Periodic Reporting for period 1 - PROGRESS (Reading provenance from ubiquitous quartz: understanding the changes occurring in its lattice defects in its journey in time and space by physical methods)
Berichtszeitraum: 2023-01-01 bis 2025-06-30
Quantitative provenance analysis is key to understanding tectonic and climatic processes shaping Earth's landscape. While quartz is the most abundant sedimentary mineral, provenance studies often focus on accessory minerals. Quartz crystals contain numerous point defects, either intrinsic or due to impurities. Though the formation and dynamics of these defects are not fully understood, some are used to date Quaternary sediments through luminescence (thermoluminescence (TL) or optically stimulated luminescence (OSL)) and electron spin resonance (ESR).
PROGRESS aims to demonstrate that quartz point defects carry genetic information, offering insights into antiquity, metamorphism, weathering, transport, and recycling. This can be revealed using ESR and luminescence methods alongside microscopic techniques like scanning electron microscopy with cathodoluminescence (CL) spectroscopy. PROGRESS analyses quartz from dated continental crust sources, metamorphosed vs. unmetamorphosed rocks, fresh vs. weathered samples, and intrusive vs. volcanic rocks, alongside laboratory experiments. Studying river sediments from diverse lithologies will help develop a quartz-based fingerprinting method, significantly advancing quantitative provenance studies.
The sediment rooting concept integrates tectonic fluxes and climate-driven erosion, central to modern Earth surface process studies. It relies on tracking mineral grains from source to sink. Quartz's durability ensures its representation in daughter sediments. Despite its abundance, quartz is often overlooked in favour of accessory minerals like zircon, limiting quantitative analysis and missing grain modifications during transport. PROGRESS seeks to prove quartz defects can reveal information about host rock type, age, weathering, transport, and recycling. ESR, luminescence methods, and CL spectroscopy will uncover these insights. Unlike trace element analysis, these physical methods detect dynamic defects, enabling differentiation between rocks of varying compositions, ages, and histories.
PROGRESS aims to demonstrate that quartz point defects carry genetic information, offering insights into antiquity, metamorphism, weathering, transport, and recycling. This can be revealed using ESR and luminescence methods alongside microscopic techniques like scanning electron microscopy with cathodoluminescence (CL) spectroscopy. PROGRESS analyses quartz from dated continental crust sources, metamorphosed vs. unmetamorphosed rocks, fresh vs. weathered samples, and intrusive vs. volcanic rocks, alongside laboratory experiments. Studying river sediments from diverse lithologies will help develop a quartz-based fingerprinting method, significantly advancing quantitative provenance studies.
The sediment rooting concept integrates tectonic fluxes and climate-driven erosion, central to modern Earth surface process studies. It relies on tracking mineral grains from source to sink. Quartz's durability ensures its representation in daughter sediments. Despite its abundance, quartz is often overlooked in favour of accessory minerals like zircon, limiting quantitative analysis and missing grain modifications during transport. PROGRESS seeks to prove quartz defects can reveal information about host rock type, age, weathering, transport, and recycling. ESR, luminescence methods, and CL spectroscopy will uncover these insights. Unlike trace element analysis, these physical methods detect dynamic defects, enabling differentiation between rocks of varying compositions, ages, and histories.
PROGRESS aims to establish easily quantifiable quartz defects as provenance indicators. Luminescence and ESR signal changes in the rock cycle are not well understood. Effective fingerprinting requires stable signals matching host rocks and, ideally, unchanged over time and transport. We hypothesize that dynamic signals in quartz can indicate residence time in temporary storage environments, a challenge for traditional accessory mineral methods.
Laboratory experiments support deductive reasoning, though they can't fully replicate geological timescales or extreme conditions. Thus, PROGRESS also uses natural samples to reflect geological processes, combining deductive and inductive reasoning. Our multiscale approach spans from billions to thousands of years, aiming to develop a quartz-based fingerprinting method impactful for provenance studies.
Using loess samples, we found that E1' (oxygen deficiency) and peroxy (oxygen excess) signal intensities, along with OSL sensitivity, are higher in regions with ancient source rocks, supporting our hypothesis. We analysed quartz from rocks with known crystallization or detrital zircon U-Pb ages and their sediments, focusing on natural cause-effect relationships.
PROGRESS significantly advanced quartz defect understanding as provenance indicators. Our findings support the hypothesis that oxygen-related defects form via inefficient geological processes like alpha damage. A key milestone was establishing a unique multi-spectral lab integrating OSL, TL, ESR, and CL on an SEM platform, enabling micron-scale luminescence and defect studies.
In Work Package I (Source Rock), we sampled granitoids in southeast Arizona's Basin and Range and studied regional metamorphism effects in Romania's South Carpathians (Albesti Granite). Work Package II (Sediment Conveyor Belt) explored sediment changes during transport, sunlight exposure, and irradiation, with samples from diverse lithologies.
