Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs

Publication Date

Spring 5-13-2023

Abstract

Bulk hydrogen isotopes in nominally anhydrous meteorites are a key component in our understanding of the distribution of hydrogen in our solar system, including the provenance of water on the Earth. Here, we develop a step-heated continuous-flow method to measure the bulk hydrogen isotopes in nominally anhydrous rocks and use this method to significantly increase the dataset of bulk hydrogen isotopes in ordinary chondrites, nearly doubling the number of equilibrated members. We found that as thermal alteration increases from petrologic type 3.0 to 4, there is a correlated decrease in both hydrogen content and isotope ratio, followed by no significant change beyond 4. We associate this with as the destruction heavy insoluble organic matter as thermal metamorphism progresses. We suggest when considering ordinary chondrites as a component of mixing models, a δD of 12‰ be considered representative of the class.

Degree Name

Earth and Planetary Sciences

Level of Degree

Masters

Department Name

Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences

First Committee Member (Chair)

Zachary Sharp

Second Committee Member

Adrian Brearley

Third Committee Member

Carl Agee

Language

English

Keywords

Meteorite, Chondrite, Isotope, Hydrogen, Ordinary, Geology

Document Type

Thesis

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