Sylvia is also passionate about science communication.

“Teaching has always appealed to me”, she says. “As a climate scientist, we often have to effectively communicate science to policy makers, the public or our students and colleagues.” As such, Sylvia has been extensively involved in science outreach and communication. “Not only is outreach with children or adults important to explain complex science, but this practice helps one to make better academic presentations.” For Sylvia, outreach is a source of joy. On Earth Day, she organized an outreach program with the Girls Scouts of St Jacinto in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences at Rice University, where 35 middle school girls and their troop leaders came to campus.

Some of the outreach activities involved the science of climate change; for example, there was a game of tag where some students had to act as carbon dioxide and methane molecules and try to stop heat from escaping the atmosphere. Other activities for the middle-schoolers involved orienting themselves using GPS data and scavenger hunt for different plants.

“Everyone had fun doing these activities and they all left with a better understanding of what it means to be an Earth Scientist.”

Sylvia’s teaching interests span beyond public outreach about climate science. “During graduate school, I taught a Spin class at the gym and it was an amazing experience,” she says. She described how workout classes and outdoor activities have helped her throughout her career to try and maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Talking about her other interests, she says that music is one of her greatest passions and that she was a member of an acapella group and chamber choir during both undergrad and graduate school.

Sylvia completed her undergraduate degree in Civil and Environmental Engineering with certificates in Geological Engineering and Environmental Sciences at Princeton University, and her Ph.D. at the University of

PROFILES

“A general circulation model (GCM) is a type of climate model that is used for understanding the climate and forecasting climate change.

Using mathematical models of the general circulation patterns of the atmosphere or oceans, it forms the basis of computer programs that can simulate the Earth’s atmosphere or oceans. Atmospheric and oceanic circulation models are the key components of GCMs, along with ice and land-surface components.

However, most GCMs cannot perform simulations that are comparable in scale to proxy climate archives (such as tree rings).

Proxy system model (PSMs) is a climate reconstruction technique that enables mapping the current climate state to proxy climate observations from the past. PSMs are thus useful tools that describe how geological, biological or chemical archives are imprinted with environmental signals allowing better understanding of past climate and interpretation of past climate data”

Southern California. Talking about her graduate school experience, she says, “I had the opportunity [to] travel a lot and attend different short courses which were fantastic experiences. However, it was still a long haul, as I was trying to develop and introduce new physics into a climate model. It was a tedious experience, but it was a great lesson in getting the science right” she says.

Sylvia has now completed her first year in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Science at Rice as an Assistant Professor. She has one Ph.D. student and one postdoctoral researcher, both of whom specialize in different aspects of climate science.  Read more: Lee, C.-T. & Dee, S. (2019). Does volcanism cause warming or cooling? Geology 47, 687-688.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 19

Meet Meagan McKellar

By Linda Welzenbach

In the Fall of 2018, EEPS added a new Academic Program Coordinator: Meagan McKellar.

A native Texan hailing from College Station, Meagan brings a host of unique skills and experiences to our department. Self-styled world traveler and gourmet, but with a degree in English creative writing.

She has been traveling the world since age 12, and having been to Paris four times, has developed an approach to travel that allows complete immersion in the gastronomy of wherever she and her husband end up. “Travel makes me feel human and connected to the world around me.”

Waxing fondly about Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown, “I really just want to eat my way around the world,” says McKellar.

Despite her English degree, her interest in food and human behavior transitioned into the service industry. Meagan has worked at some of the finest food “concepts” in Houston, such as Public Services Wine & Whiskey and Oxheart (now Theodore Rex). After getting married, her organizational and people skills led to her to the events department at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 20 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

PROFILES

and eventually back to supporting those venues by establishing her own business in events management.

“The service business is an exciting one, but can often be an uncertain one,” she concluded.

So when the position at Rice opened, Meagan saw an opportunity to explore a new career.

Meagan and her dog Charlie in front of Duncan Hall.

“Everything has led to this next point, which is how I’m here. I’m looking forward to applying my organizational and editorial skills in this position. I also have the opportunity here to expand my skill set, which I think is great.”

EEPS is already benefiting from Meagan’s breadth of experience, helping with website updates, social media and the Outcroppings magazine- from content editing to digital publication.

Meagan and her husband Gilbert “Gibby” Sawtelle, an attorney in the Harris County District Attorney’s office, make time each year to travel the world. While they had actually met in Spain when they were 13, they didn’t meet again for another 11 years. When traveling, Gibby and Meagan rent places that allow them to cook meals, shop at local markets and dine on private rooftop patios.

Not long ago, they spent an anniversary trip in Marfa in west Texas and have decided they will retire there someday. But not before they go through their travel bucket list, “Vietnam is high on the list.” 

Pa inting of Meaga n

by Gilber t Sawtelle 2 0 18 “Gibby calls me “H o lly wo o d ” when I wear sungla s s e s . H e ca lls me his muse; this is his t hird painting of me. We ’d ju s t be e n to the D ali museu m in S p a in a nd f or Chr istmas I got h im Dali’s book “50 Se cret s o f M a g ic C raftsmanship”, which I t hink heavily inf luence d t h e s u r rea lis t di rection of the p a int ing, i ncluding the magicia n ca s t in g PHOTO: L. WELZENBACH

dre ams on top of t h e s u ng la s s es .

T he ref lection is m ea n t t o be Wes t Texas, kind of a “d re a m in g o f/ l ooking towards t he fu t u re” kind of thing.”

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 21

“I can’t believe I’m actually graduating!”

Jennifer exclaims the Monday following her exit through the Sally Port. We met in my office so that I could say farewell to one of my most dedicated Outcroppings writers. It was also a last-ditch fact-finding mission.

I sat in on her Senior Honors Thesis presentation (the only one for EEPS 2019 graduating class) just a week prior to graduation and realized that she was clearly someone going places. Undergraduate majors are few in number compared to graduate students, and if they don’t do research in the department, I don’t cross paths with them all that often. So rather than let her quietly depart from our ranks, I asked if she would be willing to chat with me about being the subject of an article.

Who is Jennifer Kroeger?

Science Policy Rising Star:

Jennifer Kroeger By Linda Welzenbach

Her degree is in Environmental Earth Science, but at the conclusion of our conversation I have decided her real degree is in world improvement. Jennifer graduated with distinction in research along with a passel of other university honors. Among her awards are EEPS Outstanding Undergraduate, 2019 Rice Outstanding Senior award, Excellence in Academic Advising award (for her multi-year commitment to guide and improve the Peer Academic Advising program), plus multiple years on the Presidents Honor Roll.

Like many of EEPS undergraduate majors, she started as another major: Engineering. On the first day of her introductory engineering class she thought ‘I can’t be here’. Making use of the freedom Rice students have to take a variety of courses during their first two years, she took the two classes that would shape her future. An introduction to geology for majors and an environmental humanities class. From the latter class she discovered an interest in climate literacy. “I was fascinated with how we talk about climate, and people’s perspective on how they think about human systems impact on climate,” she enthused.

At the same time, she wants to help her fellow students. She takes on the role of Peer Academic Advisor (PAA).

“I applied and got the position at Lovett during my sophomore year. I really liked working with that kind of material and applied to be the student director, working in that office since 2016. I think it’s a very important part of the Rice experience; understanding your goals and how to fit it with your schedule...and what other involvements you have at Rice. I like helping people one on one.”

JACKIE RICHARDS

Jennifer Kroeger stands in front of the Gliman tunnels at Guadalupe Box (see front cover) New Mexico, 2017.

22 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Once in that role, she sees the bigger picture and applies to be the Student Director. “I thought the Student Director role was a way to change how advising materials go out campus-wide, make training PAA’s better so that they have more information to be helpful. It was a good opportunity to start to change the way things work.”

PROFILES Jennifer Kroeger stands in front of the north portico of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue as part of the STPI fellows tour of the Old Executive Office Building and White House in Washington D.C. July, 2019.

Fast forward two years. Jennifer is presenting her thesis titled “Water Holding Capacity, Alteration, and Potential Water Cost Savings from Soil Biochar Amendment” at the 2018 Fall American Geophysical Union meeting in Washington DC. Topically relevant for environmental policy, and a whose-who advisor in Kenneth B. Medlock III, Ph.D. (Senior Director, Center for Energy Studies at the Baker Institute), Jennifer attracts the attention of a former Science and Technology Policy Institute Fellow and interdisciplinary science Ph.D. candidate at Stanford Univesrity. Conversations over the course of the meeting hook Jennifer on the idea of a detour outside of academia. Coming from a long line of educators, (her father is a professor of geosciences at Rice’s sister school, Trinity University; her mother is a special education teacher in San Antonio, TX) there’s a high expectation for her to continue in academia. Yet what excites her is the opportunity to make a positive impact on society. “I get to work with really, really smart people on projects that are congressionally requested and have real-life use in decision-making for the country. It’s an opportunity to do research and learn in an environment that also enables me to have a tangible impact.”

“I think future Rice graduates would be interested in this kind of work.”

Becoming a fellow is a non-trivial process. It may in fact be harder than applying for graduate school, which she says is still her ultimate goal.

In addition to supplying the typical trifecta of application materials (transcripts, letter and past examples of written communication) candidates must write a statement of purpose explaining why they want to work in the area of science and technology policy and how their experience makes them a good candidate. The interview itself requires travel to Washington D.C. to meet with the selection committee and participate on a group project designed to help STPI gauge a candidate’s ability to communicate and work in a team setting.

Jennifer credits her selection in part from the advantages of having an interdisciplinary degree and her honors research experience. She recently emphasized the importance of undergraduate research to Rice President David Leebron as one of the top 16 of 100 ideas for improving the curriculum at Rice. She is quoted in the Rice Thresher, saying “This would mean that seniors who leave here would leave with something really tangible to show to future employers.”

In keeping with that ideal, Jennifer and her EEPS advisor, professor Carrie Masiello, intend to publish her honors research. 

BILL BRYKCZYNSKI

“Half of our interview was also getting in a group, researching a topic for an hour, and then giving a presentation about it and fielding questions from people in the STPI office. It was meant to be a practice of working in groups, [demonstrating] presentation skills, and how to answer questions under stress that you may not necessarily know the full answers to. Some of the questions I remember from interview day were things like: ‘In your opinion, what are some of the most urgent questions and topics in science policy? How do you respond to working on projects that are outside your interests/comfort zones?’”

Founded in 1990, The Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI) is a federally funded research and development center. STPI Fellows work with scientists and policy makers to provide objective research and analysis products on science and technology issues to support of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) and other science-performing Federal agencies.

STPI is administered by the Institute for Defense Analyses (non-profit). Fellows (only eight for 2019) serve STPI for two years, Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 23

Rice University Archives

Keith

G

Geological Laboratories

Part I-The Analytical Labs All photos (unless otherwise credited) by Linda Welzenbach 24 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Wiess

G

In 1952, Olga Keith-Wiess provided an endowment to establish the Harry Carothers Wiess Chair of Geology. Dr. Carey Croneis was appointed to the Wiess Chair in 1953 and taught the first course in geology in the spring of 1954. The laboratories, also funded by Mrs. Wiess and her family, were completed in 1958.

50 years ago, twelve faculty conducted research in a wide range of disciplines within geology, geochemistry and geophysics, including temporally relevant studies such as radioactivity and the origin and age of the Moon.

Today’s nineteen faculty maintain that strong heritage but also work in interdisciplinary research that reflects current areas of interest, from the biogeochemistry of our local prairie soils to extraterrestrial petrology using remotely operated drones that are slated to explore our nearest planetary neighbors.

Many of our faculty form research collaborations, taking advantage of each others discipline-specific interests, using the breadth of EEPS analytical instrumentation to answer some of the biggest questions in geoscience today (see Clever Planets on p.68).

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 25

From Microscopy...

The invention of the microscope in the 1590’s heralded a new era of exploring the nature of materials smaller than a human hair.

In 1815, geologist and physicist William Nicols used ‘Iceland Spar’ calcite to make the “Nicol” prism, facilitating the study of light refraction and polarization. Scientists could finally see materials at the molecular scale.

Nicols also developed a method of preparing extremely thin slices of rocks and minerals, making it possible to view geologic samples with transmitted rather than reflected light.

Scientists could observe and interpret a rock or mineral’s internal structures for the first time.

The discovery of X-rays in 1895 changed the way we could see the interior of matter. We could now look to utilizing energies outside the boundaries of visible light to see and characterize materials.

In 1938, Ernst Ruska realized that using electrons could enhance microscopic resolution. Scientists would not only be able to see the individual atoms and molecules that construct geologic materials, but strive for a more in-depth understanding of the nature of the bonds between them, and their physicochemical response to the environment around them.