We examined sandstones from Eastern Europe (Fusaru, Kliwa formations, and Yampil Member) to assess geological controls on quartz's trapped charge characteristics. Single-grain OSL analysis distinguished sediments from single vs. multiple sources and revealed factors like metamorphism affecting quartz sensitivity. Combining OSL, TL, ESR, and CL analyses, we studied quartz sensitization (increase in light output delivered per unit dose) mechanisms in granites of known ages (Catalina and Retezat granites). Higher OSL sensitization by exposure to light and dosing in Catalina granite correlates with TL emissions, Ti-related CL signals, and Ti/Ge ESR signals. Titanium is a widely used thermometer in igneous and metamorphic rocks. As such, a connection between luminescence properties of detrital quartz and trace elemental concentrations in quartz, which are commonly traced to the specific origin of that quartz, e.g. higher Ti solubilities are found in higher temperature igneous rocks, is proposed. However, natural sensitization exceeds lab-induced levels, suggesting environmental amplification factors to be identified.
Laboratory experiments support deductive reasoning, though they can't fully replicate geological timescales or extreme conditions. Thus, PROGRESS also uses natural samples to reflect geological processes, combining deductive and inductive reasoning. Our multiscale approach spans from billions to thousands of years, aiming to develop a quartz-based fingerprinting method impactful for provenance studies.
Using loess samples, we found that E1' (oxygen deficiency) and peroxy (oxygen excess) signal intensities, along with OSL sensitivity, are higher in regions with ancient source rocks, supporting our hypothesis. We analysed quartz from rocks with known crystallization or detrital zircon U-Pb ages and their sediments, focusing on natural cause-effect relationships.
PROGRESS significantly advanced quartz defect understanding as provenance indicators. Our findings support the hypothesis that oxygen-related defects form via inefficient geological processes like alpha damage. A key milestone was establishing a unique multi-spectral lab integrating OSL, TL, ESR, and CL on an SEM platform, enabling micron-scale luminescence and defect studies.
In Work Package I (Source Rock), we sampled granitoids in southeast Arizona's Basin and Range and studied regional metamorphism effects in Romania's South Carpathians (Albesti Granite). Work Package II (Sediment Conveyor Belt) explored sediment changes during transport, sunlight exposure, and irradiation, with samples from diverse lithologies.
We examined sandstones from Eastern Europe (Fusaru, Kliwa formations, and Yampil Member) to assess geological controls on quartz's trapped charge characteristics. Single-grain OSL analysis distinguished sediments from single vs. multiple sources and revealed factors like metamorphism affecting quartz sensitivity. Combining OSL, TL, ESR, and CL analyses, we studied quartz sensitization (increase in light output delivered per unit dose) mechanisms in granites of known ages (Catalina and Retezat granites). Higher OSL sensitization by exposure to light and dosing in Catalina granite correlates with TL emissions, Ti-related CL signals, and Ti/Ge ESR signals. Titanium is a widely used thermometer in igneous and metamorphic rocks. As such, a connection between luminescence properties of detrital quartz and trace elemental concentrations in quartz, which are commonly traced to the specific origin of that quartz, e.g. higher Ti solubilities are found in higher temperature igneous rocks, is proposed. However, natural sensitization exceeds lab-induced levels, suggesting environmental amplification factors to be identified.
We demonstrated that single-grain OSL is superior to multi-grain methods for identifying sediment sources. Our research highlighted the role of Ti- and Ge-related defects in OSL sensitization, though natural effects surpass lab-induced changes, indicating unknown environmental contributors. By collaboration we accessed ancient quartz-bearing rocks (form Jack Hills Quartzite, and the Barberton Greenstone Belt), that will offer insights into quartz defect stability over geological timescales.
Despite progress, key areas need exploration, including unstudied rock types, temperature effects, exhumation rates, and natural sensitization factors. Understanding water's impact on quartz defects during long term weathering, especially silanol groups and non-bridging oxygen hole centres (NBOHC), is crucial for improving sediment transport and provenance models.
PROGRESS bridges geochronology, luminescence physics, petrology, and sedimentology, fostering international collaborations. Future efforts will refine methodologies, expand datasets, and develop predictive models, enhancing quartz's role in geochronology and provenance analysis.
Despite progress, key areas need exploration, including unstudied rock types, temperature effects, exhumation rates, and natural sensitization factors. Understanding water's impact on quartz defects during long term weathering, especially silanol groups and non-bridging oxygen hole centres (NBOHC), is crucial for improving sediment transport and provenance models.
PROGRESS bridges geochronology, luminescence physics, petrology, and sedimentology, fostering international collaborations. Future efforts will refine methodologies, expand datasets, and develop predictive models, enhancing quartz's role in geochronology and provenance analysis.