The time scales of geochemical cycles and earth processes. Precise information on timescales and rates of change is fundamental to understanding natural processes and the development and testing of quantitative physical models in the Earth Sciences. Uranium decay-series isotope studies are revolutionising this field by providing time information in the range 10^2-10^4 years, similar to that of many important Earth processes. This project will establish a world-class Australian Uranium-series res ....The time scales of geochemical cycles and earth processes. Precise information on timescales and rates of change is fundamental to understanding natural processes and the development and testing of quantitative physical models in the Earth Sciences. Uranium decay-series isotope studies are revolutionising this field by providing time information in the range 10^2-10^4 years, similar to that of many important Earth processes. This project will establish a world-class Australian Uranium-series research group to investigate the processes of magma formation and transport, continental growth, rates of erosion and recycling. These methodologies can also constrain processes governing water flow and reservoirs, mineral resources, volcanic eruptions, carbon cycles and other environmentally important processes/systems/cycles.Read moreRead less
Thallium isotopes: a novel geochemical tracer to map recycling in Earth's mantle. This project will transfer to Australia an advanced new methodology: the characterisation of thallium isotopic signatures in the mantle system introduced during recycling of crustal material. This will allow the tracking of fluid processes in the mantle system in a completely new way and will provide significant new information about the fluids that can percolate up from subduction zones. The source of most econo ....Thallium isotopes: a novel geochemical tracer to map recycling in Earth's mantle. This project will transfer to Australia an advanced new methodology: the characterisation of thallium isotopic signatures in the mantle system introduced during recycling of crustal material. This will allow the tracking of fluid processes in the mantle system in a completely new way and will provide significant new information about the fluids that can percolate up from subduction zones. The source of most economically interesting elements in the crust is from mantle-derived fluids, so their characterisation is critical to an understanding of the whole ore-forming process. Hence, this study will provide unique new information to apply to this important large-scale Earth problem.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE110100047
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$420,000.00
Summary
Events through time: eruptions, extinctions, impacts, ore-bodies and orogenies - upgrading the national argon geochronology network. Nine universities and the CSIRO will replace aged and obsolete equipment with new mass spectrometers which will be strategically placed at opposite ends of our continent to improve access for Australian researchers to these instruments for which there is high demand. These instruments will allow more exact dating of events such as eruptions, impacts, climate change ....Events through time: eruptions, extinctions, impacts, ore-bodies and orogenies - upgrading the national argon geochronology network. Nine universities and the CSIRO will replace aged and obsolete equipment with new mass spectrometers which will be strategically placed at opposite ends of our continent to improve access for Australian researchers to these instruments for which there is high demand. These instruments will allow more exact dating of events such as eruptions, impacts, climate change, biological extinctions, mineral deposits and mountain building.Read moreRead less
Mantle Melting Dynamics and the Influence of Recycled Components. This proposal is directly concerned with the continuing aim of building a sustainable Australia through knowledge of deep earth resources. The more we know about the processes of melting and melt and fluid migration the better we will be able to inform models for resource exploration and volcanic hazard mitigation. Uranium series isotopes are relevant to the very recent history of the planet (< 350 000 years) - time scales which a ....Mantle Melting Dynamics and the Influence of Recycled Components. This proposal is directly concerned with the continuing aim of building a sustainable Australia through knowledge of deep earth resources. The more we know about the processes of melting and melt and fluid migration the better we will be able to inform models for resource exploration and volcanic hazard mitigation. Uranium series isotopes are relevant to the very recent history of the planet (< 350 000 years) - time scales which are often overlooked. Application to mantle melting as described in this proposal may also have direct application to gold exploration in the Manus basin and elsewhere. It is to these techniques we must look if we are to understand the immediate past as a clue to the immediate future of our planet.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0453555
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$109,595.00
Summary
Luminescence stimulation and detection facility for dating of Quaternary geological and archaeological sediments. Reliable ages are required in the Earth and archaeological sciences. Luminescence dating is a flexible geochronological technique for diverse deposits. It exploits the radiation-induced thermally (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) emissions from minerals exposed to sunlight before burial. Recent technical developments have made feasible OSL dating of small samples (e.g. ....Luminescence stimulation and detection facility for dating of Quaternary geological and archaeological sediments. Reliable ages are required in the Earth and archaeological sciences. Luminescence dating is a flexible geochronological technique for diverse deposits. It exploits the radiation-induced thermally (TL) and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) emissions from minerals exposed to sunlight before burial. Recent technical developments have made feasible OSL dating of small samples (e.g., individual sand grains) and sediments deposited during the past 0.5-1 million years. We request funds for a Risø TL/OSL system with single-grain attachment to resolve the timing of sea-level, climate and landscape changes, and the chronology of human evolution and dispersal, in Australia and Southeast Asia.Read moreRead less
