MRes Projects – Earth and Environmental Sciences

Studying our Master of Research (MRes) Science allows you to focus your research interests on one or two areas of science and work towards translating your learning into research related outputs – such as a submission for a peer-reviewed publication; a peer reviewed research/knowledge transfer grant application, or a presentation.

MRes Science can be studied either full time (1-year) or part time (2-years). You will develop a wide variety of skills, experience and competence on this course, and the MRes will provide a thorough grounding for students moving towards Doctoral (PhD) studies, or pursuing research related activities as a career.

Please note this list of projects is not exhaustive and you'll need to meet and discuss the project you're interested in with a member of research staff before you apply. If you have an idea not covered in the projects below, please e-mail Dr Sabine Wulf (sabine.wulf@port.ac.uk) to discuss project options and potential supervisors.

Orogenic gold petrogenesis and prospectivity of the Bibemi region, northern Cameroon

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr Catherine Mottram, Dr James Darling, and Prof Craig Storey

Cameroon contains significant Pan-African orogenic gold enrichment in the Neoproterozoic-aged, central African mobile belts. These are considered analogous to Au-endowed ‘Greenstone’ belts found world-wide, including the Birimian-aged ‘Greenstone’ belts of West Africa that host multiple world class orogenic gold deposits (Goldfarb et al. 2017). Despite the resource potential of Cameroon, the geological setting, petrogenesis and evolution of primary gold resources and their host rocks are not well understood. The overall aim of these linked MRes projects is to understand the geological setting and mineralisation history of an area of significant orogenic gold enrichment in northern Cameroon.

This project is in collaboration with Oriole Resources PLC, a UK-based exploration company focused on early-stage gold exploration in Cameroon. MRes projects will aim to describe and compare mineralisation and alteration styles between orogenic veins hosted within various lithologies in the Bibemi deposit across four main prospects: Bakassi Zone 1, Bakassi Zone 2, Lawa East, and Lawa West.

Understanding the differences in mineralisation and alteration style at each of these prospects is key to developing exploration models and resolving the distribution and controlling mechanisms of mineralisation. Both projects will involve systematic petrological and geochemical description of the host rocks, alteration and mineralised veins and will involve combinations of the following approaches: Petrology, microstructural and micro-chemical analysis.

The MRes project will integrate with the Crustal Evolution Research Group, where we apply the latest techniques to challenges in tectonics and ore formation. The students will have access to a wide-range of facilities, such as the Electron Microscopy and Microanalysis Unit, and will benefit from intensive training in SEM and LA-ICP-MS.

This project is financially supported by Oriole Resources PLC, which will provide data, samples and research funding. Students will also get the opportunity to liaise with the company to get industry experience as part of the student project.

Timing of brittle deformation of the Alps revealed by direct U-Pb dating of calcite

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr Catherine Mottram, Dr James Darling, and Prof Randy Parrish

Continental collision causes the build-up of large amounts of stress in the buckling crust. The stress causes rocks to deform on a range of timescales; slowly, over millions of years in the ductile deep roots of mountain belts, and rapidly, over seconds during seismic events in the shallow brittle crust. These rapid, low temperature upper crustal processes are notoriously difficult to date as the minerals usually used to record geological time (such as zircon) typically do not crystallise or record any deformation under these conditions. Emerging techniques have recently been developed for directly-dating brittle structures using calcite, a mineral ubiquitous in many brittlely deformed rocks (i.e. Roberts and Walker, 2016, Geology; Nuriel et al., 2017, Geology). This has opened up a whole new realm of tectonic investigation in the upper crust. This project will develop and use the new calcite U-Pb dating technique to study how orogenic stress is spatially and temporally accommodated along continental-scale faults and fold belts in the upper crust of the Alps, the largest mountain belt in Europe. The carbonate rocks of the Helvetic Nappes, Molasse Basin, and Jura Mountains of the northern Alps provide an excellent natural laboratory to study the Miocene-recent deformation of the upper crust. The overall aim of the project is to develop and implement the new U-Pb calcite dating technique and use it to directly-date (recent and on-going) tectonic processes within the Helvetic-Jura section of the northern Alps. The student will characterise and analyse previously collected samples from the Swiss and French Alps. Samples will be carefully characterised and dated at the University of Portsmouth’s state-of-the-art petrological and geochronological laboratory facilities using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Cathodoluminescence, laser mapping, and U-Pb dating using cutting-edge Laser Ablation-Inductively-Coupled-Plasma-Mass-Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) facilities. The student will be embedded within the Crustal Evolution Group under the supervision of Dr Catherine Mottram, Professor Randy Parrish, and Dr James Darling. This project will provide an excellent opportunity for outstanding training in analytical geochemistry and field geology alongside a supervisory team of world-leading geochronologists.

