Date of Award:

5-2009

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Geosciences

Department name when degree awarded

Geology

Committee Chair(s)

John W. Shervais

Committee

John W. Shervais

Committee

W. David Liddell

Committee

Peter T. Kolesar

Abstract

Sedimentary rocks are an important source of information about previous orogenic conditions and the composition of which may describe the evolution of provenance and tectonic setting. Many factors influence sediment composition, namely, source rock composition, chemical weathering, climate, transport burial, and diagenesis. As the sediment composition changes through time, the geochemical characteristics of the sediment can be used to understand its geologic history.

The geochemical characteristics of clastic sedimentary rocks are useful in determining the depositional setting and its associated provenance. Although many different studies have used geochemical discriminants to evaluate provenance and tectonic settings, none have used a defined geochemical method. This study evaluates the present-day geochemical approaches to see which, if any, are the most useful.

Checksum

54777296bbc33036f832a9025a0245c8

Included in

Geology Commons

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