| NSF Org: |
EAR Division Of Earth Sciences |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | July 13, 2023 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | July 13, 2023 |
| Award Number: | 2240250 |
| Award Instrument: | Standard Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Jennifer Wade
jwade@nsf.gov (703)292-4739 EAR Division Of Earth Sciences GEO Directorate for Geosciences |
| Start Date: | August 1, 2023 |
| End Date: | July 31, 2026 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $281,067.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $281,067.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
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| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
25 MAIN ST UNIT 203 CHICO CA US 95928-5388 (530)898-6811 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
400 W. 1st Street CHICO CA US 95929-0001 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): |
Petrology and Geochemistry, XC-Crosscutting Activities Pro |
| Primary Program Source: |
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| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.050 |
ABSTRACT
As the world transitions to green energy over the next few decades, there will be an increasing demand for metals. This is one of the most overlooked issues in the energy transition. All metals come from minerals, and smaller ore deposits will become more economically viable as the larger ones are depleted. This project will investigate the relationships between the processes that formed a small pluton in northern California and the formation of its associated copper ore deposits. The three small iron oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) deposits of the Lights Creek Stock are being assessed as a future source of copper. IOCG deposits form when groundwater and magmatic fluids alter existing rocks along fractures. The fluids change the minerals in the rocks and deposit new copper minerals along the fractures. This can create a concentration of copper minerals which may become economic to mine. An understanding of how magmatic processes affect copper mineral formation can provide information about where to search for similar deposits elsewhere. This work will be carried out by three graduate students, up to twelve undergraduate independent researchers, and will also encompass three class projects. ?Real? research experiences (i.e. when the instructor also doesn?t know the answer) have been shown to be very important in helping STEM students to feel like the real scientists they are, increasing their self-confidence and identity as scientists. This project will support three classes of students to carry out a real research project in the classroom, dramatically increasing student exposure to research in CSU-Chico?s geology program, as less than half of undergraduate students typically carry out independent research with a faculty member. The findings of these class projects will be integrated with the findings of the independent researchers to broaden understanding of the formation of the Lights Creek Stock.
The goal of this work is to investigate the temporal and geochemical relationship between magmatic processes and copper mineralization within the Lights Creek Stock (LCS), a granitoid intrusion in the northern Sierra Nevada that hosts three IOCG (iron oxide copper gold) copper deposits. Proposed work will test two hypotheses: 1) LCS was emplaced through multiple pulses of magma over several million years; and 2) the LCS-hosted Superior, Moonlight and Engels IOCG deposits are geochemically related to one another, and were formed from the reaction between late-stage hydromagmatic fluids from the LCS and meteoric fluids. The Dixie Fire in 2021 intensely burned this densely vegetated area, revealing new outcrops and allowing for more detailed fieldwork than has previously been possible. Detailed field descriptions and sample collection of the granitoid rocks will aid reevaluation of a historic model for LCS formation through petrographic, geochemical and geochronological analysis of the lateral variation within the stock. Vertical variation within the LCS will be assessed through similar analyses of drillcore samples during three course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) undertaken by students in a Junior-level petrology class. These vertical and lateral data will be integrated to produce a model for petrogenesis of the LCS (Hypothesis 1). The petrogenesis of the Superior and Engels IOCG deposits will be analyzed individually as MS projects through detailed core logging of several cores, supported by petrography, geochemistry and alteration geochronology (Hypothesis 2). The integration of the IOCG and LCS petrogenetic models will produce a bigger picture model to relate the IOCG deposits to the magmatic history of the LCS, which can then be scaled up throughout the northern Sierra Nevada and analogous regions throughout the world. This work will also train up to twelve undergraduate and three graduate students in research methods in igneous petrology and economic geology, as well as engaging three semesters of students in authentic research experiences. Research has shown that taking part in a research experience increases a student?s STEM identity, self-efficacy, and persistence in the field. CUREs increase access to research experiences to a broader and more diverse range of students, so are classed as a high-impact pedagogical practice.
This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
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