The results of this innovative study will provide detailed quantitative data on the rates and timing of brittle upper crustal deformation within the northern Alps for the first time. This has wider implications for how stress associated with mountain building is accommodated by folding and faulting. This is particularly relevant, as major seismic hazards are often caused by upper crustal faulting processes in many orogenic systems.

Tracing lithosphere evolution on Earth, Moon and Mars with baddeleyite (ZrO) geochronology, chemistry and crystallographys.

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr James Darling, Dr Dean Bullen and Dr Desmond Moser (University of Western Ontario)

Understanding of the magmatic and metamorphic evolution of the crust has been revolutionized by petrological, chemical and isotopic studies of the robust accessory mineral zircon (ZrSiO). However, this phase is typically absent from mafic igneous rocks, making it difficult to directly connect these results with mantle evolution.

Zircon bearing rocks are also rare on the Moon and Mars, limiting our ability to understand the geological history of these planetary bodies from meteorites and Apollo samples. Another accessory mineral, baddeleyite (ZrO), provides tremendous opportunities in this regard. It is a common crystallisation product of primitive mafic magmas and shares many key characteristics with zircon, including robust U-Pb isotope systematics for geochronology and a resistance to metamorphic alteration. Despite this, understanding of baddeleyite mineral chemistry and microstructure is in its infancy.

This project will develop new understanding of this phase, by the application of state-of-the-art analytical techniques for chemical, petrological and microstructural analyses of baddeleyite grains from a wide-range of tectonic settings on Earth, as well as meteorites. These results can then be applied to better understand lithosphere evolution on Earth and other planetary bodies.

Geochronology of mid-crustal shear zones: insights from accessory minerals

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr James Darling and Prof Craig Story

Shear zones accommodate vast amounts of strain in the crust and are a focus for fluids, magmas and elemental transfer. The rates and timescales of shear zone motion, and timing of associated fluid flow, magmatic and mineralisation events, are critical for constraining large-scale tectonic processes, rheological behaviour of the lithosphere and the formation of economically important resources through geological time.

The accurate dating of these when these structures operated has long proven challenging, but recent advances in in-situgeochemical analysis has opened up new opportunities to generate radiometric ages from uranium and thorium bearing accessory minerals in shear zones, such as zircon, monazite and titanite. Despite this, when dated using the U-Th-Pb system each of these minerals typically only provide single-time snapshots into shear zone evolution: the “when” but not the “how fast” or “how long”.

This project will capitalize on our expertise in laser ablation ICP-MS geochronology to compare the age-record of accessory minerals with differing sensitivity to diffusion driven by heating or metasomatism. For example, mid-crustal shear zones from the Sudbury Ni-Cu-PGE mining region in Ontario and the Amorican Shear Zone, Brittany contain multiple accessory minerals as shear-fabric forming minerals, including titanite, allanite and apatite. Comparison of U-Th-Pb ages from these minerals will provide powerful new insights into the orogenic and metasomatic history of these important, but poorly understood structures.

Linking mineralization and tectonics in the Cornubian Ore Province: new chemical and isotopic approaches

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr James Darling, Dr Mike Fowler and Dr Dean Bullen

The Cornubian Orefield in Devon and Cornwall is the most intensely mineralised region in the British Isles, with mined ore-deposits including W, Sn, Cu, Fe, Pb, As, Mn, Zn, U and Ag. These include the world-class Drakelands W-mine, which began production in 2015. The opening of Drakelands Mine has highlighted a number of major gaps in understanding how ore-deposits in the region relate to tectonic and magmatic evolution.