26 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

...to Microanalysis In the last 50 years, many new analytical techniques have been developed that allow us to interrogate a broader range of elements at much lower concentrations. Today, the majority of new geochemical data on rocks, soil and water is acquired for trace elements at the level of parts per million to billion, often from single nano-scale mineral grains.

The department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences laboratories has always been at frontier level of analytical excellence. Over the years, our faculty have come together to establish cutting edge computational and analytical facilities. Our consortium of instruments can characterize the elemental and isotopic composition of solar system, terrestrial and environmental materials, from the nanoscale to the centimeter scale, from solids to liquids to gases. These facilities include four customized, state of the art mass spectrometers, a field emission electron probe micro-analyzer and more.

In the following pages you will take a tour of our analytical experimental laboratories, starting with the analytical workhorse of geoscience and ending with our unique facilities for simulating the extreme conditions of the Earth’s deep interior.

This background image shows a window into the sample chamber of Rice’s newest state-of-theart instrument acquisition- a Time of flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer (ToF-SIMS).

Page 41 has the full story.

A Liquid Metal Ion Gun (LMIG) points to the surface of a sample. The pulsed beam sputters secondary ions from the surface to identify the chemical composition of a very small area through a highly resolved mass spectrum.

Rice’s TOF-SIMS is the only U.S. universitybased instrument to offer an in-situ scanning probe microscope that allows researchers to correlate the surface properties of a sample with the resulting chemical composition.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 27

Electron Probe Microanalysis

The first electron microbe is attributed to the French physicist, Raymond Castaing. In 1948, Castaing built an instrument that could interrogate sample with an electron beam less than three microns in diameter. The ‘detector’ that captured resulting X-rays was a Geiger counter, but it could not distinguish between the characteristic X-rays of each element in a sample. So in 1950, Castaing placed a quartz crystal between the sample and the detector, permitting wavelength discrimination. He also attached an optical microscope to see where the beam interacted with the sample. The resulting instrument and methods were described in his 1951 Ph.D. thesis. Therein he laid the foundations of the theory and application of microprobe quantitative analysis and establishing the theoretical framework for the matrix corrections of absorption and fluorescence effects.

Raymond Castaing is, in fact, considered the father of microanalysis, participating in the invention of the Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer (SIMS) and Electron Energy-Loss Spectrometer (EELS).

Gelu Costin, Ph.D. manages the EPMA laboratory.

Costin points to a new detector that creates microto nano-scale element maps for samples such as those shown on the upper right page. The detector collects and sorts X-rays by their energy or wavelength. The Wavelength dispersive spectrometer (WDS) utilizes X-ray diffraction to sort X-rays by their specific wavelengths.

28 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

An electron microprobe analyzer (EMPA) is one of the primary analytical tools used to non-destructively determine the chemical composition of small volumes of solid materials. It works similarly to a scanning electron microscope: the sample is bombarded with an electron beam which emits X-rays at wavelengths characteristic to the elements being analyzed. This enables the abundances of elements present within small sample volumes (typically 10-30 cubic micrometers or less) to be determined. EEPS JEOL JXA8530F Hyperprobe was installed in September 2015 and achieves quantitative elemental analysis of materials at the sub-micron lengthscale. The Hyperprobe consists of a field emission gun (Schottcky Field Emission Source), an integrated energy dispersive detector five wavelength dispersive spectrometers, a secondary electron detector, and a backscattered electron detector for compositional and topographical imaging. The lab is also equipped with a JEE-420 vacuum evaporator for carbon coating of samples.

A

Our JEOL JXA 8530F Hyperprobe is a field emission Electron Probe MicroAnalyzer (EPMA) that provides precise quantitative chemical analysis of elements in very small volumes (<1 to 10 Îźm3 or more) of solid inorganic samples. All detectable elements (from Be to U) are quantified from a spot of <100 nm to 1Îźm diameter or larger.

Detection limits range from 10-100 ppm, depending on the element and the instruments settings. It includes rapid qualitative analysis in EDS or WDS mode, and phase identification and sample imaging at micro to nanometer scales using backscattered electron (BSE) and secondary electron (SE) signals.

B

C

These images show spinel and ulvospinel exsolution lamellae in a Ti-magnetite host from the Bushveld Igneous Complex in South Africa to demonstrate what makes the hyperprobe unique. It can acquire digital backscattered images. (A) shows spinel (black) and lightest gray is Ti-magnetite in compositional and topographic modes.

High resolution digital X-ray intensity (element distribution) maps (B shows Ti in magnetite, and C shows Al in spinel) can be acquired using stage or beam scanning mode.

The Electron Probe Microanalysis (EPMA) facility is open to users from all departments of Rice University, as well as to external academic visitors, non-profit organizations, government agencies and businesses.

earthscience.rice.edu/ epma-lab/ Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 29

Linda Welzenbach talks with Electron Microprobe manager Gelu Costin about his work on a material that has been cited

by Printed Electronics World as the “Most Significant Material Science News of 2018.”

Hematene opened Pandora’s box.

Scientists are currently obtaining 2D materials such as graphene and hematene by exfoliation (removing thin packages of atom layers) from synthetically-made pure crystals. These are subsequently doped with various impurities that induce or enhance various physical properties (superconductivity, magnetism, photocatalysis, capacitance and more) of interest. The best 2D materials which are easy to exfoliate are the ones with van der Waals bonding between atom packages. Hematene breaks the rules because it is a non-van der Waals material, meaning that the bonding between atoms is a 3D bonding, which makes the material more robust and mechanically resilient, but also allows its electric and magnetic properties to be manifested “closer to the surface” of the material.

This opens a whole new world for the use of natural materials, especially in the field of 2D materials magnetism.

How did we get here?

During a discussion with Chandra Sekhar Tiwary (a postdoctoral fellow from India working within Rice materials scientist Pulickel Ajayan’s group at Rice University), I argued that the process of obtaining synthetic pure crystals followed by doping is a hard, long, expensive and inefficient approach. I said that natural minerals have impurities in a natural form, so they are naturally doped, not with just one, but with several elements which can be useful in 2D materials and their applications. We both agreed that the same substance in 2D might have enhanced or reversed properties compared to the bulk-mineral. So I grabbed the hematite which I had carried with me from South Africa and gave it to my colleagues from the Material Science and Nanotechnology Department.

They were able to exfoliate it and measure various properties.

H E M A T E N E Hematene is a 2D material exfoliated from a natural ore of iron called hematite (Fe2O3). Gelu Costin and colleagues discovered this material from a specularite variety of hematite, a sample collected from the dumps of an iron ore mine in South Africa. The 2D crystals of hematene proved to represent a surprising material with interesting applications, especially for solar panels, but also many others. The research appeared in Nature Nanotechnology, garnering 12 citations within two months of publication. In some aspects, it is a more versatile material than “graphene”, the discovery of which was awarded the Nobel prize in physics in 2010.

30 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

RESEARCH BRIEF- EPMA

Hematene’s valuable properties.

It turns out that 2D crystals of hematene conduct electricity. They are ferromagnetic (magnetic attraction) unlike bulk hematite ore which is antiferromagnetic. It is also thermoelectric (it produces current from heating). Hematite absorbs sunlight from the ultraviolet to the yellow-orange region of the electromagnetic spectrum, but the electrical charges produced are very short-lived.

However, 2D hematene photocatalysis (the acceleration of a reaction from light) is more efficient because photons generate both negative and positive charges within a few atoms of the surface. By pairing the new material with titanium dioxide nanotube arrays (materials that provide an easy pathway for electrons to leave the hematene) it would allow more visible light to be absorbed.

Possible applications may include solar panels, satellite technology and aeronautics. Take an astronaut suit for example. What if the exterior suit material could produce electricity to power support systems when exposed to light, or perhaps produce heat from the electrical current? At this stage we cannot yet know all the possible applications.

There is a great future ahead for this material. The best part of it is that you don’t have to spend extraordinary time or money to synthesize a 200 micron to one mm size crystal, or build a specialty lab for doping the material. This material is abundant, comes directly from the earth and is already being mined. The economic advantages of hematene derived from natural ore carries a significant potential to create an economic boom.

But wait, there’s more...

Even though 2D materials are a side job for this geologist, future research in the field is truly fascinating. Two other papers on 2D materials from natural minerals are now published. One is on chromiteen (from chromite ore of the Bushveld Complex, South Africa) and the other is on ilmenene (from ilmenite crystals found in kimberlites, also South Africa). We are currently working on another eight minerals which were successfully exfoliated to 2D crystals, and some of them have unexpected properties. So stay tuned! 

The atomic illustration (right) shows the arrangement of iron (blue) and oxygen (white) atoms in hematene, a two-dimensional material that was exfoliated from hematite for the first time

by Rice University scientists and their international partners.

Illustration courtesy of Cristiano Woellner and Douglas Galvao/State University of Campinas, Brazil.

The transmission electron microscope image on the left (field of view ~ 1 micron) shows a single sheet of hematene.

Image courtesy of Shyam Sinha and Peter van Aken/Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Stuttgart, Germany.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 31

LASER ABLATION INDUCTIVELY COUPLED PLASMA MASS SPECTROMETER

FOURIER TRANSFORM INFRARED MICROSCOPE

The Thermo-Finnegan Element 2 single collector, magnetic sector with a 213 nm New Wave laser. Capabilities include measurement of major and trace elements in solution as well as in solids via laser ablation. Our setup allows for both rapid scanning across the periodic table as well as variable mass resolution capabilities (300, 3000, and 10,000). Detection limits in solution mode are in the sub-ppt range and in laser mode are in the 10s of ppb range depending on various operating conditions. In addition to standard major and trace element analyses, we are capable of measuring S concentrations by solution and by laser ablation. We have also developed methods for in situ U-Pb geochronology.

Lee Lab group (L to R): postdoctoral visitor Chen Chen, professor CinTy Lee, postdoctoral fellow Ming Tang, Ph.D. student Patrick Phelps, postdoctoral visitor Kang Chen, Ph.D. students Sydney Allen, Jackson Borchardt, Eytan Sharton-Bierig, Julin Zhang, postdoctoral visitor Jun Yong Li.

32 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

The Thermo-Nicolet FT-IR microscope is capable of transmitted and reflected absorbance down to spatial resolutions of 10 microns.

We primarily use this instrument to measure OH and CO bonds in various silicate minerals or glasses.

The Horiba XGT 7000 micro-XRF element mapper instrument with a Rhodium x-ray source measures energy of the re-emitted x-rays using energy dispersive spectrometry. This instrument consists of two monocapillary tubes capable of 50 micron and 400 micron spot sizes. We can operate under high vacuum and partial vacuum, allowing us to measure volatile-bearing samples as well fine sample powder mixtures. This instrument is semi-quantitative and is designed for rapid mapping of large samples (up to 10 x 10 cm) with minimal sample preparation.

MICRO-X-RAY FLOURESCENCE SPECTROMETER

Lee Lab

Professor Cin-Ty Lee and his group investigate how Earth has evolved with time; from the deepest parts of the Earth’s mantle to the continental crust and up through the atmosphere. They combine field mapping and sampling with state of the art analytical tools (mass spectrometry, x-ray spectrometry, electron probe microanalysis) and modeling to better understand continent formation and destruction, redox evolution of the Earth’s interior, the origin of various ore deposits, the petrological structure of volcanic margins and the origin of granites. Our current research explores the geochemical interactions between the deep Earth, ocean and atmosphere in order to better understand what controls long term climate evolution.

cintylee.org Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 33

The Stewart Lithia Mine: Elemental lithium is critical to the functionality of modern world technology.

It is the fundamental component of the rechargeable batteries that run our cell phones, laptops and electric vehicles. As technology becomes more ingrained in everyday life, the demand for lithium rises. With lithiumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s average abundance in the earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s crust at a mere 0.002 percent, there is a critical need to find deposits

PHOTO: PATRICK PHELPS

of significant concentration.

34 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

STUDENT RESEARCH-Geochemistry

A story of lithium and a pegmatite

Ph.D. candidate Patrick Phelps gives us a sneak peak at soon-to-be published research with professor Cin-Ty Lee on crystal growth rates in pegmatites.

By

Patrick Phelps

Most of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lithium is mined from brine lake deposits where the lithium is dissolved in low concentrations from volcanic ash. Many of these deposits are located in high altitude areas, such as Chile, from which extraction and processing takes significant time and resources. Luckily, there are certain types of magmatic processes within the earth that scavenge and concentrate lithium into much higher concentrations. The most important of these processes results in deposits called pegmatites.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 35

T

PHOTO: PATRICK PHELPS

ucked away among the bluffs and rolling hills of Southern California is a nondescript dirt road that leads to a mine.

