Using fossil micrometeorites to examine the ancient Earth environment. This project aims to use fossil micrometeorites to provide fundamental new data on changes in the chemistry of the ancient Earth's upper atmosphere before, during and after the Great Oxidation Event, the most significant atmospheric change in Earth’s history. This would provide insights into variations in the extent of interaction between the upper and lower atmosphere across the Great Oxidation Event. The project will also u ....Using fossil micrometeorites to examine the ancient Earth environment. This project aims to use fossil micrometeorites to provide fundamental new data on changes in the chemistry of the ancient Earth's upper atmosphere before, during and after the Great Oxidation Event, the most significant atmospheric change in Earth’s history. This would provide insights into variations in the extent of interaction between the upper and lower atmosphere across the Great Oxidation Event. The project will also use these micrometeorites to investigate how the flux, composition and sources of extra-terrestrial material arriving on Earth changed over time.Read moreRead less
Groundwater in the southeast Murray Basin: Developing an integrated hydrogeological model and predicting future changes. Agricultural and urban development increases demands on groundwater resources. The sustainable use of groundwater requires a thorough knowledge of hydrogeology. This project addresses the origins, age, and geochemical evolution of groundwater in the Murray Basin, in particular constraining groundwater flow patterns, aquifer-aquitard interaction, water-rock interaction, and gro ....Groundwater in the southeast Murray Basin: Developing an integrated hydrogeological model and predicting future changes. Agricultural and urban development increases demands on groundwater resources. The sustainable use of groundwater requires a thorough knowledge of hydrogeology. This project addresses the origins, age, and geochemical evolution of groundwater in the Murray Basin, in particular constraining groundwater flow patterns, aquifer-aquitard interaction, water-rock interaction, and groundwater-surface water interactions both under present day and previous climatic conditions. The results of this project will ensure that this groundwater resource can be more effectively used and managed sustainably over the long term. In particular, historical responses of the system will be used to predict the effects of landuse or climate changes.Read moreRead less
Molecular Structure and Transport Properties of Hydrothermal Fluids under Extreme Conditions: Near-Critical, High Salinity, High Pressure and High Volatile Contents. The experimental capabilities, theoretical understanding, and numerical modeling methods developed in this project have broad implication for supporting both well-established (mineral exploration and ore processing) and emerging (geothermal energy; geosequestration) industries of core significance for the future of Australia's econo ....Molecular Structure and Transport Properties of Hydrothermal Fluids under Extreme Conditions: Near-Critical, High Salinity, High Pressure and High Volatile Contents. The experimental capabilities, theoretical understanding, and numerical modeling methods developed in this project have broad implication for supporting both well-established (mineral exploration and ore processing) and emerging (geothermal energy; geosequestration) industries of core significance for the future of Australia's economy. This project also provides access to unique technology developed overseas; this technology will be adapted for the unique challenges faced by Australia, and made available to the broader scientific community via the Australian Synchrotron.Read moreRead less
Tracking mass transport during metamorphism using in situ micro-analysis of minerals. The continental masses we inhabit developed in response to the colossal forces of plate tectonics. Through compression and heating, rocks of the crust can experience fluid loss or melting. Movement of these fluids or magmas can, among other things, impact on the heat budget of Earth, the carbon and water cycles and the formation of ores in the crust. This project will utilize state-of-the-art scientific instrum ....Tracking mass transport during metamorphism using in situ micro-analysis of minerals. The continental masses we inhabit developed in response to the colossal forces of plate tectonics. Through compression and heating, rocks of the crust can experience fluid loss or melting. Movement of these fluids or magmas can, among other things, impact on the heat budget of Earth, the carbon and water cycles and the formation of ores in the crust. This project will utilize state-of-the-art scientific instruments and methods to greatly improve our understanding of these issues, which, in turn, will enhance our knowledge of how the Earth's crust develops. Research training and development will be provided through two PhD projects supported through this project.Read moreRead less
The Geochemistry of Tellurium in Hydrothermal Environments and the Gold-Tellurium Association. Gold and base metal mining are some of Australia's principal export earners. Thus, improving the country's mining and geological exploration capabilities will be a considerable economic benefit to the whole community. The results of the project will yield information concerning how gold deposits form, improved techniques for gold exploration, and more environmentally friendly techniques for the process ....The Geochemistry of Tellurium in Hydrothermal Environments and the Gold-Tellurium Association. Gold and base metal mining are some of Australia's principal export earners. Thus, improving the country's mining and geological exploration capabilities will be a considerable economic benefit to the whole community. The results of the project will yield information concerning how gold deposits form, improved techniques for gold exploration, and more environmentally friendly techniques for the processing of gold-telluride ores. Read moreRead less