A series of projects are available that will focus on applying new analytical tools for the dating and petrogenesis of ore-deposits, related intrusions and tectonic deformation in Devon and Cornwall. Many of these projects will involve working with mining industry partners. The projects will help to refine models for the geological development of this important terrane, and will inform future exploration models.

The land-ice sources of Ice Rafted Debris within deep sea drill core and the fate of the Greenland Ice Sheet during the Mid Pliocene Warm Period

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Prof. Craig Storey, Dr Phil Benson, Dr Clare Boston and Dr Harold Lovell

Ice rafted debris (IRD) represents grains of continental derived material that have been transported at the base of land-sourced ice sheets out to the deep ocean, where iceberg melting has resulted in deposition of these grains within the deep ocean sediments. They thus represent periods within the seafloor stratigraphy where continental ice was present and able to calve into the ocean and the individual grains come from point sources that may be tracked with appropriate methods.

Deep ocean drill core is available for a variety of areas in the north Atlantic but only certain cores penetrate deep enough to intersect the Mid Pliocene (3.3 to 3.0 Ma) and have been studied sufficiently that reliable age models are available. One such core, 907 (east of Greenland and north of Iceland), has already been sampled and we have a good record of IRD within various levels, including the Mid Pliocene. This is extremely important, since the Mid Pliocene represents a period of warm climate when the Earth last had global COlevels similar to today. It is considered by many, and reported as such in the 4th IPCC report, as being an ideal analogue for the potential future fate of our climate. The fact that IRD is present in this part of the stratigraphy already tells us that some ice was present on Greenland, but what would help to inform coupled General Circulation Models and Ice Sheet Models would be more precise details on where Greenland was glaciated.

We have developed such a method using Pb isotopes in feldspar grains forming part of the IRD and here an MRes student would have the opportunity of measuring these feldspar grains using our in-house analytical facilities. This would be the first analyses from the Mid Pliocene that would hope to provide the detail required on Greenland’s Ice Sheet and we envisage that a high profile paper would be the result in a journal such as Nature Geoscience or Nature Climate Change.

Investigation into magma mixing in Shetland plutons

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr Dean Bullen and Dr Mike Fowler

Investigation into magma mixing in Shetland plutonsas determined from the trace element chemistry of accessory phases for example apatite inclusions in hornblende. Field evidence for mixing and mingling between magmas of contrasting compositions is abundant throughout the plutons west of the Walls Boundary Fault. Recent age determinations provide a protracted period of magmatism spanning some 40 Ma. The partitioning of trace elements into apatite can help to shed light on the mixing processes and ultimately the origins of these Caledonian-era plutons. This would utilise LA-ICP-MS on in situ phases in polished sections, and there are at least 2 or 3 projects available in this area related to the different plutons.

Investigation into occurrence in mine waste tailings from copper and tin mining at Devon Great Consols (DGC) Mine, SW England

Crustal Evolution and Tectonics Research Group

Supervisors: Dr Dean Bullen and Dr Mike Fowler

The toxic metalloid As occurs within the various tailings heaps at DGC in various proportions and in various forms from unprocessed primary sulphides and oxides to stromatolitic and colloidal precipitates. As is sensitive to changes in Redox conditions within the pore waters of the tailings and can be released into solution and become bio-accessible.

This project would use SEM with EDX and EBSD techniques to determine the mode of occurrence and concentrations of As-bearing minerals in mine waste tailings from the spoil heaps of DGC Mine.

Where is the As occurring within the tailings, in what form and is it accessible for bio-uptake in the environment? This is part of an ongoing study that seeks to understand the As flux within the various tailings heaps. There are at least two projects in this area that can run in parallel looking at different aspects of the same tailings.

The influence of substrate lithology on volcano flank instability

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

Mount Etna exhibits an unexpected, and possibly unique, steady state style of flank instability. This involves downslope movement at an average rate of about 20 mm a-1, albeit with accelerations and decelerations probably related to high-level intrusive activity, but strongly contrasting with the instantaneous and catastrophic style of failure seen at Mt St Helens in 1980 and documented at many other volcanoes worldwide. I speculate that this contrast may be related to the presence of a stiff clay unit that underlies much of Mt Etna and this work has already accumulated significant new geotechnical and lithological data on this unit. The MSc project, through analysis of published literature and selected Google Earth study, would aim to establish the characteristics of volcano flank instability worldwide, and in particular the possibility of other examples of non-catastrophic instability. The overall aim is that the results from the MSc project would be integrated with the existing Mt Etna data in a jointly authored paper.

