Profiles of Alumni & Friends

structural geology

Hans is a structural geologist interested in how the crust deforms during mountain building and along transform margins.

geology, exploration geophysics

Bert, former head of research at Shell and past chair of the department, is a geologist who brings together geophysics and field relations to investigate the origin and evolution of mountain belts and sedimentary basins

My Master’s research will focus on reef upper slope morphologies in Belize and in particular focusing on identify drowned Terraces, Notches, and Overhangs and other morphological features, among them, drowned Barrier Reefs and Spurs and Groves. My initial research, starting in Spring 2019 semester and 2019 summer, will consist of processing the MBES data sets and then display the overall bathymetry of Lighthouse Reef upper slopes, develop some interpretation in terms of sea level fluctuations in the Late Quaternary mostly in the water depth range of a few m down to 150 m, and perhaps in the Plio-Early Quaternary for the depth range as deep as 400m.

Sedimentology, Stable Isotope Geochemistry, Carbon Cycle, Marine Geology, Paleoclimatology and Paleoceanography

I am currently working on deep marine sediments to understand what impact climate changes (especially through Eocene) had on ocean floor sedimentation. My other interest is to tie up these deep ocean sedimentary dynamics with changes in deposition pattern in shallow marine setting in times of extreme warmth, like PETM and early Eocene Hyperthermals.

volcanism, Hawaii, two-phase flow, bubbles, solubility, numerical modeling, deformation

My thesis focused on how magma is transported from depth to the surface at Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii. A great natural laboratory for this is Hawaii, where a long-lived eruption is ongoing (1983-present).

Using synthetic biology to develop a microbial biosensor for use in soil systems.

Magmatism-tectonism-climate interaction, evolutions of continents

I am interested in the structures and evolutions of continental arcs and how the geological processes (e.g. magmatism, tectonism, erosion) contribute to the formation of continents and their impacts on global climate.

Geophysics, full waveform tomography, ambient noise, earthquakes, tectonics, lithospheric structure, mantle melt

Seismic tomography of the crust and the upper mantle. Interpretations of seismic images regarding the formation of tectonic units such as plateaus, basins, and orogens.

Experimental Petrology, Geochemistry, Igneous processes, sulfur in subduction zone

I am interested in Earth's deep sulfur cycle, the fate of sulfur at subduction zones and deep mantle processes that constrain the stability and mobility of sulfur and it's phases in our planet.

Petrology, Metamorphism, Thermodyanmics, Decarbonation

I have a long-standing research interest in developing petrological thermodynamics and kinetics. I combine the modeling tools with field geology and geochemistry, to understand the histories recorded in natural rocks and the tectonic evolution of orogenic belts.

structural geology, metamorphic petrology, deformation mechanisms, strain localization, seismic anisotropy, geochronology, orogenic architecture, subduction zone geology

Seismology, Tectonics

I focus on creating high-resolution seismic images of the crust and upper mantle with passive data to learn about the temporal evolution of the continental lithosphere in both actively deforming and stable (cratonic) regions.

Field and structural geology + numerical modeling applied to terrestrial and planetary science questions

paleooceanography, marine geology, stratigraphy

Jerry is a chemist and oceanographer who combines these interests to look at a range of topics, mostly in sediments and sedimentary rocks.

Eisenberg, William, Will, Texas, TCU, Texas Christian University, fun, Broman, William C. Eisenberg, Bill, Billy, Houston, Fort Worth

Understanding uniaxial compressive strength changes in different lithologies is important to understand the changes in behavior of rocks under confinement in the subsurface. While laboratory testing often assesses the strength of a particular lithology, there are few studies such as that by Deere and Miller (1966) that compare a large variety of different lithologies and their overall strength. Here, we present a data compilation of strain at failure under uniaxial compression for various lithologies in order to show how widely strain data can vary in a given lithology and between different lithologies. Metadata for the study were obtained through searching existing literature. We show that the lithology strongly controls the amount of strain that a material can accumulate prior to failure and that rocks fall within predictable ranges of strain prior to failing under uniaxial compression.

