The University of Memphis has been named an R1 institution by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, placing it in the top tier of research universities nationally.
By the Numbers*
113Funded Projects |
$45.7 MillionResearch Expenditures |
$23MTotal Research Awards |
* As of FY 2024
Research Highlights
How Do Faults React to Rapid Stress Changes?
Earthquakes are commonly caused by slowly accumulating stresses along tectonic plate boundaries such as the San Andreas fault. Earthquakes at large distances from plate boundaries occur much less frequently - unless human activity contributes, for instance, in geothermal and oil fields. This NSF-supported project will investigate human-induced earthquakes in Nevada, Oklahoma and Texas to understand their underlying causes. Deep fluid injection operations are considered particularly problematic, having caused induced earthquakes up to magnitude 5.8 in Oklahoma.This team, led by Dr. Thomas Goebel – associate professor in the Center for Earthquake Research and Information (CERI), will evaluate the effect of rapid changes in fluid pumping rates on subsequent earthquake activity. Observations from a densely instrumented geothermal field in Nevada suggest that tiny, induced earthquakes increase when operational activity is abruptly stopped. They will investigate potential mechanisms of this surprising observation using long-term seismic, pressures and ground displacement data and will study induced stresses and seismicity in one specific, well-documented reservoir and then examine whether similar operations also promote induced seismicity in other areas such as Oklahoma. Read full story.
Acquisition of a Micro X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometer
To predict how Earth systems will respond to environmental and climate changes, it is essential to understand how chemical elements are cycled among various components such as plants, soil, rock, river sediment, and aquifers. These dynamic changes in Earth’s chemistry underpin many life-supporting processes in Earth’s Critical Zone – a thin near-surface zone where life, soil, water, rock, and air interact. A common problem in these biogeochemical studies is resolving spatial changes in chemical elements at the micrometer scale while preserving the sample. Nondestructive spatial imaging of geochemistry using a µ-XRF instrument will provide a means to resolve small-scale 2- and 3-dimensional changes in chemical composition.
Dr. Gary Stinchcomb, in collaboration with colleagues from the Department of Earth Sciences and CAESER, was awarded an NSF Instrumentation and Facilities grant (NSF EAR I/F) in the amount of $431,158 to acquire a µ-XRF instrument for measuring and mapping the spatial distribution of chemical elements in Earth materials. Stinchcomb and his students intend to use the instrument to map out plant-essential nutrients in modern and fossil soils. Understanding the micron-scale spatial distribution of key nutrients (e.g., P) could lead to breakthroughs in our understanding of how plant roots interact with the surrounding soil minerals. Read full story.