The geochemistry of trace elements with variable oxidation states. The understanding of many earth processes is based upon an interpretation of differences in the relative abundance and/or distribution of elements which occur in more than one oxidation state. However, the redox states that control the geochemical behaviour of an element in a melt are not necessarily retained on cooling. This work aims to determine the oxidation states of geologically important elements, in situ under magmatic ....The geochemistry of trace elements with variable oxidation states. The understanding of many earth processes is based upon an interpretation of differences in the relative abundance and/or distribution of elements which occur in more than one oxidation state. However, the redox states that control the geochemical behaviour of an element in a melt are not necessarily retained on cooling. This work aims to determine the oxidation states of geologically important elements, in situ under magmatic conditions, using XANES spectroscopy. The results will allow geological signatures to be correctly interpreted and allow models for topics ranging from ancient mantle temperatures to rates of melt migration to be better constrained.Read moreRead less
Weathering on Mars and Australian Analogues: Developing Suitable Chronological Tools and Theoretical Approaches. The research outlined in this proposal will place Australia at the forefront of Mars exploration research. It will lead to the development of new approaches for the analysis of minerals formed by low temperature water-rock interaction and for the interpretation of geochronological results obtained from supergene minerals. The new analytical approaches developed in this project will ha ....Weathering on Mars and Australian Analogues: Developing Suitable Chronological Tools and Theoretical Approaches. The research outlined in this proposal will place Australia at the forefront of Mars exploration research. It will lead to the development of new approaches for the analysis of minerals formed by low temperature water-rock interaction and for the interpretation of geochronological results obtained from supergene minerals. The new analytical approaches developed in this project will have direct application in the study of the paleoclimatological and environmental evolution of Earth and Mars. It will also result in improved understanding of environmental and landscape evolution in Australia, helping to reach the objectives of an Environmentally Sustainable Australia, a national research priority.Read moreRead less
The composition and transport of Australian air-borne dust: critical to continental and marine environments. This project will determine the composition of Australian airborne dust and effects on the environment and in particular soils, rainforests and the marine realm, including reefs. 'Fingerprinting' the chemical and microbiological content of aeolian dust is of particular relevance to determining its impact on the health of the Australian people and environment. Atmospheric conditions propit ....The composition and transport of Australian air-borne dust: critical to continental and marine environments. This project will determine the composition of Australian airborne dust and effects on the environment and in particular soils, rainforests and the marine realm, including reefs. 'Fingerprinting' the chemical and microbiological content of aeolian dust is of particular relevance to determining its impact on the health of the Australian people and environment. Atmospheric conditions propitious for dust entrainment and transport will be determined, and in particular atmospheric exchanges between Indonesia, southern Africa and Australia will be established. The relevance of aeolian dust to climate, ecosystems and biosecurity in our region will be established through the study of marine and lacustrine cores.Read moreRead less
Olympic Dam in a Test Tube: Critical Experiments and Theory for Understanding Fe-Cu-U-REE in Hydrothermal Fluids and during Fluid-Rock Interaction. Olympic Dam (OD) is a supergiant Cu-U-Au-Ag-REE ore deposit, containing more than a trillion Australian dollars worth of metals, and hosted by hematite-rich breccia in South Australia. Yet, key aspects of the geochemistry of OD-style deposits remain poorly understood. This project will conduct innovative experiments to address the role for fluorine i ....Olympic Dam in a Test Tube: Critical Experiments and Theory for Understanding Fe-Cu-U-REE in Hydrothermal Fluids and during Fluid-Rock Interaction. Olympic Dam (OD) is a supergiant Cu-U-Au-Ag-REE ore deposit, containing more than a trillion Australian dollars worth of metals, and hosted by hematite-rich breccia in South Australia. Yet, key aspects of the geochemistry of OD-style deposits remain poorly understood. This project will conduct innovative experiments to address the role for fluorine in Fe, U and REE transport at OD, and the role of fluid-rock interaction in generating the unusually oxidised Fe-Cu mineral assemblages and in controlling U grades and distribution. The fundamental information gained will underpin intense on-going research aimed at discovering new OD-style orebodies and at creating new ore-processing technology that are environmentally sustainable and able to access lower-grade ores.Read moreRead less
The hydrothermal solubility of molybdenum: A LA-ICPMS study of synthetic and natural fluid inclusions. The solubility of molybdenum under magmatic-hydrothermal conditions is essentially unknown. This study will, for the first time, identify the fundamental controls on molybdenum solubility in porphyry systems. This information will provide geologists with basic information on the transport and deposition of this important ore metal. In an allied study, the ore metals; copper, gold and molybdenum ....The hydrothermal solubility of molybdenum: A LA-ICPMS study of synthetic and natural fluid inclusions. The solubility of molybdenum under magmatic-hydrothermal conditions is essentially unknown. This study will, for the first time, identify the fundamental controls on molybdenum solubility in porphyry systems. This information will provide geologists with basic information on the transport and deposition of this important ore metal. In an allied study, the ore metals; copper, gold and molybdenum, will be traced through the Kidston porphyry system, Queensland. This will clarify the processes that lead to ore deposition, which will ultimately allow geologists to more effectively explore for porphyry-type deposits, a major target for Australian mining companies in the Pacific region.Read moreRead less