Energy Industry, Oil & Gas, Finance, Energy Consulting

Highly motivated students with direct analytical and results-driven experience in industry and academy. Seeking professional development opportunities to leverage and to improve my skills in energy consulting and industry analysis.

Particle-based modeling, numerical modeling, tectonics, geomorphology, surface processes, landscape evolution

My doctoral research focuses on developing a particle-based numerical model of the coupled tectonic and geomorphologic processes along the Hikurangi margin on the Northern Island of New Zealand.

volcanology, geophysics

https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-furtney-62a49263

Experimental Petrology, Geochemistry, Planetary Sciences

Antarctica, sedimentology, glacial dynamics, geomorphology

geochemistry; U-Pb geochronology; pseudotachylite; arc unroofing; agate;

physical volcanology, kimberlites, rheology, field volcanology

Geochemistry of Volatiles C-N-S-H & Chalcophile-Siderophile Elements; Planetary Magma Oceans; Geofluids; Ore Deposits

Clumped isotopes of O2
Ocean science
Primary production
O2/Ar

Project1:
Kinetic isotope effects for O2 air-water gas transfer and implications for estimating marine gross oxygen productivity and clumped isotope signature during gas transfer.
Measured the first time triple oxygen kinetic fractionation factors and kinetic fractionation signals for clumped O2 like 36O2 and 35O2. We tried to apply the factors to calibrate the kinetic effects happened on the surface ocean in order to better estimate the GOP (Gross oxygen production) of the surface ocean.
Project2: The potential impact of bubble injection of air to the estimate of net oxygen production (NOP) in the surface ocean

geochemistry, geodynamics, inverse method, high-order numerical simulation

Boda uses numerical models to study melt-related processes. Areas of interests include mid-ocean ridges, silicic volcanoes, and lunar magma ocean. Boda prefers simple intuitive models that reconcile multidisciplinary observations. The research goal is to understand the role of magmatism in the evolution of Earth system and other planetary bodies.

discrete element model, fractures, microstructural evolution

My research focus is on numerical simulations of biaxial experiments using a discrete element model. I hope to understand the microstructural evolution in rocks from fracture initiation to failure and beyond.

Sediment Transport, Geomorphology, Two-phase flow, Stochastic Modeling, Environmental Fluid Mechanics

serpentinite, igneous and metamorphic petrology, geochemistry, arcs

Oceanography, Geochemistry, Biogeochemistry, Arctic, Environmental

Hello! My name is Clint Miller. I am a geochemist at Rice University. My research focuses on understanding the biogeochemistry of shallow organic-rich ocean sediments. These sediments undergo complex alteration prior to deep burial. Specific locations of study include Arctic East Siberian continental shelf/slope, offshore Peru, and Sea of Japan.

sediment transport, geomorphology, stratigraphy, bedforms

Geologist, Geoscientist, Carbonates, Log Analysis, Petrophysics, Geophysics, Mapping, Perta, ArcGIS, PowerLog, Risk Management, Reservoir Modeling

Coastal Geology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy, Paleotempestology.

Planetary Sciences, Mars, Magmatic Processes, Sedimentary Processes, Geochemistry, Experimental Petrology

Glacial geology, marine geology, sedimentology, stratigraphy

My research is motivated by the need for an understanding of complex ice-ocean interactions that influence ice sheet stability. Using detailed sedimentology coupled with high-resolution bathymetric data, I define paleo-environments that are critical in determining timing, rates, style, and processes involved in past ice sheet retreat. My work is centered on Antarctic glacial margins, primarily in the Ross Sea and Marguerite Bay.

Fault zone imaging, surface waves, seismic interferometry, 4-D imaging

My research mainly focuses on Multi-scale imaging and monitoring of the upper crust and Fault Zones. I’m particularly interested in integrating high resolution imaging of fault zone structures, based on fault zone head and trapped waves along with P and S body waves, with larger scale ambient noise tomography for the surrounding crust. Additional research interests include monitoring seismic velocity temporal change, and inverse problem.