Fenced off from the public, owner Blue Sheppard leads us up to a low ridge that ends near an unassuming outcrop and a small opening in the hillside. At first glance, the outcrop, which is covered in orange soil and partially broken up boulders, does not appear particularly interesting. Upon closer inspection, colors not normally seen in a rock start to emerge: glittering lavender shot with shards of deep brilliant bubblegum pink crystals. We are seeing the surface expression of the Stewart pegmatite, and the opening in the hillside is the entrance to the Stewart Lithia mine. The Stewart Lithia mine is located in an area known as the Pala Mining District, which is widely known for some of the largest museum quality lithium-bearing minerals in the world.

Boulders of lepidolite outside the mine in front of

Discovered by gold miners during the early 1850s, the Stewart Lithia mine gained prominence—not because of precious metals, but from its abundant gem-quality lithium-bearing minerals. At that time, lithium was in high demand for its use as an industrial lubricant. Mining was focused on the extraction of lithiumbearing minerals such as spodumene (a lithium pyroxene), lepidolite (a lithium mica) and petalite (a lithium phyllosilicate).

The miners, most of whom came from China, often found gemquality pink and green minerals within the lavender colored lepidolite. Named rubellite and elbaite for the coloration that results from trace elemental impurities, they are the gem varieties of the mineral tourmaline. Because the mine was solely interested in selling the dominant lithium-bearing minerals, the miners would send the tourmaline gems back to China as gifts to their empress.

Example of graphic granite from the Stewart Lithia mine. The pinkish colored mineral is feldspar with “graphic” quartz intergrowths.

36 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Black tourmaline (schorl) going to pink tourmaline (rubellite) within quartz.

PHOTO: PATRICK PHELPS

exposed pegmatite

Pegmatite comes from a Greek word meaning “to bind together,” which refers to a mineral intergrowth typically seen in granite-type pegmatites called “graphic” granite. The “graphic” refers to the intermingling of feldspar (pink) and quartz (gray) in the rock with a texture reminiscent of a long forgotten script. More importantly, the term pegmatite describes a striking feature common to all compositional types—large crystals.

Pegmatites are veins of igneous rock injected in fractures along the outer edges (and beyond) of a magmatic igneous intrusion during its final stages of cooling. Pegmatites are not uncommon, but those filled with lithium-rich minerals are. Understanding how these types of veins form and how they concentrate so much lithium is a question that if answered may help us find new lithium resources in the future.

Students recording field observations in the mine.

“As yet, no one has calculated how fast crystals can grow in pegmatitic systems, so this work adds important new information to our understanding of the rates of reactions that regulate pegmatite formation.”

The magmatic source for pegmatites intrudes within the upper 10 kilometers of the Earth’s crust, the size of which can range from 10s to 100s of meters in diameter and extend for kilometers. The small size and shallow emplacement depths of the pegmatites themselves result in rapid cooling. Most pegmatites typically yield very small crystals, yet paradoxically, can host some of the largest crystals in the world. Pegmatites have been known to contain meter-sized crystals in veins that are just a few meters in width.

To address the paradox, we are studying crystal growth rates in the Stewart pegmatite. An earlier study on the Stewart Lithia mine suggests that the pegmatite cooled within nine years. If we assume the crystals are growing over the whole nine year time period, then a one meter crystal must grow at a minimum rate of ~10-9 m/s, which is similar to granite crystallization speeds. Therefore, to get large crystals, they must grow faster than a typical granite. If we can determine the crystal growth rates of minerals in our pegmatite, we can test this hypothetical rate. As yet, no one has calculated how fast crystals can grow in pegmatitic systems, so this work also adds important new information to our understanding of the rates of reactions that regulate pegmatite formation.

Unfortunately, we were not around when the Stewart pegmatite was crystallizing. This means we need proxies to help calculate growth rate. Proxies preserve characteristics of the past that stand in for direct measurements (in this case the speed at which crystals grow) we can’t make. This enables us to reconstruct the conditions over which the pegmatite evolved. Our proxy is trace element behavior over the course of pegmatite crystallization. The trace elements are taken up into a growing crystal (e.g., like the impurities trapped in the crystal structure that make the various colors of tourmaline), the concentration of which is a function of compatibility with the mineral’s chemistry and the change in fluid temperature over time. For this study we are using the mineral quartz for the simplicity of it’s chemistry. Any element other than silicon or oxygen is considered a trace element. Therefore, we can use any element other than silicon or oxygen for our proxy.

The first step is to image where high concentrations of trace elements reside in the quartz crystals. The images are acquired using a technique called microscope cathodoluminescence (CL). Colored regions in a CL image correspond to trace elements trapped within the crystal structure that create point defects (see sidebar on Page 39 for an explanation on point defects).

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 37

Lithium and Element Partitioning Lithium is found in all rock types, but rarely in high abundance. It is classified as a lithophile element, meaning it tends to prefer rocks rich in silicate minerals. Except in rare cases, lithium does not readily go into all the minerals that crystallize from a magma. The reason for this is lithium’s behavior, otherwise known as its elemental partitioning.

Elemental partitioning is part of a thermodynamic process that, for a given melt environment, determines when and how much of an element is incorporated into a crystallizing mineral. In nature, specifically during the process of crystal formation, ions of a particular element may “substitute” for other elements that are similar in their atomic behavior. This enables the existence of a mineral with several color varieties, or families of minerals that are similar in their structure but are chemically representative of the prevailing chemical environment from which they form.

More specifically, elemental partitioning depends strongly on the ionic charge and subsequent ionic size of the element. Like goldilocks trying to fit into baby bear’s chair, ions that are too big will not substitute for smaller ion sites, and ions too small are not comfortable (unstable) in the chairs (or sites) of the larger ions. The same analogy holds for charge.

As an ion with a single positive charge (or +1 ion), lithium is relatively small compared to other +1 ions of the typical mineral forming elements of sodium and potassium, and too large and too low of a charge for +2 ions of magnesium and iron. This ultimately means as a magma crystallizes, lithium’s lack of compatibility (its ability to substitute for the above four elements) results in a residual melt chemistry more enriched in lithium. Thus, a highly enriched lithium deposit comes from a highly evolved (e.g. late stage) magma.

Pegmatites are a type of deposit that can form from late stage magmas, so they have a propensity to have high lithium contents.

38 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Li

Cathodoluminescence Microcospy (CL)

PHOTO: PATRICK PHELPS

After mapping a crystal using CL, we identify the concentrations of trace elements causing the defects at different points within each zone using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-IC-PMS). LA-ICPMS allows us to measure parts per million (ppm) accuracy the trace element concentrations at a 12-100 micron (μm) spatial resolution. In theory, we can measure the entire periodic table of elements in one spot. However, to attain better precision, we typically measure only a few elements at a time. We can even achieve detailed transects by slowly (one μm per second) dragging the laser across the sample. These transects (C to C’ figure below) act as maps of the growth layers, the trace element concentration of which is used to help us understand the speed at which the crystal grew.

Cathodluminescence microscopy relies on point defects within a crystal lattice. The term point defect encompasses any sort of substituted, extra, or missing atom in the lattice. For instance, a trace element can directly substitute for the proper element or it can squeeze into the space between them.

CL quartz image overlain with a LA-ICPMS transect in yellow. The corresponding concentrations are shown for germanium, lithium, aluminum and titanium in parts per million (ppm) along the transect. The colors in the plots correspond with the crystal CL colors.

Of the elements we measured, lithium, aluminum, germanium and titanium were of greatest interest for calculating growth rate. Lithium and aluminum in particular are well-known trace elements in quartz because they are incompatible (do not readily partition- see left page). Germanium is possibly the only element that easily wants to partition into quartz, yet due to its very low natural abundance, will have a low concentration in quartz. Titanium is used to constrain the temperature during growth, since its concentration in quartz is temperature dependent. Our measured concentration of titanium tells us that the temperature of crystallization occurs near 600°C, which is close to 550°C after nine years, as reported from earlier published research.

Now that we have an idea of the location and the concentration of the trace elements in each crystal, we can turn to the physics of crystal growth to evaluate this information. While a crystal is growing, it will incorporate a certain portion of any amount of trace element that is floating around. If a crystal starts growing faster, it will start to take in more of those elements, since they will not be able to diffuse away fast enough. Each element diffuses at a different rate and is thus incorporated into quartz at different times during it’s development. Assuming their concentrations in the fluids from which the crystals are growing are static, we can link observed variations in trace element concentrations back to crystal growth rates.

Alternatively, the proper atom may be missing all together, leaving a hole in the lattice. To identify where defects exist and what may be causing them, we need electrons. The electrons, which are generated by a cathode ray tube (CRT)—the same kind of tube that produced pictures in early television sets. The CRT bombards a mineral with electrons to “shine a light” on the point defects. Electrons are absorbed by the atoms that make up the defects, raising their energy to an excited state.

The defect atoms must shed this excess energy, usually as photons in the visible part of the energy spectrum, as colored “luminescence”.

We record those colors using a camera attached to a microscope, such as in the above image of green albite and red muscovite. For each mineral, different colors indicate a specific type of defect and the intensity of that color roughly correlates with the concentration of the defect.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 39

Laser AblationInductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry Mass spectrometry (MS) is an umbrella term for any technique that measures the mass-to-charge ratios of ions.

For Inductively Coupled Plasma MS, isotopes of elements and molecules are ionized and carried along by a plasma. That stream of particles in the plasma is then bent through a curved electromagnet. Heavier ions are not as easily bent by the magnet, their path moves towards the outside of the curve, while lighter ions stay towards the center, effectively separating them and making them easier to identify.

A detector captures the separated ions and counts them. The number of counts is correlated to the absolute concentration. Laser Ablation (LA) is a sampling technique where a laser carves out a small volume of material—usually less than 100 μm deep, with a spot diameter between 12-110 μm. The ablated material is ionized by a plasma (ICP) and then the MS, resulting in high spatial resolution measurements. Five horizontal and seven vertical ablation pits are visible in this CL image of quartz.

A comparison of different crystal growth rates over avariety of geologic settings. This study shows quartz crystal growth rates faster than previosly mesasured from other systems.

Based on what we see in the field, the quartz from the Stewart pegmatite grew in meter-sized pockets from hot fluids that were still around after much of the surrounding pegmatite already crystallized, opening a window to investigate what happens at the end of the pegmatite’s thermal life. From the trace elements found in our crystals, we calculate that centimeter sized crystals could have grown in as little as 15 minutes and allowing meter-sized crystals to grow within hours! This suggests that the pegmatite’s crystallization window may be much shorter than the previous suggested cooling time of nine years.

Another piece of the crystal growth puzzle we are investigating is the source for the pegmatite forming fluids. The Stewart Lithia mine is emplaced into a gabbro rather than the more typical granitic association. Besides the odd juxtaposition, there are no granitic source rocks anywhere in the vicinity of the pegmatite. The timing of the pegmatite’s emplacement after the gabbro cooled and solidified suggests that the most likely source is in fact the gabbro. Considering the gabbro’s shallow emplacement depth, it must have crystallized rapidly, leaving localized residual fluids that could form pegmatites. As the last fluids to crystallize, even if originally gabbroic, they would be highly evolved, water-rich, trace element rich (including lithium) and with a high silica content. This is important for both our fast growth story and for understanding how so much lithium could have been concentrated.

40 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

PHOTO: PATRICK PHELPS

Our lab is also looking into the broader picture of how lithium gets concentrated from its mantle source to the ash that comes from volcanoes in order to understand why some deposits are rich in lithium while others are not. This work may help us better understand the source to sink processes that concentrate lithium in pegmatites. Abundant residual hot water is the key for fast crystal growth. It facilitates increased elemental diffusion rates, allowing crystals to grow faster. The same large scale magmatic processes that increase residual water are also concentrating lithium. This is one of the reasons why pegmatites and lithium tend to go hand in hand.  References: Phelps, P. R., Lee, C-T. A, & Morton, D. M. (209). In Preparation.

RICE Shared Equipment Authority In 2018, Rice acquired a ION-TOF Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometer (ToF-SIMS).

The ION-TOF instrument is open to users from all departments of Rice University, as well as to external academic visitors, non-profit organizations, government agencies and businesses. Located in the Keith-Wiess Geological laboratories, it is the only university instrument with a Scanning Probe Microscope (SPM) in the southern U.S., enabling investigators to obtain 3D chemical compositions from their samples. Recent developments in ToF-SIMS capability, such as the argon cluster ion beam and a tight focus ion beam, ensure the highest possible performance to date, making it capable of analyzing just about anything from batteries to beetles.

ToF-SIMS works by detecting secondary ions that are ejected by primary ion bombardment. This makes it possible to direcly analyze the molecular and elemental information of just about any surface, for a large mass range (0 – 10,000 atomic mass units) for all elements and their isotpes in the periodic table and molecules with high sensitivity (down to parts per billion). The element mapping capability provides highly localized information with a beam spot size of approximately 100 nanometers and for depth profiling at sub-nanometer resolution.

