Establishment of a Facility for 40Ar/39Ar Geochronology

该奖项为购买一台质谱仪提供资金，该质谱仪将在休斯顿大学地球科学系安装和操作。该仪器将主要用于氩气的同位素分析，以便使用钾-氩放射性衰变技术确定火成岩、变质岩和沉积岩的形成年龄和加热-冷却循环的年表。确定地壳岩石温度-时间历史的能力是理解各种构造问题、评估化石燃料和地热能源以及破译活火山省火山活动模式的关键。这个实验室设施也将供莱斯大学和其他区域研究组织的研究人员使用。

This award provides funding for the acquisition of a mass spectrometer to be installed and operated in the Department of Geosciences at the University of Houston. The instrument will be devoted primarily to isotopic analysis of argon gas in order to determine ages of formation and the chronology of heating-cooling cycles in igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks using potassium-argon radioactive decay techniques. An ability to determine temperature-time histories in crustal rocks is the key to understanding a variety of tectonic problems, evaluating fossil fuel and geothermal energy sources, and deciphering the pattern of volcanism in active volcanic provinces. This laboratory facility will also be available for use by researchers at Rice University and other regional research organizations.