My research combines radiogenic isotope and trace element geochemistry, volatile and sulfur isotope analyses in mineral-hosted melt inclusions, petrology, field work (i.e., marine expeditions) and simple geodynamic equations to investigate the geochemical cycles of the deep Earth. In particular, I examine the deep cycles of sulfur and water to investigate whether or not volatiles are lost during subduction or fluxed back from the mantle to the surface through magmatism and degassing. My research also focusses on the petrogenesis of subduction zone magmas, the composition of the fluids released during subduction processes and mantle heterogeneities.

Geochemical characterization of ash beds in the Cretaceous Eagle Ford Formation with interest in dissolved ash serving as a biological nutrient.

Experimental petrology ; Igneous processes ; Continental lithospheric mantle; Mid Lithospheric Discontinuity; Cratons ; Amphibole ; Phlogopite

Metasomatic processes in the continental lithospheric mantle and their role in physical and chemical properties beneath continents.

marine geophysics, tectonophysics

Dale is a tectonophysicist that brings together active source seismology, geodynamic modeling, and remote-sensing to investigate the structure and evolution of the crust and sedimentary basins.

Seismic data interpretation, attribute analysis, structural geology, seismic reflection data processing, hyper-extension

I currently focus on the Galicia-Newfoundland conjugate margins and how the extension factor (β) is related to narrow and wide rifting modes, and oceanic core complexes.

isotope geochemistry, mass spectrometry, volcanology, paleoclimatology, analytical technique and method development, aqueous geochemistry

geophysics, modeling

Geophysics, Mantle dynamics

Seismology, Geophysics

I am exploiting and developing works in mathematics (inverse theory, optimization, numerical linear algebra) and computer science (massively parallel algorithms, computational geometry) for geophysical applications from regional to planetary scales.

geology, geoscience, energy, oil, gas, business, graduate, masters

pyrogenic organic carbon, atmospheric chemistry, biosphere-atmosphere-climate interactions

Geologist, Petrophysicist, Geomechanics, Pore Pressure Prediction, Well Log Analyst, Drilling Parameter Interpretation, Seismic Data Interpretation, Code Development, Texas A&M University

Inverse problems, computational geophysics, software engineering

computational methods for simulation and inverse problems in geophysics, mathematical and numerical analysis of partial differential equations governing wave propagation, software for simulation and optimization.

Stable isotope geochemistry, chemical oceanography, biogeochemistry, geomicrobiology.

I am interested in developing novel clumped isotope tracers to help understand biogeochemical cycling in the past and the present. I aim to apply stable isotope techniques to better characterize microbial processes in the surface and deep ocean.

I have done two independent projects. For the first I examined stromatolite growth and distribution to determine paleoclimate of the area and for the second I imaged the depth of the Moho beneath Princeton.

petrophysics, compaction trends, pore structure evolution, Lattice-Boltzmann, fracture propogation

My research focus lies in understanding petrophysical responses of shale and pore-structure evolution upon fluid injection and expansion.

Plate Tectonics, Geodynamics, Tectonophysics.

Plate velocities relative to global hotspot reference frame;
Hotspot motion from surface observation of hotspot track trends;
Pattern of seismic anisotropy and relationship with absolute plate motion.

Structural Geology; Reservoir Characterization; Well logging; Discrete Element Method; Geomechanics

Numerical Simulations of Forearc Deformation and Stress Switching

Ice core; paleoclimate; stable isotope geochemistry

I am interested in understanding Earth's past climate on glacial-interglacial timescale by measuring the isotopic composition of gases (particularly oxygen) trapped in ice cores.

geophysics, seismology, crust and lithosphere

1. Investigated the Cocos-Nazca-Pacific Plate circuit non-closure from latest bathymetry dataset. Identified the new Malpelo and Coiba plate from Nazca plate separated by diffuse plate boundary.

2. Conducted structural modeling of North America and South America plate, and Qaidam Basin, by fluid mechanics methods. Applied thin viscous sheet models to diffuse plate boundaries of both oceanic crust and continental crust, estimated the strain rate and investigated deformation in this region.

3. Investigated oblique spreading of mid-ocean ridges by comparing the strikes with directions determined from best-fitting angular velocity. Built geodynamic models to analyze plume effects and the stress and strain field of the oceanic lithosphere.