The ION-TOF ToF This enables 3-D compositional Tanguy Terlier, Ph.D. SIMS is a state of the is a research specialist rendering of a sample. art instrument that and manager of the includes a NanoScan VLSRice SEA ToF-SIMS 80 in-situ Atomic Force instrument.

Microscope. Topographical analysis can be performed in contact, Intermittent and noncontact scan mode including deflection and phase imaging.

• Large mass range spectra are achieved using a pulsed ion beam. The Bi Nanoprobe technology provides SIMS analysis with high-lateral resolution (70 nanometers) by rastering the field of view in high density of pixels.

• The argon gas cluster ion source allows analysis of high mass molecules, preserving quasi-intact molecular information.

• The dual source column is equipped with two polyvalent ion sources for the analysis of inorganic and organic materials, permitting detection of both positive and negative ions as well as the polarities of secondary ions.

• Electron flood gun and oxygen flooding can be used during the analysis to compensate the charges and improve the signal intensity.

Both options permit the analysis of any type of materials, conductive or insulating.

• Extended dynamic range analysis records intensities of more than 100 ions per pulse per mass with excellent linearity.

• Fast sample rotation is a new feature that helps limit the formation of ion beam-induced surface roughening due to the sputtering.

simslab.rice.edu

• Temperature-controlled heating and cooling of the sample under analysis from -130°C to + 600°C with a precision of +/- 1°C. Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 41

Yeung Lab Yeunglab.org

The Yeung lab is one of the finest stable isotope laboratories in the world. The custom-built analytical instrumentation is used to investigate the physics and chemistry of the Earth as a system. Natural variations in isotope abundances are the primary geochemical tool that assistant professor Laurence Yeung and his group use to investigate the physics and chemistry of the atmosphere, the biogeochemistry of the earth and the complex relationship between them. The isotopes they study are extracted from minerals, ice, the atmosphere, rivers and oceans, spanning the full range of time and space.

LASER FLUORINATION LINE ISOTOPE RATIO MASS SPECTROMETER COMPUTER CONTROLLED GAS SAMPLE PURIFICATION SYSTEM

The fully automated laserfluorination and gas purification line measures the full range of oxygen isotopes (16O, 17O, and 18O) in minerals. It is one of only a few custombuilt pure gas fluorination lines in the U.S., and with a custom modified IRMS, it yields some of the highest precision data in the world.

42 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

An in-house, custombuilt, automated gas purification line takes atmospheric samples and separates them into their component parts (oxygen, nitrogen and argon) for analysis.

The Yeung lab group (L to R): Assistant professor Laurence Yeung, Ph.D. student David Valerio, postdoctoral fellow Justin Hayles, Ph.D. student Yi Hou, lab manager Tao Sun, Ph.D. students Asmita Banerjee and Boda Li.

These two custom-modified Nu Instruments Perspective isotope ratio mass spectrometers (IRMS) handle the bulk of stable isotop research conducted in the Yeung Lab. Isotope Mass Spectrometers separate molecules by their mass so that each isotopic variant can be identified and analyzed separately.

HIGH VACUUM GAS LINE

A custom- built high vaccum precision gas purification line is used to separate a variety of atmospheric gases.

ISOTOPE RATIO MASS SPECTROMETER

Ph.D. candidate David Valerio is running a closed system experiment on different types of bacteria, including natural communities from Lake Houston.

He is measuring the stable isotope composition of dissolved oxygen to quantify oxygen isotope fractionation by respiration.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 43

Assistant professor Laurence Yeung and postdoctoral fellow Justin Hayles have built one the highest precision laser fluorination lines in the world. Assembled and operational in less than a year, the fluorination line can measure oxygen isotope ratios in a variety of minerals, including those that formed on early Earth and on Mars.

With this assembly Hayles and Yeung can achieve some the highest isotope mass resolutions ever measured.

Isotopic ordering a.k.a. “clumping” The extent to which rare isotopes are bound together (or, rather, “clumped”) in nature tells us a great deal about how natural materials were formed. While much of the work using clumped isotopes has focused on determining mineral formation temperatures, we are finding that formation pathways can also be recorded. We are using isotopic ordering in oxygen and other small molecules as tracers of these processes in nature. We also hope to understand more generally how isotopic “clumps” behave when they are out of balance so we have a framework in which to interpret their natural variations.

44 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

STUDENT RESEARCHIsotope Geochemistry

Ph.D. candidate Asmita Banerjee holds a fragment of Siple Dome Antarctic ice with bubbles enclosing atmospheric gases that are less than 500 years old. The ice used by Asmita, most of which is obtained from the jointly managed NSF/USGS ice core facility in Denver CO, is stored in a -26o freezer in KWGL. A band saw in the freezer allows researchers to sample ice without removing it from the cold.

Ice is used to study changes in Earth’s atmospheric composition and dynamics (global scale circulations) over time. Both are a key part of the global energy budget, which is the balance between incoming solar energy and the energy radiated back to space from Earth. This budget governs Earth’s temperature, the past record of which (as far back as a million years) is preserved in ancient ice, as well as the gases trapped in the ice. Yet those records can be complicated by a variety of factors, thus producing uncertainty in various climate model results.

The Yeung lab is tackling these complications in a novel way. We are using “clumped” isotopes―the ultra-rare fraction of molecules that contain two or more rare isotopes―to track changes in atmospheric temperature and dynamics. Specifically, Ph.D. candidate Asmita Banerjee is using the clumped isotopes of oxygen trapped in ice cores (a measure of the abundance of heavy isotope 18O bonded to another 18O in the same molecule of O2) to infer how warm or cool the ancient atmosphere was, as well as how it might have been structured or mixed differently. We are the first group in the world making these unique measurements.

The ice comes from Greenland and Antarctica, from cores drilled and archived as part of past international campaigns. Gases are extracted and purified by melting the ice (70-100g of ice) and then passing it through a gas-chromatograph to separate the oxygen from the other components of air (70-100 micromol O2).

This purified oxygen is then analyzed on a mass spectrometer for clumped-isotope composition. Asmita uses these measurements to infer how temperatures of the global atmosphere at high altitudes change during the last ice age (18,000-22,000 years ago) and Earth’s transition out of it.

What is interesting is that even within this brief span of time, there are many small signals of atmospheric temperature change that are observed. One of the most important results of her work has shown that the signals from both hemispheres correspond well with each other. This is interesting because most conventional signals of temperature change are local to Antarctica or the Arctic. If the agreement in her data reveals itself to be an authentic global signal, it will tell us a lot about how Earth managed its atmospheric energy in the past. The record of clumped oxygen isotopes trapped in ice bubbles will have subsequent use in constraining changes in global atmospheric circulation under different surface temperature conditions. Using chemical transport models that incorporate clumped isotope signals from the troposphere and stratosphere, they will help constrain whether exchange of air masses between the troposphere and the stratosphere varied significantly during a colder surface temperature regime, such as the Last Glacial Maximum.

In all, clumped isotopes of oxygen from the paleo-atmosphere provide us with a multitude of information about the ancient atmosphere’s state: its temperature response, and changes in global circulation patterns in different climates may ultimately help us infer how the energy balance of the Earth evolves over time.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings

45

TRIPLE QUADRUPOLE INDUCTIVELY COUPLED PLASMA MASS SPECTROMETER

HIGH PRESSURE ION CHROMATOGRAPH

Biogeoche

The Thermo Fisher Triple Quadrupole Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometer (TQ-ICP-MS) can measure elemental concentrations and isotopic ratios of solid (sediments/rocks digested in strong acid) and dissolved (river, lake or ocean water) phase samples with detection limits of sub-parts per billion for many elements.

Our Thermo Fisher Scientific Dionex Integrion High Pressure Ion Chromatograph is currently set up to measure negatively charged ion (anion) concentrations (e.g., chloride, nitrate, nitrite, and sulfate). Generally, concentrations are measured by pumping the sample solution through an ion exchange column where different ionic species are physically separated from the sample matrix based on their affinity for â&#x20AC;&#x153;stickingâ&#x20AC;? to the column.

After chromatographic separation, the concentration of each ion is determined using a conductivity detector positioned near the outlet of the ion exchange column.

46 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

CAVITY RING-DOWN SPECTROMETER

emistry Torres Lab torres-lab.github.io

The Torres Lab focuses on the biological, chemical, and geologic processes that act to distribute elements across our planet’s surface and interior.

Picarro Cavity Ring-Down Spectrometer (CRDS) that measures the ratios of Deuterium to Hydrogen and 18O to 16O in water samples. The CRDS uses an infrared laser and three carefully placed mirrors to guide a 12-mile-long beam of light through each water vapor sample.

When the laser light is turned off, the drop in brightness or “ring down” is recorded and used to quantify isotopic ratios.

While these biogeochemical processes operate across the entire periodic table, the Torres lab is particularly interested in the set of elements and compounds that regulate Earth’s habitability. This includes the cycling of water, carbon and oxygen across a range of surface environments.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 47

TRIPLE QUADRUPOLE INDUCTIVELY COUPLED PLASMA MASS SPECTROMETER

Solutions are converted to an aerosol and injected into a hot (over 100,000 degrees F) argon plasma for efficient atomization and ionization. To remove spectral interferences (i.e., elements and molecules with similar masses such as 40K and 40Ca), a collision (He) or reaction gas (O2) can be employed. After the ions have passed through two quadrupole mass filters and the collision/reaction cell, a detector amplifies and counts the number of sample ions, which can be converted to concentrations through the use of calibration standards.

Water/Rock Interaction The interaction between water and rock near Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surface drives a suite of reactions collectively called chemical weathering. These reactions are a major source of dissolved elements in natural waters and account for large transfers of carbon, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur between the rock reservoir and the ocean/atmosphere system. Linkages between chemical weathering processes and environmental conditions give rise to multiple feedbacks and forcings on the Earth system that remain to be completely understood.

Organic carbon transport and burial Like weathering, the synthesis of organic matter and its subsequent transport, storage and degradation is key to the biogeochemical cycling of C, O, P, and S. However, organic matter cycling obeys a completely different set of rules than weathering, adding a richer set of dynamics to major biogeochemical cycles.

48 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Graduate student Trevor Cole and assistant professor Mark Torres collect water samples from a river in Belize.

Approaches In order to study chemical weathering and organic carbon cycling across a range of spatial and temporal scales, we utilize some combination of laboratory experiments, field studies and numerical modelling.

Present research interests include: • Calibrating trace element and isotope proxies for weathering and organic carbon cycling • Parameterizing weathering and organic carbon feedbacks for use in Earth system models • Linking weathering and organic carbon cycling to erosion and sediment transport processes

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 49

Fluid dynamics experiments, such as bubble coalescence, can be observed and digitally recorded in real time on our stabilized micro-imaging workstation.

Professor Gonnermannâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s research group is interested in the volcanic and magmatic processes that shape our planet. Studies are framed around the transport and eruption of magma and magmatic fluids.

The Gonnermann group also aims to advance our understanding of magmatic processes that range from the micro-scale, such as bubble nucleation in magmas, to the field scale, such as what controls the style and size of volcanic eruptions.

Gonnermann Lab gonnermann.rice.edu

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MICROIMAGING WORKSTATION

AccuPyc II 1340 Series pycnometers provide high-precision porosity measurements of materials such as pumice, for example.

This technique is non-destructive as it uses an inert gas displacement method to measure pressure and volume.

Gas pycnometry is recognized as one of the most reliable techniques for obtaining true, absolute, skeletal and apparent volume and density of a material. This technique is non-destructive as it uses the gas displacement method to measure volume. Density calculations using the gas displacement method are much more accurate and reproducible than the traditional Archimedes water displacement method.

HELIUM PYCNOMETERS

THERMOGRAVIMETRIC ANALYZER (TGA)

The EEPS Geofluids Lab is designed to facilitate fluid dynamics experiments of processes of importance in the Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences using natural and analog materials. It also has capabilities to measure various physical properties of materials.

Thermogravimetric analysis quantifies the change in mass of a material as it is heated to high temperatures. Using this method it is, for example, possible to characterize the abundance of magmatic and meteoric water contained within volcanic glass that forms when magma quenches as it erupts.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 51

The Gonnermann lab group analyzes various observational data, ranging from vesicles in pyroclasts to geodetic measurements. We conceive of and execute laboratory experiments that help us understand a variety of physical processes. Ultimately, we integrate observations and experiments through numerical simulations to gain further insight and to make predictions.

RHEOMETER

The Anton Paar MCR 301 Rheometer is used to measure the way in which materials deform in response to applied forces. It allows, for example, the characterization of materials that behave under some conditions like a liquid and under other conditions like a solid. An example is magma, which can flow and/or fragment. The rheological properties of magma can be studied in the Gonnermann lab.