How has the continental lithosphere evolved? Processes of assembly, growth, transformation and destruction. We will use new in-situ analytical techniques, developed In-house, to date the formation and modification of specific volumes of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle, and to define the temporal and genetic relationships between mantle events and crustal formation. Quantitative modelling will investigate the geodynamic consequences of spatial and temporal variations in lithosphere composi ....How has the continental lithosphere evolved? Processes of assembly, growth, transformation and destruction. We will use new in-situ analytical techniques, developed In-house, to date the formation and modification of specific volumes of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle, and to define the temporal and genetic relationships between mantle events and crustal formation. Quantitative modelling will investigate the geodynamic consequences of spatial and temporal variations in lithosphere composition and thermal state. Magmatic products will be used to assess the roles of mantle plumes and delamination in construction of the lithosphere and xenolith studies will investigate the evolution of oceanic plateaus. The results will provide a framework for interpreting the architecture of lithospheric terranes and their boundaries.Read moreRead less
How has continental lithosphere evolved? Processes of assembly, growth, transformation and destruction. Novel in-situ analytical and dating techniques will be used on samples from the Earth's mantle and deep crust to define the processes by which the continents and their roots (to depths of 250 km) have been formed, modified or destroyed at different times throughout Earth's 4.6 billion year evolution. The role of oceanic plateaus and mantle plumes in building protocontinents or modifying lithos ....How has continental lithosphere evolved? Processes of assembly, growth, transformation and destruction. Novel in-situ analytical and dating techniques will be used on samples from the Earth's mantle and deep crust to define the processes by which the continents and their roots (to depths of 250 km) have been formed, modified or destroyed at different times throughout Earth's 4.6 billion year evolution. The role of oceanic plateaus and mantle plumes in building protocontinents or modifying lithospheric volumes will be evaluated. The results will provide a more robust framework for interpreting the architecture of Earth's lithosphere and will have relevance to the formation and location of resources such as Ni, PGEs, Au and diamonds.Read moreRead less
Crustal Evolution in Australia: Ancient and Young Terrains. The mechanisms of crustal growth and the processes of crust-mantle interaction will be studied in selected Archean, Proterozoic and Phanerozoic terrains in Australia, using a newly developed approach: the integrated, in-situ microanalysis of Hf and Pb isotopic composition and trace-element patterns in zircons from sediments and selected igneous bodies. The results will provide new information on the evolution of the Australian crust, w ....Crustal Evolution in Australia: Ancient and Young Terrains. The mechanisms of crustal growth and the processes of crust-mantle interaction will be studied in selected Archean, Proterozoic and Phanerozoic terrains in Australia, using a newly developed approach: the integrated, in-situ microanalysis of Hf and Pb isotopic composition and trace-element patterns in zircons from sediments and selected igneous bodies. The results will provide new information on the evolution of the Australian crust, with wider implications for the development of global crust and mantle reservoirs. The outcomes will define crustal evolution signatures related to regional-scale mineralisation, and thus will be highly relevant to mineral exploration in Australia and offshore.Read moreRead less
Where to find giant porphyry and epithermal gold and copper deposits. This project will determine when and where giant gold or copper deposits should form, consolidating links with Indonesia, and using South East Asia as a vast natural laboratory in which to examine the effect of large-scale tectonic processes. The project will produce a four-dimensional virtual exploration toolkit to show how to apply the methods.
Radiocarbon dating frontiers: Testing hypotheses of human evolution and environmental change in Australasia and Southeast Asia (60,000-25,000 years ago). Radiocarbon (14C) dating has revolutionised our understanding of archaeological events and past environments. However, much of the period 60,000-25,0000 years ago is beyond the traditional limit of the method (40,000 years). This is unfortunate as this period is characterised by rapid, extreme shifts in climate during which the global spread ....Radiocarbon dating frontiers: Testing hypotheses of human evolution and environmental change in Australasia and Southeast Asia (60,000-25,000 years ago). Radiocarbon (14C) dating has revolutionised our understanding of archaeological events and past environments. However, much of the period 60,000-25,0000 years ago is beyond the traditional limit of the method (40,000 years). This is unfortunate as this period is characterised by rapid, extreme shifts in climate during which the global spread of modern humans took place. This project will utilise the latest developments in 14C dating (allowing ages up to 60,000 years ago) to test hypotheses concerning the timing of human arrival and settlement in Southeast Asia and Australasia, their environmental impact, and the synchroneity of climate change between the hemispheres.Read moreRead less