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Geochemical and geophysical indicators of oil and gas wastewater can trace potential exposure pathways following releases to surface waters

Releases of oil and gas (OG) wastewaters can have complex effects on stream-water quality and downstream organisms, due to sediment-water interactions and groundwater/surface water exchange. Previously, elevated concentrations of sodium (Na), chloride (Cl), barium (Ba), strontium (Sr), and lithium (Li), and trace hydrocarbons were determined to be key markers of OG wastewater releases when combine
Authors
Isabelle M. Cozzarelli, Douglas B. Kent, Martin A. Briggs, Mark A Engle, Adam Benthem, Katherine Skalak, Adam Mumford, Jeanne B. Jaeschke, Aida Farag, John W. Lane, Denise M. Akob

Four-dimensional thermal evolution of the East African Orogen: Accessory phase petrochronology of crustal profiles through the Tanzanian Craton and Mozambique Belt, northeastern Tanzania

U–Pb petrochronology of deep crustal xenoliths and outcrops across northeastern Tanzania track the thermal evolution of the Mozambique Belt and Tanzanian Craton following the Neoproterozoic East African Orogeny (EAO) and subsequent Neogene rifting. At the craton margin, the upper–middle crust record thermal quiescence since the Archean (2.8–2.5 Ga zircon, rutile, and apatite in granite and amphibo
Authors
Francisco E. Apen, Roberta L. Rudnick, John M. Cottle, Andrew R.C. Kylander-Clark, Madalyn S. Blondes, Phil Piccoli, Gareth Seward

Estimating the net costs of brine production and disposal to expand pressure-limited dynamic capacity for basin-scale CO2 storage in a saline formation

If carbon capture and storage (CCS) needs to be deployed at basin- or larger-scale, it is likely that multiple sites will be injecting carbon dioxide (CO2) into the same geologic formation. This could lead to excessive pressure buildup, overlapping induced pressure fronts, and pressure interference with neighboring uses of the subsurface. Extracting the in situ brine from the storage formation cou
Authors
Steven T. Anderson, Hossein Jahediesfanjani

Examination of inertinite within immature Eagle Ford Shale at the nanometer-scale using atomic force microscopy-based infrared spectroscopy

The nanoscale molecular composition of sedimentary organic matter is challenging to characterize in situ given the limited tools available that can adequately interrogate its complex chemical structure. This is a particularly relevant issue in source rocks, as kerogen composition will strongly impact its reactivity and so is critical to understanding petroleum generation processes during catagenes
Authors
Aaron M. Jubb, Paul C. Hackley, Justin E. Birdwell, Javin J. Hatcherian, Jing Qu

Photoluminescence imaging of whole zircon grains on a petrographic microscope—An underused aide for geochronologic studies

The refractory nature of zircon to temperature and pressure allows even a single zircon grain to preserve a rich history of magmatic, metamorphic, and hydrothermal processes. Isotopic dating of micro-domains exposed in cross-sections of zircon grains allows us to interrogate this history. Unfortunately, our ability to select the zircon grains in a heavy mineral concentrate that records the most ge

Authors
Ryan J. McAleer, Aaron M. Jubb, Paul C. Hackley, Gregory J. Walsh, Arthur J. Merschat, Sean P. Regan, William C. Burton, Jorge A. Vazquez

Introduction to Special Issue: Gas Hydrates in Green Canyon Block 955, deep-water Gulf of Mexico: Part I

No abstract available. 
Authors
Ray Boswell, Timothy Collett, Ann E. Cook, Peter B. Flemings

Pressure coring operations during The University of Texas-Gulf of Mexico 2-1 (UT-GOM2-1) Hydrate Pressure Coring Expedition in Green Canyon Block 955, northern Gulf of Mexico

In May 2017, The University of Texas Hydrate Pressure Coring Expedition Gulf of Mexico 2-1 (UT-GOM2-1) drilled two adjacent holes in Green Canyon Block 955 in the deep-water Gulf of Mexico as part of The University of Texas at Austin and US Department of Energy Deepwater Methane Hydrate Characterization and Scientific Assessment. Expedition operations included testing two configurations of a rotar
Authors
Carla Thomas, Stephen C. Phillips, Peter B. Flemings, Manasij Santra, Helen Hammon, Timothy Collett, Ann Cook, Tom Pettigrew, Mike Mimitz, Melanie Holland, Peter Schultheiss

Comparability and reproducibility of biomarker ratio values measured by GC-QQQ-MS

The Norwegian Geochemical Standard North Sea Oil-1 was analyzed by gas chromatography triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC-QQQ-MS) on two instruments using independently developed analytical methods. Biomarker ratios determined by GC-QQQ-MS were compared to each other and to previously reported values determined by gas chromatography single quadrupole mass spectrometry (GC-Q-MS) or flame ioniza
Authors
Katherine L. French, Arne Leider, Christian Hallmann

Position-specific distribution of hydrogen isotopes in natural propane: Effects of thermal cracking, equilibration and biodegradation

Intramolecular isotope distributions, including isotope clumping and position specific fractionation, can provide proxies for the formation temperature and formation and destruction pathways of molecules. In this study, we explore the position-specific hydrogen isotope distribution in propane. We analyzed propane samples from 10 different petroleum systems with high-resolution molecular mass spect
Authors
Hao Xie, Camilo Ponton, Michael Formolo, Michael Lawson, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Michael Lewan, Alexandre A. Ferreira, Erica T. Morais, Andre D. Spigolon, Alex L. Sessions, John M. Eiler

Geomagnetism Program research plan, 2020–2024

The Geomagnetism Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) monitors geomagnetic field variation through operation of a network of observatories across the United States and its territories, and it pursues scientific research needed to estimate and assess geomagnetic and geoelectric hazards. Over the next five years (2020–2024 inclusive) and in support of national and agency priorities, Geomagne
Authors
Jeffrey J. Love, Anna Kelbert, Benjamin S. Murphy, E. Joshua Rigler, Kristen A. Lewis

Assessment of undiscovered gas resources of the Sacramento Basin Province in California, 2019

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 512 billion cubic feet of gas in the Upper Jurassic–Neogene Total Petroleum System of the Sacramento Basin Province in California.
Authors
Christopher J. Schenk, Tracey J. Mercier, Marilyn E. Tennyson, Cheryl A. Woodall, Kristen R. Marra, Heidi M. Leathers-Miller, Phuong A. Le