52 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Rheology is derived from the Greek words ‘rheo’ which means ‘flow’ and ‘logia’, which is ‘the study of’. Rheological studies investigate the deformation of liquid-like materials as well as of solids that deform plastically.

POROMETER/ PERMEAMETER

DECOMPRESSION CHAMBER

This custommade gas vacuum chamber can be used to study bubble growth and coalescence in viscous liquids.

The PMI porometer and permeameter is used to measure the permeability of porous materials, which is the ease with which gases or liquids can flow through the material.

Permeability is measured by recording the rate at which gas or liquid flows through the sample as it is supplied at different pressures to one side of the sample, while holding the other end of the sample constant.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 53

The GCTS RTR-2000 triaxial deformtion apparatus is used to measure the strength of cylindrical geologic samples at the conditions of the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s crust. Cylinders deform by advancing a piston parallel to the core axis. Two types of pressure are applied and can be controlled indedpendantly; one that squeezes the rock (called the confining pressure) and the other is water pressure that fills the pore space of the rock (pore pressure).

The pressures (confining and pore) are recorded, as is the force, parallel to the axis, and deformation of the sample (parallel to the axis and the radius of the core).

The interior

For convenience, we tend to use the same sample size: 25.4 mm diameter and 50.8 mm in length, although samples up to 60 mm in diameter and 120 mm in length (we maintain a 2:1 ratio) will fit all of the instrumentation in the vessel. We have the ability to measure the speed of P and S waves through our sample under pressure and as we deform them.

chamber of the deformation apparatus showing the thermal jacket above, sample core mounted on the stage between two pistons with sensors.

French Lab The confining and pore pressures can both be dialed as high as 210 MegaPascals. The system can be heated to 200oC with a furnace that wraps around the pressure vessel.

This simulates depths up to 8-10 kilometers.

mefrench.com 54 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

The Rheology and Deformation Laboratory

TRIAXIAL ROCK DEFORMATION APPARATUS

Samples used for experiments include: rocks collected from the field, manufactured and synthetic materials meant to achieve a specific composition, and rocks recovered from drilling projects.

Sandstone core before and after a deformation experiment

Assistant professor Melodie French and her group study rocks from fault zones to better understand how and why faults slip and what conditions lead to or inhibit earthquakes. The primary aim is to understand what causes earthquakes and other types of slip to nucleate, grow and arrest.

The duration of an experiment can be designed to measure a rocks deformation over time.

Experiments can be conducted in as short as a day and up to several weeks.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 55

The French Lab group with the tools of the trade (L to R): Assistant professor Melodie French, Ph.D. student Celine Fliedner, summer intern Lena Nyblade and Ph.D. student Ben Belzer.

Deformation experiments measure the effects of pressure, temperature, pore fluid pressure, the rate at which rocks deform, the total strain on the strength of rocks and the impact on the seismic velocities of rocks.

These properties are then used to better understand how faults slip and how to improve interpretation of their seismic tomography.

56 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

STUDENT RESEARCHRheology & Deformation

Ph.D. candidate Celine Fliedner studies the behavior of rocks in subduction zones and the resulting mechanical feedback between rock-fluid interactions. Fliedner seeks to identify what properties control geophysical signals (seismic waves) in order to infer the types of rocks and conditions deep beneath the surface of the Earth..

Experiments will utilize the triaxial deformation apparatus to vary pressure, temperature and pore pressure to see the effect those environmental conditions have on the propagation of seismic waves through her rock samples. One set of experiments involves rapidly oscillating the axial force at the frequency of seismic waves (0.1 herz to 30 hertz) and the other uses transducers to send signals that are high frequency (megahertz), or ultrasonic waves, through the sample.

Celine Fliedner describes the process of

From her measurements, she will calculate the elastic response (the seismic velocities) and inelastic responses (a change in the energy as the signal moves through the rock).

In addition to studying the environmental controls on seismic waves, she will look at how a rock’s microphysical properties (e.g. porosity, but also the mineralogy) also control the seismic signals.

extracting cores from the schist she uses in her experiments.

The ultimate goal is to build a tool to use seismic waves measured at the surface to better constrain pore fluid pressure below the surface within subduction zones. Pore fluid pressures are an important control on deformation mechanisms within subduction zones that generate earthquakes. 

“If you can constrain the pore pressure, you could potentially use it to help predictunderstand how faults slip in subduction zones.”

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 57

The sedimentology group conducts research in the areas of geomorphology, hydrology, morphodynamics and stratigraphy of modern and ancient sedimentary systems on planetary surfaces.

The broader aims of their research are to evaluate sediment transport properties to assess sediment accumulation patterns, and to infer linkages between modern sedimentary systems and the stratigraphic record.

Nittrouer Lab Ph.D. candidate Tian Dong describes the process of characterizing sediments collected from Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Yellow River Delta, using the Camsizer.

sedimentology.rice.edu

58 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

One of the primary sedimentary laboratory tools is the Camsizer. The Camsizer is a dynamic image analyzer used to measure particle grain-size distribution in real time. Particles free-fall from the funnel on top through a vacuum chamber while an ultra-high speed camera takes photos of the falling grains. The computer analyzes the images to produce the grain-size distribution by volume, grain shape factors and other statistical parameters such as mean and median grain size. The instrument detection range is from 40 microns to a few centimeters. The detection range is limited by the camera lense and chamber size. This instrument is ideal for analyzing the grain-size distribution of sand and gravel-sized particles from river and tidal channel sediments, glacier tills and biochar.

SEDIMENTARY GRAIN SIZE ANALYZER

From the lab...

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;¢ Outcroppings 59

PHOTO: BRANDEE CARLSON IMGAE: ANDREW MOODIE

The RV Wiseowl was specifically designed to map riverine and shallow seafloor bathymetry. It is also used to deploy instruments that determine hydrodynamics and measure sediment transport, accomodating up to eight passengers. The image shows RV Wiseowl conducting a bathymetry traverse on the lower Mississippi River.

...to the field.

Bathymetry of rivers is measured with a multibeam sonar system. From this example of the Yellow River in China, the warm colors indicate shallow flow depth (towards the center of the channel) and cool colors indicate deeper flow (at the bend in the channel). The multibeam sonar is capable of resolving sub-meter scale dunes. Multibeam data also enable measurements of wave velocity and detection of objects on the river bed.

A vibracore setup allows researchers to collect shallow sediment cores. The six meter-long aluminum barrels are driven into the sediment using a concrete vibrator. The barrel is extracted using a pulley-winch system attached to a speciallydesigned tripod. Cores are described and subsampled for further analysis in the Rice Sedimentology Laboratory. The vibracore is ideal for sampling environments like floodplains, mudflats, oxbow lakes, wetlands and marshes. However, fine scale sedimentary structures like ripples are not preserved due to vibration during drilling. This vibracore is collecting sediment from a mudflat on the Yellow River delta in China.

60 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

PHOTOS: BRANDEE CARLSON

The 200 lb P-6 suspended sediment sampler is an instrument used to measure concentration of particles in water columns of river and delta channels. Once it reaches the depth of interest, a nozzle, located at the head of the instrument, is opened remotely via the conductor cable. The valve system within the head allows pressure equalization to prevent a hydrostatically induced in-flux of sample. Graduate students Andrew Moodie and Brandee Carlson are measuring sediment concentration in the Yellow River, China. Accurate measurement of suspended sediment discharge in rivers and deltas is very important because sediment discharge controls evolution of river channel morphology. Specifically, modification of channel shape due to change in sediment discharge can lead to higher or lower risk of flooding.

STUDENT RESEARCHHydrology & Geomorphology

A Fork in the Road: Understanding division of flow in river bifurcations

Text and Images by

Tian Dong Today, hundreds of millions of people who live near river and delta channels are in danger from flooding. Ph.D. candidate Tian Dong’s research in Siberia is helping to refine models that predict when changes in those channels, specifically the controls on division of flow in river bifurcation, may result in catastrophic flood events.

His effort also has important ecological value as channels regulate the supply of water, sediment and nutrients to the downstream wetlands and coastlines, which support diverse ecosystems.

Forks and Junctions in Rivers River channel bifurcations are unstable over time. The length of time and degree of instability is not well-known and is difficult to predict. From the geologic record we can see evidence of instability as perturbations to the river morphology that could lead to an uneven division of flow between channel branches. In time, enlargement of one branch and closure of the other will lead to establishment of a new river course. In natural systems, this process of new river path formation may occur slowly in time or catastrophically through avulsion (and potential for flooding). The real challenge is in bringing together what we observe from the geologic record with what we can measure from rivers today to try and predict what might happen tomorrow...or decades to hundreds of years from now.

Understanding the controls of flow division at river channel bifurcation necessitates accurate measurements of flow partitioning data in the field. Ideally, we want to observe and measure the broadest range of flow partitioning and, for that, we look at deltas. Acquiring flow partitioning data is actually scarce from deltas, for two significant reasons. The first is that deltas can occupy areas that are hundreds of square kilometers and contain many bifurcations; therefore, it is difficult to measure flow conditions simultaneously throughout the delta. The second, which can include the same complexities as the first, is that some deltas are hard to access due to their remote geographic location (i.e., Arctic deltas).

Drainage Basin

Confluence Bifurcation

Flow Direction Bifurcation

Floodplain

Delta Figure 1. Schematic drawing of channel confluences in upland river drainage basin, and channel bifurcations in downstream braided river and delta. In a typical river network, small tributary streams come together to form larger channels as flow accumulates downstream. A river confluence is thus the ubiquitous landform on Earth’s surface. A lesser-known fact is that rivers can also divide flow at a channel bifurcation, like a fork in the road. A river bifurcation is a node at which water and sediment flow are partitioned into two downstream branches. This type of landscape is commonly observed in braided rivers, deltas and alluvial fans.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 61

So where do we go? The worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most complete laboratory: Siberia.

A Natural Laboratory in Siberia The Selenga River delta, located on the shore of Lake Baikal, Russia (Figure 2) is being used to develop a new method of remotely predicting flow division in deltas and expand a growing dataset of flow partitioning measurements. The summer 2018 was my third (and longest) field campaign in Siberia. The 40 day plan, from late June to the middle August, measured how flow partitioning at 6 bifurcations (Figure 2, survey locations a-f) varies in time through the rising and falling limb of a hydrograph cycle.

What makes the Selenga River delta special for understanding division of flow is that the delta contains various orders of bifurcation with diverse channel geometry, variable flow conditions, a wide range of bed and bank morphology and sediment size distribution. Sediment size, which ranges from gravel at the delta apex (upstream) to fine sand at the shoreline, provides an opportunity to investigate sand- and gravel-bed bifurcation of different dimensions and flow conditions within a limited geographic location.

Moreover, data gathered from the three previous field campaigns (results are published as articles in GSA bulletin and Water Resources Research) in collaboration with Russian and other American colleaguesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; scientists, have enabled us to establish a solid baseline knowledge of the delta characteristics to show that the six bifurcations selected would disseminate sediment and water to the entire shoreline. We had the final pieces of information to build our flow distribution models.

The major findings are: 1.) flow division is highly temporally variable over a flood hydrograph (measure of water discharge over time), such that the proportion of flow within one branch can vary by as much as 30 percent; 2.) channel geometry and planform, i.e., cross-sectional area, flow depth, width and sinuosity, are very good predictors for estimating flow division; (see pages 78-80); 3.) using the channel planform variables of sinuosity and width, a model is developed to accurately predict division of flow remotely for the entire delta network.

Figure 2.The Selenga River delta resides on the eastern shore of Lake Baikal, southeastern Siberia, Russia. The left hand diagram shows the bathymetry of the lake. With maximum depth of ~1.6km, Lake Baikal is the deepest lake in the world. The Selenga River delta (highlighted in the black box) is the largest source of water and sediment for Lake Baikal. The right hand satellite image of the delta shows our survey locations (letters a-f) from summer 2018. White lines and stars indicate the six bifurcations that are used for analyzing nodal relation models under varying discharge condition.

62 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

This latter finding is especially important because it provides a framework to allow prediction of flow distribution in a delta using remote sensing methods. Such a framework may be applicable to deltas worldwide, specifically for those that are difficult to access in the field. The results will be published in Water Resources Research.

Beyond Scientific Research In addition to the long days of research, a foreign field campaign (Figure 3) provides an incredible cultural and character-building experience.

Through daily interaction with Russian colleagues in a close-quartered camping environment, one is immersed in local tradition and cuisine (Figure 4).

My favorite Russian leisure activity is the “banya” or their traditional steam bath. It is difficult to bring a bathhouse to the campground, but our clever and crafty Russian colleagues have a way to get clean. While we are out in the field, helpers at the campsite heat up a pile of stones using a wood fire. As researchers return to camp after a long and exhausting day of channel surveying, the stones are already hot. A tent is then put over the heated stones. Everyone crowds into the ‘bathhouse’ in their swimwear and hot water is poured on to the stones to build steam (Figure 4 c-e). As the temperature continues to rise, the day of stress and fatigue fades away into the Siberian night. As Earth scientists, it is important to foster collaboration across different cultural and national backgrounds. Sharing diverse experiences allows us to gain deeper understanding of the complex processes that operate on Earth and other planets. 

