85 The Power of Hard Rocks: Driving the Energy Transition and Serving Society

This session examines how mafic and ultramafic rocks contribute to the energy transition by 1) generating hydrogen gas, 2) trapping CO2 through carbon mineralization, and 3) providing critical minerals for climate change mitigation and renewable energy production.

Monday, 20 October 2025
8:00 AM - 11:30 AM
HBGCC, 216AB

Petrology– Who Needs It? Applications of Petrology and Experimental Techniques to Geohazards, Critical Minerals and Carbon Capture, Uptake and Storage

Paper number: 85-1
Program: Technical Sessions
Time: 8:05 AM – 8:25 AM

Authors

Abstract

Skills that are fundamental to petrology include mineral identification and characterization, microbeam analysis, interpretation of geochemical suites, determination of intensive variables, and using high-temperature and pressure experiments. These skills are all also essential to a range of applied sciences from geohazard mitigation, critical mineral mobility and carbon capture uptake and sequestration. In this talk, we describe three different applications of petrology and high temperature experiments to themes in applied science to highlight portable skills for careers in applied science. Recent experimental and petrologic work on Valles Caldera find that common storage conditions (750–770°C; 130–165 MPa) for the post-collapse rhyolites and are similar to those of the most recent caldera-forming ignimbrite, the Upper Bandelier Tuff. The results suggest that magmatic storage was consistent beneath the caldera for ~106 y and can be used by seismic monitoring to understand spacing of geophones for optimal imaging in hazard monitoring and by modelers to forecast potential eruptive pathways. Experimental petrology techniques can also be used to understand critical mineral mobility in fluids at magmatic-hydrothermal conditions (500-700°C; 150-170MPa). Recent experiments conducted in cold-seal pressure vessels are used to determine the solubility of monazite-(Nd) and xenotime-(Dy) in hydrothermal fluids find that NdPO4 is approximately two orders of magnitude more soluble than DyPO4 in similar fluids at similar temperatures. The results may provide the mechanism for Dy-enrichment (Nd-depletion) in pegmatite deposits and may help inform rare earth separation techniques. New data on critical mineral mobility in fluids, like those mentioned here, are being generated from experiments conducted by a newly formed research hub at New Mexico Tech (NMT CritMinExp). Finally, we present results from a petrologic study on New Mexican basalts to determine their potential as reservoirs for carbon capture uptake and sequestration projects and to characterize mantle sources, which is important for understanding continental break up and evolution of Earth’s crust.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 57, No. 6

doi: 10.1130/abs/2025AM-414116

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