Active fault-propagation folding above blind thrusts

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

Thrust faulting is likely to be the dominant mode of tectonic strain release in contractional mountain belts, yet the geological signature of these shallowly dipping structures is notoriously hard to recognise, hampering mitigation efforts. This problem is exemplified by the 1991 Mw 7.0 Racha earthquake, the strongest recorded in Georgia but without the clear ground rupturing expected from an earthquake of this size. Other examples include the 1952 Mw 7.3 Kern County earthquake and the 1994 Mw 6.7 Northridge earthquake, respectively north and south of the Transverse Ranges in California. However, such blind thrusts frequently betray themselves by generating actively growing folds, particularly where they propagate out from mountain belts into adjacent foreland regions. The aim of the project is to produce an inventory of these features and their characteristics, with a particular emphasis on their rate of tectonic deformation, using Google Earth and published literature. Stage two is to integrate this information with field data, including radiometric dating of deformation rates, which I have from the Caucasus mountain belt in Georgia. The aim of this project is a jointly authored paper.

Activity status of the Purbeck-Wight-Bray structure, English Channel

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

This major structure, a prominent example of the listric normal faults reactivated as thrusts in southern England and the Channel, links eastwards to the active Rhine graben. Most notably, the tectonic regime producing the reactivation, starting in the early Tertiary, remains essentially unchanged today and accounts for the numerous significant earthquakes that have been recorded in the region. Field evidence for this activity is subtle and may be best described as a series of hints. More specific aspects, carried out in collaboration with Dr Rob Scaife of Southampton University, include field and laboratory analysis of poorly understood terrace deposits. The aim of the project, which would involve field and remote-sensing observations on the Isle of Wight and Isle of Purbeck, coupled with a thorough desk study of relevant literature, is to assemble and analyse data so that conclusions on the activity status of the structure can be suggested. The ultimate aim is to produce a jointly-authored paper.

Variations in elevation of sea-level indicators for the last Interglacial around English Channel coasts

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

The last interglacial period, about 125 ka ago, was a time when sea level was as high as today, or perhaps a few metres higher. There have been many published studies of raised beach deposits dating from this period around English Channel coasts. One well known example being from Croyde in North Devon. The interesting aspect is that the elevation of these deposits varies significantly, particularly as this coastline contains 13 present and proposed nuclear power stations. The project aim is to suggest explanations for this variability, which might include, for example: post-glacial isostatic forebulge collapse; recent tectonic movements; thermal relaxation following North Sea rifting; lateral variations in nearshore deposit elevation. The project would involve a careful analysis of a wide range of existing literature.

Lake basins as tilt indicators along active faults

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

This project stems from some field observations I made several years ago around Lake Iznik, bordered by the North Anatolian fault in NW Turkey. It was clear the whole basin had been recently tilted to the north, with uplifted 'bath tub lines' marked by beach rock deposits along the southern shore of the lake suggesting two recent increments in the tilting. The north shore, by contrast, was clearly subject to recent drowning and inundation. The project involves a literature search, backed up by Google Earth analyses, with the aim of identifying other examples of this phenomenon, developed along other major fault zones. Google Earth analysis of Lake Iznik would also be carried out to better document the characteristics of the tilting.

Establishing the glacial history of the Drac Valley, Grenoble France, using glacial sedimentology and stratigraphy

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Malcolm Whitworth, Dr Harold Lovell, Dr Clare Boston and Dr Mark Hardiman

The Sinard area, within the Drac Valley, is predominantly underlain by thick and extensive sequences of glaciofluvial outwash and glaciolacustrine deposits, that have subsequently been incised by fluvial channels. These sediments are believed to have been deposited during the Würm glaciation (last glacial period), by the Isère Glacier, and document the formation of a large ice-dammed lake.