A)

B)

A)

C)

Figure 3. A) Heading back to camp after a day of channel surveying. B) Lunch break on the floodplain.

C) Rainbow over the Selenga River delta.

B)

C)

D)

E)

Figure 4. A) A typical breakfast at the field camp includes buckwheat cereal with canned beef and coffee B) Dinner may be a camp-fire grilled local fish called Omul. C-E) Field banya, i.e., a steam bath (very much like a sauna) for the campground. The steam heat source is a pile of stone, heated by wood for the entire day.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 63

Experimental GAS MIXING FURNACE

The Deltech vertical tube furnace with gas mixing capability is primarily used for dehydration and decarbonation of samples, and to synthesize materials at a known oxygen fugacity. Samples can be surrounded by air, an inert gas or a CO/ CO2 mixture and heated up to 1,700 °C. The furnace is equipped with digital mass flow controllers for controlled flow of CO and CO2 gases and a zirconia solid-electrolyte cell for monitoring oxygen fugacity at high temperatures.

PISTON CYLINDERS

The lab houses three (two pictured here) Rockland Research piston cylinder (PC) devices with 250-ton (left) and 150-ton (right) end loads. All three the devices are equipped with fully automated pressure and temperature controllers and are capable of generating pressures up to 3.5 GPa (representing upwards of 100 kilometers depth) and temperatures up to 2,000 °C.

Professor Rajdeep Dasgupta and his research group are interested in the formation and evolution of Earth and other rocky planetary bodies, especially how the interior processes influence a planets surface chemistry and habitability. Their research focuses on the chemistry of Earth and planetary interiors with a particular emphasis on the role of melt and mineral chemistry on the differentiation and chemical evolution of the terrestrial planets atmosphere, crust, mantle and core.

64 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Petrology MULTIANVIL PRESS

Dasgupta Lab dasgupta.rice.edu

Installed in June 2012, the 1,100-ton Rockland Research press is equipped with a Walker-style multianvil module. Our apparatus is currently calibrated for a 18/12 Walker assembly over 3-9 GigaPascal (GPa) range (representing up to 300 kilometers depth), as well as a 14/8 assembly for over ~8-14 GPa range (more than 400 kilometers deep) and a 10/5 assembly for over ~8-18 GPa (over 500 kilometers deep in the Earth).

Our facilities allow us to explore the behavior of volatile elements (carbon, water, nitrogen and sulfur) and their roles in magma generation between 15 and 400 km depth within the Earth, at temperatures of up to 2,200 degrees Celsius. The breadth of conditions achieved by our suite of instruments also enables us to investigate larger scale processes on Earth and beyond. We can explore how tectonic plate movement produces volcanoes and create new land masses, and track how volatile elements cycle through the Earth and atmosphere. Finally, we examine the connections of volatile cycles with potential habitability and the emergence of life.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 65

Experimental samples that simulate rocks of the crust and mantle are synthesized from a mixture The assembly, or experimental of reagent powders. The powders are run charge, is the sample capsule, enclosed in capsules such as gold, platinum enclosed within a octahedral shaped and graphite in order to insulate the pressure-medium (see below), heating samples and protect them from elements (graphite, lanthanum chromite, or other surrounding materials. rhenium) and a clay material (pyrophyllite) that protects the tungsten carbide (WC) anvils and supports the anvil The assembly ratios of 18/12, 14/8 truncation. and 10/5 represent the size (in mm) of the edge length of the octahedral pressure-medium to that of the carbide anvil truncation edge length.

The first two are used to derive information about the release of volatiles (C, S, H2O and N) at the Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s surface which occurs by partial melting of the deep upper mantle (~300 km for 18/12, ~410 km for 14/8). The 10/5 assembly experiments explore processes that occur deeper, at mantle transition zone depths of ~550 km. Studies of water in the mantle as a potential reservoir (~1 wt.%)

can be investigated.

Sample capsules are loaded into an octahedral-shape magnesium oxide (MgO) pressure-medium (made in-house by Kyusei Tsuno) through which thermocouples are inserted to monitor the temperature throughout the experiment. This pressure-medium is held evenly between the multiple metal â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;anvilsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; made of tungsten carbide that are inserted into the apparatus.

66 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

The Mult-Anvil Experiment A start to finish look at the construction of a high pressure mult-anvil apparatus experiment: from sample assembly (top left this page) to the electron beam image of the resulting product (lower right next page.)

ExPerT lab manager Kyusei Tsuno installs an experiment in the Rockland Research multi-anvil press. Tsuno is an experimental petrologist interested in the role of carbon and sulfur in accretion and differentiation processes of the Earth and terrestrial planets.

He hand builds many of the experimental charges and parts used by faculty and students researchers.

Experiments can run in as short as an hour, such as those that explore planetary impacts, while some extend to a week (and longer) for experiments that investigate melt evolution in subduction zones and deeper Earth processes.

The resulting minute samples (sometimes no more than a few mm’s across), including the encapsulating materials, are cut and polished in the ExPerT laboratory. The prepared samples are then analyzed with various analytical tools including LA-ICP-MS (p. 40) , FTIR (p. 32 ), EPMA (p. 28) and Raman spectroscopy, all are equipped in our EEPS Department or in Rice’s Shared Equipment Authority. The back-scattered image produced by EPMA shows melt and crystals that formed out of a powdered mineral mixture following a melting experiment. The left side of the image shows the melt phase of analytical interest, which can be a source of magma generated at high-pressure and temperature conditions. This partial melt is a likely precursor of kimberlites-deep magma that brings up diamonds from the deep interior.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 67

The biggest detective story in the history of the Earth...

A global effort funded by NASA seeks more clues surrounding the mystery of how Earth came to have life billions of years ago, and how planets in their infancy today, billions of miles away, might chart a course that also leads to...

Life.

68 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Text and Graphics by

Mejs Hasan

HOW DID WE GET HERE? C H O S N P. It might look like a hodge-podge of letters. But these letters -- CHOSNP -- however humble and ordinary, are the center of our lives. None of us would exist -- and neither could a lifesustaining Earth -- without carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen and phosphorus.

These elements are receiving a lot of attention at Rice these days. Take Damanveer Grewal. He’s a graduate student who often is found in the laboratory on the first floor of the KeithWiess Geological Laboratories building. Sometimes he is firing up a furnace to heat a batch of oxides to 1,000 degrees Celsius.

Sometimes he uses a hydraulic press to squeeze a metal mixed with carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur. He’ll even throw in a pinch of rock powder, all while heating the mixture up to even more extreme temperatures. He does this work for the CLEVER Planets NASA NExSS project.

Led by Rajdeep Dasgupta of EEPS, CLEVER Planets came to being after receiving the NASA consortium grant last year.

The focus of the project is on the essential elements of life -- how do they wind up on a young planet in the first place?

Once they’re on the planet, how do they evolve from simple

molecules into complex ones, into life? Are there young planets out there today where the same process is occurring?

If so and we could study them, would tell us about how these events developed on Earth?

You may be wondering, how do you study something that happened over 4.5 billion years ago? How do you study a planet that’s billions of miles away in the quest of answering “are we alone in the Universe?” It is enough to stump the most avid Sherlock. The scientists on the team will use as much creativity as they can to tease out information from the resources and knowledge they have.

For example, Grewal’s experiment with the hydraulic press.

He is trying to recreate -- on a small scale -- the formation of Earth’s core that happened early in the planet’s infancy. It was a different time. The atmosphere was full of gases other than oxygen. If you wanted to explore it, you would need to jump from rock to protruding rock to avoid the little inconvenience of the magma oceans. Somehow during all this geologic revolution and upheaval, the core of the Earth was developing; the crust was still to come.

CLEVER Planets- Check us out! website: CLEVERplanets.com

twitter: @CLEVER_Planets

The overall objective of CLEVER Planets is investigate the origin and cycles of life-essential elements (carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, sulfur, nitrogen, and phosphorus – CHOSNP) in young rocky planets. Based on our understanding of our own solar system and planet Earth, we plan to identify where habitable niches are most likely to occur, which planets are most likely to be habitable and when in their evolutionary history such conditions of habitability are most likely.

We are supported by NASA and are one of teams in the Nexus of Exoplanetary Systems Science (NExSS) research network. Rajdeep Dasgupta of Rice EEPS is the principal investigator. Other co-investigators include: Aaron Burton, NASA Johnson Space Center Pedram Hassanzadeh, Rice University, Mechanical Engineering & EEPS Andrea Isella, Rice University, Physics & Astronomy Cin-Ty Lee, Rice University, EEPS Adrian Lenardic, Rice University, EEPS Francis McCubbin, NASA Johnson Space Center Tim McCollom, University of Colorado Boulder, Atmospheric & Space Physics Hilke Schlichting, University of California at Los Angeles, Earth/Planetary/Space Science Sarah Stewart, University of California at Davis, Earth & Planetary Science Laurence Yeung, Rice University, EEPS

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 69

Important events in Earth’s past that made our planet “live” the way it does today...

DISTANCE

The Earth’s distance from the sun makes it cool enough so that water and other volatiles don’t evaporate away.

LAND SURFACE

About 2.4 billion years ago, exposed land surface was only about 2/3 of what it is today. As land surface increased, this allowed more erosion of nutrients like phosphorus into the ocean.

EXCHANGE OF ELEMENTS

Volcanic eruptions allow essential elements buried in the mantle to rise to the surface of the Earth, and be used by life-forms.

OXYGEN IN THE ATMOSPHERE

Also around 2.4 billion years ago, Earth experienced the rise of atmospheric oxygen, and an ozone layer that protected against UV light formed.

70 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Some of Grewal’s experiments try to recreate this scenario, to follow the paths on which sulfur, carbon, nitrogen, etc., might have found themselves. Would they stay on the surface of the Earth? Would they be buried deep in the core? And if so, what kinds of extraterrestrials are needed to slam into Earth from outer space to replace those buried essential elements?

Experiments can only get you so far in discovering exactly what happened when Earth formed over 4 billion years ago.

There’s so much uncertainty, so many assumptions. One alternative is to study young planets that are forming now.

A few buildings away from EEPS, Astronomy graduate student Laura Flagg is doing just that. Her eyes are fixed on the firmament -- on stars and planets that are 500 lightyears away. The distance is unfathomable for us. Still, there are telescopes that can capture dim reams of data from the unfenced acres of wild galaxy out there. Flagg has traveled a few times to the McDonald Observatory in West Texas.

It sits high on the slopes of gentle mountains that rise over 6,500 feet. From the powerful telescopes there, Flagg receives data on CI Tau. It’s a star, and in orbit around it is a young planet -- a mere 2 or 3 million years old.

Though this planet is in its infancy, in solar system terms, it’s not a helpless little being in need of lullabies and milk bottles in the slightest. Instead, the planet is a gas giant, pulsing with power and fumes, one where life almost certainly could not exist. It’s very different from a rocky planet like Earth. However, Flagg’s research on this planet will come in handy for CLEVER Planets because the same techniques she is using might later be used to study distant young, rocky, life-sustaining planets -- if we can ever find them.

Ideally, such a planet would be about the same size as the Earth and have the water we all know life-forms need to survive. Even the presence of those important elements like oxygen and nitrogen depends on water. Oxygen and nitrogen won’t adhere to bare rock surface, but they will adhere to a rock covered in water and ice. Also, we need to consider what distance from its sun does a young planet have to be to ensure its supply of water, and the accompanying essential elements, don’t entirely evaporate?

Those are more questions the CLEVER Planets team tries to answer.

Even with the best data we can achieve, there will still be a lot of uncertainty. As PI-Dasgupta puts it, observations and experiments can only get you so far. Sometimes, an experiment will indicate that one certain pathway is viable as an explanation for how carbon and nitrogen arrived on Earth in quantities abundant enough to sustain life.

Maybe that same experiment rules out the viability of other hypothesized pathways.

But it does not rule out the viability of pathways, still unthought of, that no one has yet stumbled upon. We are talking about events that happened so long ago, or so far away, that you can’t even get a real measurement of uncertainty. There’s just chipping away at a seemingly infinite mystery. How does that feel for a CLEVER Planets researcher? As Laura Flagg says: “In other disciplines, you might run an experiment. In our case, the Universe is running the experiment and we’re just collecting data.

That’s frustrating and cool at the same time. It makes it hard ... but that’s exciting.” 

Glaciers are not only a key supply of water on a planet, but may also harbor evidence of life.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 71

Are you ready to get the credentials for success in industry and business?

“One of the best industry-oriented graduate programs available.”

