PhD Studentship: CENTA 2027-B20 Cooking with magma constraining the carbon emissions from large igneous provinces

Past rapid climate change events like the end-Permian mass extinction, the end-Triassic mass extinction, the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum, and many of the Mesozoic Oceanic Anoxic Events constitute some of the best analogues we have for anthropogenic climate change. These events feature some combination of rising atmospheric CO2, global warming, ocean acidification, and a negative carbon isotope excursion – all the hallmark signs of massive rapid emissions of carbon-based greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. The suspected trigger for these events is the coincident emplacement of large igneous provinces (LIPs); the intrusion of LIP magma into sedimentary rock is thought to be capable of generating massive quantities of greenhouse gases like thermogenic methane. However, when magma intrudes into sedimentary rock of various compositions it is still uncertain exactly which greenhouse gases are produced (e.g., methane vs. CO2) and in what quantities. Furthermore, the carbon isotopic composition of these gases is very poorly constrained. Carbon isotopes records (e.g. Fig. 1) show the net behaviour of the global carbon cycle across these past carbon cycle perturbation events. Knowing the mass and isotopic composition of LIP carbon emissions are critical to constraining Earth’s carbon cycle response – e.g., the short-term release of additional carbon as a response to the warming climate (positive feedbacks) and the longer-term subsequent carbon burial, cooling and restoring the climate (negative feedbacks).

In this project, you will conduct laboratory experiments subjecting a range of sedimentary host rocks to artificial thermal maturation to recreate the temperature and pressure conditions caused by magmatic intrusion. Your samples will include real exemplars of the host rocks into which the aforementioned LIPs were actually intruded. You will collect the thermogenic gases that result from this experimental maturation and measure the yields of the various gas types as well as their carbon isotopic compositions. Lastly, using numerical modelling, you will use your experimental results to make some predictions of the carbon emissions from several past LIPs, thereby constraining the Earth system carbon cycle response. Depending on the interests of the appointed candidate, the project could lean more heavily towards hands-on laboratory work or applying numerical modelling techniques.

For further information on this project and details of how to apply to it please visit https://centa.ac.uk/studentship/2027-b20-cooking-with-magma-constraining-the-carbon-emissions-from-large-igneous-provinces/

Further information on how to apply for a CENTA studentship can be found on the CENTA website: https://centa.ac.uk/apply/

Funding notes:
This project is offered through the CENTA3 DLA, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). Funding covers: annual stipend, tuition fees (at home-fee level), Research Training Support Grant.

Academic requirements: at least a 2:1 at UK BSc level or a pass at UK MSc level or equivalent.

Further information: https://centa.ac.uk/apply/

International students are eligible for studentships to a maximum of 30% of the cohort. Funding does not cover any additional costs relating to moving or residing in the UK. International applicants must fulfil the University of Birmingham’s international student entry requirements, including English language.  Further information: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/postgraduate/pgt/requirements-pgt/international/index.aspx.

References:
Clapham, M.E. and Renne, P.R., 2019. Flood basalts and mass extinctions. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences, 47(1), pp.275.

Jones, S.M., Hoggett, M., Greene, S.E. and Dunkley Jones, T., 2019. Large Igneous Province thermogenic greenhouse gas flux could have initiated Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum climate change. Nature communications, 10(1), p.5547.

Vervoort, P., Adloff, M., Greene, S.E. and Kirtland Turner, S., 2019. Negative carbon isotope excursions: an interpretive framework. Environmental Research Letters, 14(8), p.085014.

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