Very little research has been undertaken into the glacial history of the area, and knowledge is limited on how the stratigraphy relates to the sequence of glacial events, i.e. fluctuations of the ice margin in the Sinard area and the length of time that the lake was in existence. The focus of this project is establish a detailed Quaternary stratigraphy across this region in order to form a better understanding of the landscape history of the area during the last glacial. Detailed sedimentology will be carried out at key sections, using stratigraphic principles to establish a sequence of events.

This sedimentological work will focus on detailed logging, i.e. structural analysis, combined with sedimentological analysis, i.e., particle size, clast shape and roundness, to better understand the depositional processes involved in the emplacement of the sediments. In addition, visible volcanic ash layers which may have been produced from the Massif Central volcanic centre will also be searched for. If present these may be used as key isochrons for determining the local sequence of events, as well as adding to our understanding of the volcanic activity of the Massif Central during the last glacial.

VNIR Spectroscopy for the rapid analyses of fugitive dust

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Mike Fowler and Dr Andy Gibson

Visible Near-InfraRed (VNIR) spectroscopy is a non-destructive technique used for the determination of sample concentration and mineralogy in a wide range of industries including mineral exploration and pharmacy. This project will develop techniques to aid the characterization of natural and human derived dusts – an important element in forensic and industrial monitoring. Working from our new NIR laboratory, the project will examine a wide range of existing samples and develop models to measure compositional characteristics of dusts from VNIR spectra and evaluate their effectiveness as industrial standards. There will be potential for fieldwork to collect new dust samples and carry out field NIR measurement.

Mixing zones in Debris Flows

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Andy Gibson, Dr Malcolm Whitworth and Dr Pete Rowley

Using field and laboratory measurement of Visible Near-InfraRed (VNIR) spectra and geotechnical indices, the project will explore the relationship between source materials, surface topography and debris flow deposits to improve understanding of how debris moves, mixes and is deposited in different debris flows. Test sites will be drawn from locations in the UK and China.

Analysis of a deep-seated inland landslide on the Wight-Purbeck chalk ridge, SW Isle of Wight

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors:  Dr Derek Rust  and  Dr Andy Gibson

Deep-seated landsliding in chalk is unexpected, even in coastal settings, making the subject of this MRes research possibly unique in Britain. The work entails detailed field mapping and reconstructions, with volume estimates and comparisons between the source area and associated debris apron, as well as study and logging of available exposures at the margin of the apron and, if possible, collection of any available organic material for ¹⁴C dating.

A desk study to identify the possibility of other similar occurrences on inland chalk escarpments in southern England and northern France should also be undertaken, mainly in the published literature, although a visual analysis using Google Earth may also prove useful. The overall aim is to critically evaluate and document the landslide, and offer well-supported conclusions that may help explain this unexpected feature.

The unusualness, and possible uniqueness, of this feature indicates that a research publication should be an outcome from this work.

Modelling strain partitioning across compressional mountain belts

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Derek Rust, Dr Philip Benson and Dr Tom Mitchell (UCL).

Geological studies in compressional mountain belts such as the Tien Shan and Caucasus identify both active thrust faulting and active strike slip faulting. In the Tien Shan strike slip faulting appears concentrated on a single structure, the Talas-Fergana fault, that obliquely transects the mountain belt, at an angle that possibly conforms to that predicted by failure planes in rock samples compressed in rock mechanics experiments. In the Caucasus strain appears more distributed, with strike slip faults being shorter and more numerous, perhaps acting as conjugate structures, some with tear fault affinities.

Such geological observations are increasingly compared to a growing body of GPS data, particularly in the Tien Shan, although the comparison, involving vastly different time scales, raises many questions.

This project aims to shed light on strain accommodation in such mountain belts, particularly its distribution between structures with differing orientations and possible affinities, and to suggest ways in which geological and GPS data may be reconciled. The project will involve designing, constructing and running a series of appropriately constrained model experiments, using rock mechanics equipment and analogue materials such as Plexiglas.