Antara Goswami SUBSURFACE GEOSCIENCE

Enroll in Rice University’s unique Science Master’s degree programs!

PROGRAMS AVAILABLE BIOSCIENCE AND HEALTH POLICY ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS SUBSURFACE GEOSCIENCE SPACE STUDIES

profms.rice.edu

HOUSTON, TEXAS

72 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Energy & Data Management Certificate Data has become a huge factor in all phases of the oil and gas industry, upstream, midstream and downstream.

Companies need fresh talent on an ongoing basis to fulfill the need for managers who can effectively manage data, which is constantly increasing in volume and complexity.

Rice Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences (EEPS) and Glasscock School of Continuing Studies have partnered to offer the Energy & Data Management Certificate, which focuses on exploration and production as a data-driven business and emphasizes the importance of the curation, exploitation, and analysis of data using data analytics and data science methods within the upstream oil and gas industry. This noncredit, graduate-level certificate offers qualifying work-related education for those interested in gaining employment in this field or to advance their career. This opportunity provides professionals with a robust understanding of subsurface data management, highlighting the importance of Energy Data Management as an emerging discipline alongside geophysics, geology and other oil and gas related career fields.

Qualifications

+ Basic knowledge in flow in porous media + Basic principles in geology/geophysics + Previous exposure to basics of programming such as Python is recommended

Who Should Enroll? + + + +

Entry-level geoscientists/ geophysicists Mid-career professionals seeking to redirect their career path Professional in other fields seeking to advance their career into energy data Managers seeking to update their knowledge and understanding of energy data practices

Learning Objectives + + + + +

Manage, maintain, monitor and measure organizational data governance plan Understand the importance of organization-wide standards Apply well-know algorithms, methods and best practices for analyzing diverse data sets Become familiar with tools, methods and environments for data management and data science Use robust data workflows and life-cycles

Curriculum

Participation in this certificate program fulfills industry demand for a university-based curriculum that trains employees to become educated data management â&#x20AC;&#x201C; developed with the industry for the industry. + Tools, Methods & Best Practices for Data Science and Analytics + Computational/Data Science in the Energy Sector + Energy Data Management and Governance profms@rice.edu | 713-348-3188 Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 73

GeoUnion Report

by Trevor Cole

Every year in May, the graduate student population in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences flexes its Democratic muscle to elect the new GeoUnion administration for the upcoming academic year. In some years there are fierce debates between candidates, in others the GeoUnion committee must convince students to run for office or, in the rarest of cases, nominate an unsuspecting peer.

Regardless of the tactics employed, a ‘changing of guard’ occurs once per year and it is with excitement that I announce the 2019 - 2020 GeoUnion officers:

Geounion 2019-2020 Cabinet: Debadrita Jana - President Jackson Borchardt - Vice President Tanyel Baykut - Social Chair Yi Hou- Secretary David Valerio - Treasurer Alana Semple - Faculty Liason Eric Barefoot - GSA Representative

Before the 2019-2020 academic year commences, I would like to use my last gasps as outgoing GeoUnion President to summarize the successes of the 2018-2019 GeoUnion committee! However, I realize that I have violated a fundamental writing rule by continuously referencing a word that has not been previously defined. Broadly, GeoUnion is a term that encompasses and describes the entire student population within EEPS. Historically, the role of the GeoUnion committee has been to facilitate interdepartmental social events, outreach events in the community and lesser known but inherent to the GeoUnion name, be a platform for graduate students to voice their opinions to faculty and staff. With the help of Vice President: Kevin Gaastra; Secretary: Ben Belzer; Treasurer: Asmita Banerjee; Outreach Coordinator: Michael Lara; Graduate Student Association Representative: Alana Semple; and Social Chair: Michael Reed we were able to accomplish the following activities:

74 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

• •

• • • • •

August 2018 - Beginning of the year camping trip to Austin; October 2018 - Halloween themed kickball tournament against the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; November 2018 - Multi-cultural potluck; December 2018 - Holiday party; March 2019 - Created Department tee-shirts and hosted a tie-die party; April 2019 - Hosted a crawfish boil; and April 2019 - Facilitated a dialogue with faculty and created a new GeoUnion position entitled ‘Faculty Liaison’.

I would like to extend a thank you to the cabinet members mentioned above, the faculty, and staff for a wonderful 2018-2019 academic year. Linda Welzenbach also deserves a special shout-out for photographing the many GeoUnion activities!

Thank you all!

-Trevor Cole 2018-2019 GeoUnion President

PHOTO: L. WELZENBACH

STUDENT PAGES

DEPARTMENT NEWS

STUDENT GROUPS

AAPG Report

PHOTO: CHENLIANG WU

PHOTO: CHENLIANG WU

by Chenliang Wu & Rice AAPG Committee

EEPS Rice AAPG student chapter president Chenliang Wu providing an interpretation of a part of the Jackfork deepwater turbidites based on initial observations from the outcrop.

EEPS field trip to the IODP Core Repository at Texas A&M University.

We examined cores from PETM (Paleocene Eocene Thermal Maximum), K-Pg boundary and OAE (Ocean Anoxic Events).

The 2018-2019 AAPG student chapter committee aims to facilitate the improvement of the relationship between graduate students and industry professionals, and promote energy-related geosciences.

In October 2018, the committee organized a field trip of four students to Arkansas with stops at the world-class Jackfork Group deepwater turbidite outcrop (Degray Lake Spillway), Crater of Diamonds State Park and Hot Spring National Park.

In February 2019, the committee organized a field trip of 9 students to the IODP Core Repository at Texas A&M University, College Station. The Committee also planned to take 15 students on afield trip for summer 2019. The field location was in Mexico and will be reviewed in an article in the next issue of Outcroppings.

2018-2019 Chapter Officers:

President (s): Chenliang Wu and Rahul Sudhakar Vice President (s): Joyeeta Bhattacharya and Trevor Cole Treasurer: Sizhuang Deng Secretary: Celine Fliedner Professional Science Representative: Mariaisabel Johnston

Rice Industry Geoscience Symposium (RIGS) AAPG student chapter kicked the 2018 fall semester off with RIGS. RIGS hosted a (1) resume/C.V. workshop, (2) a panel discussion on career development, (3) a resume review session, and (4) a poster/networking session. The resume and C.V. workshop was facilitated by a licensed professional from the Center of Career Development at Rice. The workshop provided students with the basics for constructing professional resumes and C.V.s.

The career development discussion panel was facilitated by Hunter Lockhart (BHP Billiton), Lily Seidman (Shell) and Kenneth Walker (GSI Environmental).

The resume review session was facilitated by recruiters and petroleum professionals who reviewed studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; resumes and provided feedback for improvement in light of the following recruiting season. The networking session drew recruiters from several companies, who later scheduled on-campus interviews in the department.

The committee also revitalized the AAPG lecture series by inviting petroleum geoscientists to present the latest science in the industry. The committee organized 6 talks, including topics on gas hydrate (by Andrew Madof from Chevron), machine learning application in geophysics (by Cheng Zhan from Anadarko), exploration potential in South America (by David McLean from Anadarko), deepwater process stratigraphy (by David Hoyal from ExxonMobil), computational stratigraphy (by Tao Sun from Chevron) and venture capital and innovative technology in the energy industry by Haibin Xu (Shell).

For the 2019-2020 year, we plan to continue developing the bridge between the excellent academia of our department with the opportunities offered by the diverse energy and related industry in and around Houston.

We have updated our website: www.earthscience.rice.edu/aapg/

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 75

OUTREACH

DEPARTMENT NEWS

Outreach Report

Text and Images by Debadrita Jana

Earth Day @ Rice University!

The Girl Scouts of San Jacinto Texas visited EEPS this spring to celebrate Earth Day. Approximately 50 Girl Scouts between the ages 8 and12 attended workshops on a variety of earth science topics. The event was led

by Dr. Sylvia Dee and was supported by several EEPS faculty and students from both EEPS and Environmental Science.

The girls were introduced to useful tools and concepts (making observations and noting them in a field notebook, using grain size charts, locating themselves using a GPS and understanding the greenhouse effect) through fun activities like crafting, games and a scavenger hunt.

Learning about grain size, sorting and rounding through craft

Five different workshops were conducted: Introduction to Rocks and Minerals (Dr. Mark Torres, Allison Teletzke and Debadrita Jana), Using GPS Data (Brandee Carlson, Maria Furtney and Katherine Anarde), Controls on Earth’s Temperature and Climate Change (Samantha Breaux, assistant professors Sylvia Dee, and Laurence Yeung and postdoctoral fellow Jeanine Ash) and Animal Migration and Tracking on Campus (professor Cin-Ty Lee). During the activities, the girls and their parents asked several questions about future career options in Earth Science and about current research in the department. The girls also had the chance to visit assistant professor Mark Torres’ geochemistry lab and toured the department’s collection of rocks and minerals on the first floor.

The Girls Scouts learn about the effects of the Earth’s rising temperature with undergraduate student Sam Breaux, Dr. Laurence Yeung and Dr. Jeannine Ash 76 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Dr. Sylvia Dee and Allison Teletzke pose with grain size charts

OUTREACH

Thwaites Glacier ice shelf February 2019 Photo by L. Welzenbach

In April of 2018, EEPS faculty Dr. John Anderson and staff science writer Linda Welzenbach became part of a joint research initiative called the International Thwaites Glacier Collaboration (ITGC), launched by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.K. Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). This multi-national set of cross-disciplinary research projects seeks to substantially improve decadal and longer-term projections of ice loss and sea-level rise originating from Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica.

The specific project Anderson and Welzenbach are working on is being managed by the University of Houston principal investigator (and former student of John Anderson), Julia Wellner. THOR, Thwaites Glacier Offshore Research, focuses on collecting sedimentary records and observing glacial landforms preserved on the seafloor to reconstruct changes in historic climate drivers and the glacial response to them over decades to millennia.

Three cruises will be charted over the course of three years to the glacier where research activities will aim at establishing the historic climate boundary conditions seaward of the Thwaites Glacier grounding line (the boundary marking the transition from the landward ice sheet, and the seaward ice shelf). The ship-board activities include high-resolution geo-

physical surveys that will map the surface and subsurface of the seafloor and analysis of sediments collected in cores. In the Amundsen sea, targets for core samples will come from the inner shelf (seaward of the Thwaites Glacier grounding line) using a corer deployed through the ice shelf via hot water drill holes.

The goal of THOR is to provide geologic records of the external drivers of past climate change from historic grounding line migration and the chemical and physical conditions that were operating at the glacier’s base. This information will improve our knowledge of the processes that may lead to the future collapse of Thwaites. Such data will also provide insights on the influence of some of the current poorly understood processes impacting marine ice sheet dynamics.

Welzenbach provided real-time outreach from on board the Research Vessel/Icebreaker Nathanial B. Palmer (cruise #NBP1902) from 29 January through 22 March, 2019 that supported four of the eight other ITGC projects. You can read the cruise blog: https://earthscience.rice.edu/blog/ and https://thwaitesglacieroffshoreresearch.org/news/

The schematic, created by Anderson alumni Becky Totten Minzoni , Ph.D. ‘14, summarizes the fieldwork and methods that will be employed at Thwaites Glacier and the southern Amundsen Sea embayment shelf. Research cruises in 2019 and 2020 will collect information about the seafloor bathymetry and subsurface along with sedimentary cores from the grounding-line proximal to the distal glacimarine.

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DEPARTMENT NEWS

What sets the Shape of

By

Tian Dong SCIENCE in a FLASH is a program hosted by the Wiess School of Natural Sciences as part of Homecoming. Short presentations (no more than five minutes) are given by graduate and postdoctoral students representing each of the School’s programs.

“Science in a Flash is a wonderful learning experience. I’ve learned how to communicate science effectively to the general public, and gained experience with presenting in front of a large audience. It was also good to know that in the process of making the talk, I’ve learned that my research does have a lot of relevance to the community. It was fun because I got to share my science.” -Tian Dong 78 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

OUTREACH

In September, following a recommendation by professor and department chair Dr. Cin-Ty Lee, graduate student Tian Dong was contacted by the Director of Communications for the Wiess School of Natural Sciences to be the EEPS representative for Science in a Flash.

I also consulted with Laura Carter, former EEPS graduate student and veteran of 2017 Science in a Flash. We brainstormed about the implication and impact of my research, ultimately deciding that flooding was the most relevant, especially for those in the audience from Houston.

My broad research goal is to determine whether bank sediment, among other factors, can affect channel geometry. But in order to make that concept relatable to my audience, the information I presented was distilled to one idea: What factors set the shape of a river (or river channel geometry). River channel geometry has broad implications to the local community because of the impact it has on flooding.

