Articles | Volume 35, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-35-159-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-35-159-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
An interdisciplinary approach to sampling hard rock cores of the oceanic crust for microbiological and biogeochemical research
William J. Brazelton
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
School of Biological Sciences, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Blue Marble Space Institute of Science, Seattle, WA, USA
Oscar Cavazos
International Ocean Discovery Program, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
Jordyn A. Robare
School of Molecular Sciences, Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA
Gordon Southam
School of the Environment and Sustainable Minerals Institute, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, QLD, Australia
Johanna Suhonen
International Ocean Discovery Program, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
Fengping Wang
School of Oceanography, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
Susan Q. Lang
Dept. of Geol. and Geophys., Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, USA
Dept. of Marine Chem. and Geochem., Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, USA
Andrew McCaig
School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
Peter Blum
International Ocean Discovery Program, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA
Natsue Abe
Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Yokahama, Japan
Rémi Coltat
ISTO, UMR 7327, Univ. Orleans, CNRS, BRGM, OSUC, 45071 Orléans, France
Jeremy R. Deans
School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS, USA
Kristin L. Dickerson
Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA
Marguerite Godard
Geosciences Montpellier, CNRS, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
Barbara E. John
Dept. of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA
Frieder Klein
Dept. of Geol. and Geophys., Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, USA
Dept. of Marine Chem. and Geochem., Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, USA
Rebecca Kuehn
Institute of Geosciences and Geography, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany
Kuan-Yu Lin
Electron Microscopy Core Facility, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
C. Johan Lissenberg
School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
Haiyang Liu
Center of Deep Sea Research, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Qingdao, China
Ethan L. Lopes
Dept. of Geophysics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
Toshio Nozaka
Dept. Earth Sciences, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
Andrew J. Parsons
School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK
Vamdev Pathak
Dept. Geology, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, India
Mark K. Reagan
Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
C. Geoffrey Wheat
Global Undersea Research Unit, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Moss Landing, CA, USA
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Mohammed S. Hashim, Lukas Marx, Frieder Klein, Chloe L. Dean, Emily Burdige, Matthew Hayden, Daniel C. McCorkle, and Adam V. Subhas
Biogeosciences, 22, 7149–7165, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-7149-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-7149-2025, 2025
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Ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) is a CO2 removal approach that involves the addition of alkaline substances to seawater that would allow it to absorb more atmospheric CO2. Increasing seawater alkalinity, however, can trigger mineral precipitation that decreases OAE efficiency. We conducted experiments to constrain the thermodynamics and kinetics of mineral precipitation.
Sune G. Nielsen, Frieder Klein, Horst R. Marschall, Philip A. E. Pogge von Strandmann, and Maureen Auro
Solid Earth, 15, 1143–1154, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1143-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1143-2024, 2024
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Magnesium isotope ratios of arc lavas have been proposed as a proxy for serpentinite subduction, but uncertainties remain regarding their utility. Here we show that bulk serpentinite Mg isotope ratios are identical to the mantle, whereas the serpentinite mineral brucite is enriched in heavy Mg isotopes. Thus, Mg isotope ratios may only be used as serpentinite subduction proxies if brucite is preferentially mobilized from the slab at pressures and temperatures within the arc magma source region.
Xin Chen, Weishu Zhao, Liang Dong, Huahua Jian, Lewen Liang, Jing Wang, and Fengping Wang
Biogeosciences, 20, 1491–1504, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1491-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-1491-2023, 2023
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Here, we studied the effects of metabolism and growth temperature on 2H/1H fractionation between fatty acids and growth water (εFA/water) by Shewanella piezotolerans WP3. Our results show that the εFA/water values display considerable variations for cultures grown on different substrates. Combined with metabolic model analysis, our results indicate that the central metabolic pathways exert a fundamental effect on the hydrogen isotope composition of lipids in heterotrophs.
Thierry Decrausaz, Marguerite Godard, Manuel D. Menzel, Fleurice Parat, Emilien Oliot, Romain Lafay, and Fabrice Barou
Eur. J. Mineral., 35, 171–187, https://doi.org/10.5194/ejm-35-171-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/ejm-35-171-2023, 2023
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The carbonation of peridotites occurs during the fluxing of reactive CO2-bearing fluids, ultimately producing listvenites (magnesite and quartz assemblage). We studied the most extended outcrops of listvenites worldwide, found at the base of the Semail Ophiolite (Oman). Our study highlights the partitioning of iron during early pervasive carbonation revealed by chemical zoning in matrix magnesites, and we discuss the conditions favoring the formation of Fe-rich magnesite.
Robert P. Wintsch, Romain Meyer, David L. Bish, Ryan T. Deasy, Toshio Nozaka, and Carley Johnson
Sci. Dril., 31, 71–84, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-31-71-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-31-71-2022, 2022
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We report a new method of obtaining representative samples of drill core with an example from the lower oceanic crust in the Hess Deep rift. Sawing drill core in half produces 1.3 g of rock per centimeter of core cut – material usually discarded. We show that when collected and analyzed properly, these samples reveal both the chemical composition of lower oceanic crust and the reactions that change the mineralogical and chemical composition of that crust.
Manuel D. Menzel, Janos L. Urai, Estibalitz Ukar, Thierry Decrausaz, and Marguerite Godard
Solid Earth, 13, 1191–1218, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1191-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1191-2022, 2022
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Mantle rocks can bind large quantities of carbon by reaction with CO2, but this capacity requires fluid pathways not to be clogged by carbonate. We studied mantle rocks from Oman to understand the mechanisms allowing their transformation into carbonate and quartz. Using advanced imaging techniques, we show that abundant veins were essential fluid pathways driving the reaction. Our results show that tectonic stress was important for fracture opening and a key ingredient for carbon fixation.
Mathieu Rospabé, Fatma Kourim, Akihiro Tamura, Eiichi Takazawa, Manolis Giampouras, Sayantani Chatterjee, Keisuke Ishii, Matthew J. Cooper, Marguerite Godard, Elliot Carter, Natsue Abe, Kyaw Moe, Damon A. H. Teagle, and Oman Drilling Project “ChikyuOman2018 Leg 3” Science
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Sci. Dril., 30, 75–99, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-75-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/sd-30-75-2022, 2022
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During ChikyuOman2018 Leg3, we adapted a sample preparation and analytical procedure in order to analyse (ultra-)trace element concentrations using the D/V Chikyu on-board instrumentation. This dry (acid-free) and safe method has been developed for the determination of 37 elements (lowest reachable concentrations: 1–2 ppb) in igneous rocks from the oceanic lithosphere and could be adapted to other materials and/or chemicals of interest in the course of future ocean drilling operations.
Rebecca Kühn, Michael Stipp, and Bernd Leiss
Saf. Nucl. Waste Disposal, 1, 69–70, https://doi.org/10.5194/sand-1-69-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/sand-1-69-2021, 2021
Valentin Basch, Martyn R. Drury, Oliver Plumper, Eric Hellebrand, Laura Crispini, Fabrice Barou, Marguerite Godard, and Elisabetta Rampone
Eur. J. Mineral., 33, 463–477, https://doi.org/10.5194/ejm-33-463-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/ejm-33-463-2021, 2021
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This paper investigates the possibility for melts to migrate within extensively deformed crystals and assesses the impact of this intracrystalline melt percolation on the chemical composition of the deformed crystal. We here document that the presence of melt within a crystal greatly enhances chemical diffusive re-equilibration between the percolating melt and the mineral and that such a process occurring at crystal scale can impact the large-scale composition of the oceanic lithosphere.
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Short summary
A workflow for sampling hard rock cores for microbiological research was developed and optimized during International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) Expedition 399. These procedures and protocols were adapted from previous expeditions and further optimized for handling large numbers of hard rock samples. The workflow is also intended to facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations so as to maximize the scientific value of each sample for the whole scientific team.
A workflow for sampling hard rock cores for microbiological research was developed and optimized...