Active three-armed rifting in ocean-island volcanoes

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Derek Rust and Dr Carmen Solana

Three-armed rifts are a common response to updoming at volcanic centres, and several examples occur in ocean-island volcanoes, such as Tenerife and El Hierro in the Canary chain. Derek Rust and Carmen Solana have field data on the rifting in El Hierro and the MRes project would examine these results in the context of such rifting worldwide. The project aim would be to identify common patterns and mechanisms associated with this style of rifting.

This project would involve an extensive desk study of such islands around the world, coupled with remote-sensing investigations, using Google Earth where higher resolution imagery is not readily available.

It is hoped the MRes student would be interested in collaborating, as first author, to produce a journal article from this project.

Active tectonics of intermontane basins, with examples from the Tien Shan mountains, central Asia

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

Large actively deforming basins may be unexpected within compressional mountain belts such as the Alpine-Himalayan and undoubtedly have multiple origins. The MRes project will focus on two such basins within the Tien Shan mountains, the Ketman-Tyube basin and the Issyk-Kul basin.

Derek Rust has field data from these basins, including an unexpectedly young 14C date from part of a thrust duplex now inactive and superseded by the presently active thrusting, a logged section through the duplex, and some 1:40000 stereo aerial photograph coverage. The MRes project would integrate these field results with a remote sensing analysis and map of evidence for active tectonic deformation, both within the basins and around their margins, with the aim of identifying the structural regime in operation.

Further useful insights may be gained from comparisons with other intermontane basins worldwide, analysed through a desk study, as well as from another intermontane basin studied by Derek Rust, the Pasinler basin in eastern Turkey.

It is hoped the MRes student would be interested in collaborating, as first author, to produce a journal article from this project.

Tectonic and volcanological comparisons between the world’s two subaerial ridge-transform triple junctions, Iceland

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Derek Rust and Dr Malcolm Whitworth

The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is uniquely exposed above sea level as it transects Iceland, where it displays two ridge-transform triple junctions, one in the north and the other in the south of the country. Derek Rust and Malcolm Whitworth have very detailed drone imagery and field structural data from the northern triple junction and the MRes project would involve comparing these results, possibly augmented with additional volcanological information, with the southern triple junction.

The project aim is to identify possible similarities and contrasts between the two triple junctions that would contribute to understanding these features, which, in the submarine realm, are commonplace but inaccessible. Much of the project can be completed by a desk study and remote sensing investigation, although some fieldwork would undoubtedly be helpful. 

It is hoped the MRes student would be interested in collaborating, as first author, to produce a journal article from this project.

Breached landslide – lacustrine deposit assemblages in the central Tien Shan mountains, including the Kara-Su valley, Kyrgyzstan

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisors: Dr Derek Rust, Dr Richard Teeuw and Prof Jim Smith

The 2008 Mw 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan, China, on the eastern margin of the Tibetan plateau, was remarkable for the very large number of landslides it triggered, producing innumerable landslide-dammed lakes. As an index, 32 of these lakes were considered sufficiently threatening, to communities downstream, that the Chinese authorities mobilised army engineers to prematurely breach the landslide dams using explosives. This event can serve as a model for the consequences of a large earthquake in the Tien Shan mountain range, an area of strong contractional GPS rates (~20 mm a-1) and uplift associated with India-Eurasia collision. On the ground in the central Tien Shan there is ample evidence for both current and past landslide-dammed lakes, notably in the Kara-Su valley. This valley is developed along the Talas-Fergana fault, a major strike-slip structure transecting the mountain range, and displays several examples of breached landslides, each preserving lacustrine deposits upstream that were deposited during the time period the lake dammed by the landslides were in existence. Derek Rust has field data from this valley, including a logged section through one lacustrine sequence, together with associated 14C dates.

The MRes project would incorporate these field results in a wider study of these distinctive breached landslide – lacustrine deposit assemblages in this seismically active region, with the aim of documenting and analysing their occurrence, and shedding light on the controlling factors. This work would be based on a remote-sensing analysis of satellite imagery using algorithms designed to recognise the characteristic landscape elements produced by these assemblages.

One final aspect of this work concerns radioactive waste dumps, a legacy from the Soviet era when this region supplied and processed uranium ores used in the Cold War. The hazard posed by these poorly sited and unmaintained dumps is widely recognised and some remediation efforts have been conducted using World Health Organisation and World Bank money. The MRes project could contribute to the prioritisation of these scarce financial resources by identifying, on a catchment-by-catchment basis, where data on naturally occurring radionuclide levels could be obtained from the sedimentary records of suitably sited lacustrine deposits.

It is hoped the MRes student would be interested in collaborating, as first author, to produce a journal article from this project.

Characteristics and evolution of former landslide-dammed lakes in tectonically active terrains

Geomechanics and Environmental Hazards

Supervisor: Dr Derek Rust

'Landslides in tectonically active regions can block valleys creating landslide-dammed lakes. There are many examples of such lakes worldwide, the largest being in the Pamir mountains where a lake of >16 km3 is impounded by landslide debris over 560 metres high that resulted from an earthquake in 1911. Such lakes are typically temporary, with breaching of the landslide dam resulting in catastrophic downstream flooding, potentially devastating downstream towns and villages.

The MRes project focuses on the geological evidence left behind by breached and drained landslide-dammed lakes, including lacustrine deposits laid down in the former lake, some displaying seismites, as well as the landslide itself. The aim is to better understand the characteristics and history of these features so that the hazard posed by landslide-dammed lakes presently in existence may be better evaluated.

The research would incorporate and build on field data gathered by Derek Rust from former landslide-dammed lakes along the San Andreas fault zone in southern California and the Talas-Fergana fault in the Tien-Shan mountains of Kyrgyzstan, including a core collected from lacustrine deposits within a key landslide-dammed lake. Further analyses would involve remote sensing and a desk study to identify traits that may have general applicability, and as a result lead to a research paper in a high-profile international journal.

How long will the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone remain contaminated?

Environmental Processes and Impacts

Supervisors: Prof Jim Smith

The Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ) covers approximately 2000 km2 of land in Ukraine (and a similar extent in Belarus). The level of radioactive contamination reaches > 10 MBq m-2 within the near zone which is also contaminated with 90Sr and transuranium isotopes. However, the contamination level varies widely and very significant areas are much less contaminated, at levels below 500 kBq m-2. With appropriate monitoring and countermeasures, it is it is possible that some parts of the CEZ could possibly be returned to agricultural use.

The aim of the proposed project is to develop a GIS system to evaluate the potential for future agricultural use of contaminated lands in Ukraine. Digital maps of land use and contamination are currently available for the Ukrainian sector of the Exclusion Zone. In the proposed project, these would be updated to account for physical decay and removal of radionuclides, and soil-plant transfer models would be applied to predict potential radioactive contamination of crops grown in different parts of the Zone. This research would support collaborative work between UoP, the Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Institute and the Chernobyl Ecocentre on this issue.

Refinement of the calcareous nannofossil biostratigraphy at Site BH302 (Campanian Upper Chalk, Portsdown Hill, Portsmouth, UK)

Palaeontology Research Group

Supervisors: Dr. Mariem Saavedra-Pellitero, Dr. Anthony Butcher and Emeritus Prof. Andy Gale.

The biostratigraphy of the southern English White Chalk Group has a long tradition (see Gale et al. 2018 for an overview), and different fossil groups have been used to establish assemblage zonal schemes and age models. These include echinoids, brachiopods, (micro-) crinoids, bivalves, belemnites and microfossils among others.

This study will use biostratigraphic methods to analyse the calcareous nannofossil zonations and assemblages in a recently extracted 91.5 metre chalk core (core BH302) recovered locally from Portsdown Hill and donated to the University of Portsmouth by a geotechnical company, Socotec.

The core has been initially dated to the Campanian (Upper Cretaceous), 83.6-72.1 Ma (million years ago), by a well-known indicator marl (the Castle Hill Marl), that separates the Culver Chalk Formation from the underlying Newhaven Chalk Formation (Mortimore, 1986). However, biostratigraphical analyses will help further to improve the resolution of dating across other marker marls within the chalk core that are harder to identify, due to their similar appearance. Establishing calcareous nannofossils zonations will allow to refine available ages provided by dinoflagellate cyst biozones at Site BH302, and to correlate to Gale’s (2018) microcrinoid biozones potentially present in the within the chalk core.