We also used a highway analogy, a classic one used for river geomorphology to make the science more accessible. It just so happens that Houston’s highway is also easy to make fun of, the humor of which connected me with my audience. Using the highway analogy also helps the audience relate to river channels by describing how channels are a transportation network.

All the various concepts were devoid of jargon. Instead of terms like bankfull water/sediment discharge that set hydraulic geometry of river, I used flooding as the analogy.

Photo: Adam Brackman

Science in a Flash is not only an opportunity to engage Rice alumni, it also prepares graduate students to communicate science succinctly and accessibly. The organizers provide feedback from experts in science communication; Jade Boyd, science editor for Rice News, and Scott Solomon, Department of Biosciences lecturer. Feedback focuses on making the slides less busy and the message clearer.

Specifically, they want us to be explicit about our research outcomes and the importance of the outcome to everyday life.

Photo: Environmentaleader.com

“It was a great opportunity to show my research to alumni and learn how to communicate science to the public in the process. More importantly, it was a chance to represent our department, an honor for which Cin-Ty had entrusted me.”

The highways in Houston allow vehicles to transport people and cargo around the city. Similarly, river channels act as highways that ransport water, sediment and nutrients from upstream to downstream and to different parts of the floodplain. Highways are engineered as a typical form. Unlike highways, river channels possess many different forms and shapes. So what influences the shape and size of river channels? The answer to this question is important for flood control; the size of a channel determines how much water it can contain during flood events. Today, hundreds of millions of people live close to rivers, all with different risks for flooding. The answer will help engineers construct more effective levees against catastropic flood events.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 79

DEPARTMENT NEWS

What sets the shape of a river?

B

y answering this question, we hope to define formulas that can accurately predict the shape of a river channel for a given input parameter, such as the amount of rainfall.

The shape of a river can be viewed by the cross-sectional geometry of a river channel (figures on left side starting at the top), starting with the width and depth.

The shape of a river channel is then theorized to be set by the amount of water and sediment discharge they receive during a bankfull discharge event (in this case ~2 annual flood events).

Bankfull means that the water level is at the same elevation as the levees.

This theory works very well for rivers that are made of the same sediment size found on both the floodplain (the areas on either side of the levees) and the channel bottom.

The theory starts to unravel when the floodplain and channel are composed of different material. My research seeks to identify what additional information we need to better predict a riverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s geometry.

Because the rivers I am studying have different floodplain and channel sediment sizes, my hypothesis is that bank sediment size affects river channel geometry.

Photo: Tian Dong

To test this hypothesis, we collected bank sediment and hydraulic (water flow) data from the Selenga River delta in Russia (below). This river delta contains multiple types of channels, from braided (multiple channels) to meandering (single channel). In addition, both bed and bank sediment may be three orders of magnitude finer downstream, making it an ideal place to investigate a range of values for one system.

80 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

Based on data analysis (illustrated in the diagrams above) we found that channels with fine bank sediment size tend to be narrower and deeper than channels with a coarser sediment size, which are shallow and wide. We then developed the empirical equation to better predict the geometry of rivers. î˝&#x201D; Further Reading: Dong et al., 2016, doi:10.1130/B31427.1 Dong et al., 2018, doi:10.1029/2017WR021985

OUTREACH

University of Urbino

BY JOYEETA BHATTACHARYA

Photo: Joyeeta Bhattacharya

A SUMMER IN URBINO Ph.D. candidate Joyeeta Bhattacharya is one of ten U.S. participants (among 60 world-wide) selected to participate in the summer 2018 coveted Urbino Summer School in Paleoclimatology (USSP). The NSF sponsored fellowship is a three week long intensive course and workshop that provideS participants with an advanced working knowledge on paleobiological and geochemical proxy data and how they are used in the reconstruction and modeling of past climates. The summer school is taught by the world’s leading senior scientists, with student selections based on the strength of their research and recommendations.

Joyeeta’s participation at USSP continues an admirable Rice ‘tradition’ of placing our graduate students in prestigious international schools. For USSP, Joyeeta follows fellowships granted to Lizette Leon-Rodriguez (Ph.D., 2011) and Benjamin Slotnick (Ph.D., 2015)”, said Gerald Dickens, EEPS professor and advisor to Bhattacharya.

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 81

The summer school takes place over three weeks in July at the University of Urbino in the province of Pesaro-Urbino, Italy. The program covers a wide range of topics related to paleoclimate research. Eminent scientists provide instruction, including Dr. Hugh Jenkyns from Oxford University, Dr. James Zachos from UC Santa Cruz, Dr. Richard Zeebe from University of Hawaii, Dr. Appy Sluïjs from Utrecht University, Dr. Jerry Dickens from Rice University among many others.

The course subjects were arranged by geological time transect from the Proterozoic to the Quaternary. Lectures started with the fundamentals of geoscience and paleoclimate research, progressing towards climate change of deep time (Proterozoic and Mesozoic eras) to the Cretaceous greenhouse climate, sea level change and ocean anoxic events.

Photo: Joyeeta Bhattacharya

A day long field trip to the famous Tethyan sections in Contessa was the gem in the cap of the entire experience. One of the major highlights of the field trip was the K-Pg boundary site (red lines at the boundary contact in the image) where the Iridium anomaly and its association with K-Pg mass extinction was first discovered.

Course participants worked in small groups on projects studying lithofacies associations, cyclostratigraphy and their implications on past climate. Also covered was the period from the Eocene hothouse climate and hyperthermals to Oligocene glaciation. Participants had to present their findings from the field trip project which made the course a very interactive hands-on learning experience.

The final part of the course targeted Neogene climate science, Quaternary sedimentology and glacial-interglacial studies and culminating with a panel discussion on how paleoclimate research can address future climate change.

“Urbino Summer School in Paleoclimatology (USSP) was one of the most rewarding graduate school experiences for me. My Ph.D. supervisor Dr. Jerry Dickens had always encouraged me to apply for the NSF Scholarship that supports 10 early career researchers each year for an all-expense paid trip to USSP and in 2018 I was selected as one of the scholarship recipients to attend the USSP.”

82 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

OUTREACH

SedEdu

a sediment-related educational activity suite

Ph.D. candidate Andrew Moodie was invited to present a software developer clinic on his new computer-based interactive educational program at the 2019 Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System (CSDMS) meeting. https://csdms.colorado.edu/wiki/About_CSDMS

SedEdu is a suite of computer-based, interactive, educational activities for sedimentology and stratigraphy courses. SedEdu comprises modules which are coupled with activities that guide students through a concept, incrementally introducing components of the concept, testing for understanding and retention throughout the activity. The modules are computational and quantitative, but the code is abstracted through a graphical user interface (GUI) through which the user interacts with aspects of the computational model.

The SedEdu software framework was developed by Andrew J. Moodie, and modules and/ or activities have been contributed by Ph.D. candidate Brandee Carlson, Brady Foreman (Western Washington University), Kensuke Naito (Universidad de Ingenieria y Tecnologia, Peru), Jeffrey Kwang (University of Massachusetts, Amherst), and EEPS assistant professor Jeffrey Nittrouer; there are seven modules and seven activities/worksheets in the (current) version v1.1.6, and SedEdu is actively seeking developers of modules and activities.

The SedEdu project is due for publication in the Journal of Open Source Education. The paper describes the high level functionality of the software, provides a brief example of how a module has been integrated into a classroom and outlines future needs to enhance the software package.

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 83

DEPARTMENT NEWS

pellets.

84 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

LAB DIRT

OWLPELLETS

This OwlPellets captures the natural artistry, diversity and dirt that is a part of laboratory research. Test your analytical knowledge! Tell us which laboratory and what laboratory activity each image represents. Some of the answers can be found within this issue. Send your name, home address and answers to the editor (Lwelznebach@rice.edu) and receive a free department stress ball and sticker.

Enjoy!

Summer 2019 â&#x20AC;˘ Outcroppings 85

The Amundsen Sea, Thwaites Glacier Antarctica March 2019 Image: Linda Welzenbach

86 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

THE JOHN B. ANDERSON FELLOWSHIP FOR A SUSTAINABLE EARTH The Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences is pioneering a new frontier of systems thinking called Whole Earth Systems Science. We are studying how the ocean, atmosphere, biosphere and deep Earth interact to give us a habitable planet.

Students are working with complex datasets that span a vast array of processes, length scales and time scales to make predictions about the future of our planet.

The John B. Anderson Fellowship for a Sustainable Earth will help support the next generation of students to develop sciencebased solutions for the world’s most pressing problems through collaborative research with Houston’s unique combination of energy, medical, chemical and space sectors.

To help with this effort, consider giving to the Human Impacts Fund at: earthscience.rice.edu/giving

The Human Impacts on the Earth Endowment supports research and education in Earth systems science, through the building of a world class center in Earth, Environment and Energy.

For additional information please visit: https://earthscience.rice.edu/sustainearth/

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 87

2019 Department of Earth, Environmental 2017 earth science department and Planetary Sciences contribution form Contribution Form . Fill text ideas! Our development priorities .

Wewith needdepartment your help and are to grow the next generation of geoscientists, . who can navigate the complex world ahead of us. Our . ultimate goal is to build a center for sustaining the Earth, . . which ultimately will lead to an institute of the Earth, Environment and Energy. Towards these goals, we need . . help in establishing research support for students, enhancing opportunities for female geoscientists, building . . new analytical and computational facilities, adding new faculty lines through endowed chairs, and establishing . . . post-doctoral fellowships in partnership with industry . or the planetary community in Houston. . .

Contact Cin-Ty Lee for more information or if you have . . other ideas of how to enhance DEEPS (ctlee@rice.edu; . 713 348 5084) EEPS, Rice University, 6100 Main Street MS-126, Houston TX 77251-1892

Contributor Information Name Address City

State

ZIP Code

Country If we have questions, how may we contact you?

Phone ( Fax (

) )

Email

Contribution Options Check or money order enclosed. Please make checks payable to Rice University Check # Check amount $ Please charge my credit card: Visa Mastercard American Express Discover $ one-time charge OR Deduct $ per month until OR until further notice Credit card # Expiration Date Name on card Authorized signature

Contribution Opportunities $_______Human Impacts on the Earth Fund

$_______ Douglas and Martha Lou Broussard Memorial

This endowment kickstarts the building of the Rice Center for a Sustainable Earth

Fellowship Endowment Given to a graduate student in the later year(s) of their program, preference to female students

$_______Industry-Rice Earth Science Symposium IRESS

$_______ Devlin-Schnable Memorial Scholarship Fund

This endowment goes to supporting industry-Rice relationships through workshops, conferences and collaborations

88 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences

The award helps to offset the cost of summer field camp for Geology/Geophysics students

TOWARDS THE RICE CENTER FOR A SUSTAINABLE EARTH

Building a habitable planet in a complex and interconnected world through scientific discovery and communication To sustain 7 billion people in the world, it is necessary to consider energy, natural resources and the environment as one continuous spectrum, all part of a highly complex and interconnected system. We must worry about our impacts to the environment, but we also need reliable energy resources to sustain our economies and improve the lives of the world.

We are at a crossroads, where further progress requires an interdisciplinary approach, where we bring industry and academia together, and where we bring physicists, geologists, chemists, engineers and biologists together with economists, artists, writers, politicians and more.

Launched in 2014, the IRESS initiative offers a unique opportunity to bring together leaders in Earth and Environmental Science from both industry and academia.

THE FUNDRAISING CHALLENGE HAS BEGUN Initial momentum is building for our institute. To kickstart development, Mary Anne and William Dingus (B.A. ’81) formalized a challenge gift to the department to help establish an endowment called Human Impacts on the Earth. Their gift will match any donation or pledge of $2,500 or more to the fund. If we make this challenge we will have a $500,000 endowment to support research and education activities focused on understanding how to maintain a habitable planet. We are grateful for this generous gift and we hope you might consider contributing to this endowment or getting involved with the department by providing advice, helping our students and more.

HELP US BUILD THIS CENTER

TEXAS-SIZED GRAND CHALLENGES

Over the next five years, we will be building the center, with the ultimate goal of building an Institute of Earth, Environment and Energy. We will work with Houston’s energy, medical, chemical and space sectors to train the next generation of undergraduate and graduate students in complex systems thinking through Whole Earth Systems Science. We will pursue four grand challenges facing Houston and the Gulf Coast. However, we cannot do this alone. We will need your help. Come join us on this exciting journey of learning about our planet and how to make it more habitable. earthscience.rice.edu/giving

The city of Houston is the ideal place to develop new ways of tackling energy and environmental problems. How the Gulf Coast will move forward in the face of environmental change may ultimately be the template for sustainable growth for the world.

Towards a natural resource strategy The Texas coast: past, present & future Fluid flow in everyday life Planetary habitability and exploration

Summer 2019 • Outcroppings 89

Rice University Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences KWGL, MS-126 6100 Main Street Houston, TX 77005

90 Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences