I am a sedimentary geochemist, and I work on a variety of problems in sedimentary geology, paleoclimate, and basin analysis through the use of petrology, elemental geochemistry, and stable isotope geochemistry. I run the Carbonate Research and Geochemistry group at UQ, where we have a variety of facilities for sample petrology, carbonate precipitation under controlled environmental conditions, and geochemical analysis. Several active and potential research areas are outlined below.
Clumped Isotope Reordering and Basin Analysis
Currently we are investigating clumped isotope reordering - the change that occurs in a sample's clumped isotope value as a result of solid-state diffusion of 18O and/or 13C within the crystal lattice of a carbonate mineral. This is important to understand for two reasons. First, if we are trying to get accurate paleoclimate data using clumped isotope paleothermometry, we need to know what conditions (burial depth and heating) allow for primary signals, and under which conditions the primary signal is lost. Second, if we know the kinetics of clumped isotope reordering, we can then apply that knowledge to understand past heat flow in a basin. Combined with a stratigraphic column and burial history for a body of rock, we can reconstruct geothermal gradients, and evaluate tectonic/basin models based on whether they could produce the required heat flux to match observed clumped isotope values. Areas of active research include precipitating model carbonates in the lab to study the effects of different cations, burial diagenesis, and applications to sediment hosted ore bodies/other economic systems.
Carbonate Sedimentation and Diagenesis
Carbonate sedimentation and diagenesis is one of our active research areas, with a focus on combining laboratory experiments, modern analogues, and ancient rocks to understand the long term evolution of carbonates and other sediments. Clumped isotopes are useful here as it turns out they do record the temperature of formation in most cases, and can be applied to a variety of problems, such as contemporary dolomite formation, or the temperature of formation of otherwise engimatic carbonate textures, such as 'beef' calcites. We are also interested in the sedimentation and diagenesis of carbonate reefs, such as the geological history of the Great Barrier Reef, and are currently studying the halogen composition of carbonates, reef rocks and corals, and oceanic sediments in general.
Paleoclimate Research
I have been interested in paleoclimate since I took my first geology class at Northwestern. Since then, I've worked on a variety of timescales and systems, but the common theme has been the application of stable isotopes and clumped isotopes. Clumped isotopes are a wonderful tool for paleoclimate research in situations where the water oxygen isotope composition is uncertain, such as terrestrial and lacustrine settings, deep time where even the oxygen isotopic composition of the ocean is uncertain, or even in (relatively) more modern systems that might be affected by runoff or glacial meltwater. Active projects and areas of interest include Holocene climate change/ENSO, Southern Ocean Cenozoic paleoclimatology, and 'bizzare' climate events such as the Neoproterozoic Snowball Earth glaciations.
Degrees and Positions Held
2008 B.A. Geological Sciences and Integrated Sciences (Honors), Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, USA
2014 Ph.D. Geology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
2014-2017 Postdoctoral Researcher, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
2017-2019 Berg-Hughes Postdoctoral Fellow, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
2019-Present Lecturer in Geochemistry, University of Queensland
Journal Article: Reliability of micritic carbonates in recording well-preserved isotopic composition and implications for paleoelevation estimates in central Tibet
Li, Lin, Quade, Jay, Garzione, Carmala, Defliese, William F., DeCelles, Peter and Kapp, Paul (2024). Reliability of micritic carbonates in recording well-preserved isotopic composition and implications for paleoelevation estimates in central Tibet. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2024.04.009
Journal Article: Clumped isotope reordering kinetics in strontianite and witherite: Experiments and first-principles simulations
Sun, Zeyang, Perez-Beltran, Saul, Zaheer, Wasif, Defliese, William F., Banerjee, Sarbajit and Grossman, Ethan L. (2023). Clumped isotope reordering kinetics in strontianite and witherite: Experiments and first-principles simulations. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 624 118467, 118467. doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2023.118467
Journal Article: δ<sup>13</sup>C and δ<sup>18</sup>O heterogeneities in carbonates: Nonlinear mixing in the application of dual‐carbonate‐clumped isotope thermometer
White, Jackson H. and Defliese, William F. (2023). δ13C and δ18O heterogeneities in carbonates: Nonlinear mixing in the application of dual‐carbonate‐clumped isotope thermometer. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 37 (21) e9627, e9627. doi: 10.1002/rcm.9627
Halogens in coral as paleoenvironmental proxies
(2023–2024) Australian National University
The halogen composition of subducting oceanic sediments
(2022) Australian National University
(2020–2022) Australian National University
Indian summer monsoon variability during the past ten thousand years
Doctor Philosophy
Diffusion rates of 13C-18O clumping in dolomite and high Mg/Mn calcite
Doctor Philosophy
Recycling halogens and noble gases in sediments and meta-sediments
Doctor Philosophy
Li, Lin, Quade, Jay, Garzione, Carmala, Defliese, William F., DeCelles, Peter and Kapp, Paul (2024). Reliability of micritic carbonates in recording well-preserved isotopic composition and implications for paleoelevation estimates in central Tibet. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2024.04.009
Sun, Zeyang, Perez-Beltran, Saul, Zaheer, Wasif, Defliese, William F., Banerjee, Sarbajit and Grossman, Ethan L. (2023). Clumped isotope reordering kinetics in strontianite and witherite: Experiments and first-principles simulations. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 624 118467, 118467. doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2023.118467
White, Jackson H. and Defliese, William F. (2023). δ13C and δ18O heterogeneities in carbonates: Nonlinear mixing in the application of dual‐carbonate‐clumped isotope thermometer. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 37 (21) e9627, e9627. doi: 10.1002/rcm.9627
Perez-Beltran, Saul, Zaheer, Wasif, Sun, Zeyang, Defliese, William F., Banerjee, Sarbajit and Grossman, Ethan L. (2023). Density functional theory and ab initio molecular dynamics reveal atomistic mechanisms for carbonate clumped isotope reordering. Science Advances, 9 (26) eadf1701, 1-10. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adf1701
Kendrick, Mark A., Plümper, Oliver, Zhao, Jian-Xin, Feng, Yuexing, Defliese, William F., Müller, Inigo A. and Ziegler, Martin (2022). Exhumation and carbonation of the Atlantis Bank core complex constrained by in situ U-Pb dating and Δ47 thermometry of calcite veins, SW Indian Ridge. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 584 117474, 117474. doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117474
Upadhyay, Deepshikha, Lucarelli, Jamie, Arnold, Alexandrea, Flores, Randy, Bricker, Hayley, Ulrich, Robert N., Jesmok, Gregory, Santi, Lauren, Defliese, William, Eagle, Robert A., Carroll, Hannah M., Bateman, Jesse Bloom, Petryshyn, Victoria, Loyd, Sean J., Tang, Jianwu, Priyadarshi, Antra, Elliott, Ben and Tripati, Aradhna (2021). Carbonate clumped isotope analysis (Δ47) of 21 carbonate standards determined via gas-source isotope-ratio mass spectrometry on four instrumental configurations using carbonate-based standardization and multiyear data sets. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 35 (17) e9143, 1-24. doi: 10.1002/rcm.9143
Savard, Martine M., Jautzy, Josué J., Lavoie, Denis, Dhillon, Ryan S. and Defliese, William F. (2021). Clumped and oxygen isotopes reveal differential disequilibrium in the formation of carbonates from marine methane seeps. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 298, 43-54. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2021.01.041
The impact of Snowball Earth glaciation on ocean water δ18O values
Defliese, William F. (2021). The impact of Snowball Earth glaciation on ocean water δ18O values. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 554 116661, 116661. doi: 10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116661
Clumped isotope geothermometry of an Ordovician carbonate mound, Hudson Bay Basin
Jautzy, Josué J., Savard, Martine M., Lavoie, Denis, Ardakani, Omid H., Dhillon, Ryan S., Defliese, William F. and Castagner, Ariane (2020). Clumped isotope geothermometry of an Ordovician carbonate mound, Hudson Bay Basin. Journal of the Geological Society, 178 (1) jgs2020. doi: 10.1144/jgs2020-102
Defliese, William F. and Tripati, Aradhna (2020). Analytical effects on clumped isotope thermometry: comparison of a common sample set analyzed using multiple instruments, types of standards, and standardization windows. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 34 (8) e8666, e8666. doi: 10.1002/rcm.8666
Chang, Biao, Defliese, William F., Li, Chao, Huang, Junhua, Tripati, Aradhna and Algeo, Thomas J. (2020). Effects of different constants and standards on the reproducibility of carbonate clumped isotope (Δ47) measurements: insights from a long-term dataset. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 34 (8) e8678, e8678. doi: 10.1002/rcm.8678
Naylor, H. Nathan, Defliese, William F., Grossman, Ethan L. and Maupin, Christopher R. (2019). Investigation of the thermal history of the Delaware Basin (West Texas, USA) using carbonate clumped isotope thermometry. Basin Research, 32 (5) bre.12419, 1150-1165. doi: 10.1111/bre.12419
Petersen, S. V., Defliese, W. F., Saenger, C., Daëron, M., Huntington, K. W., John, C. M., Kelson, J. R., Bernasconi, S. M., Colman, A. S., Kluge, T., Olack, G. A., Schauer, A. J., Bajnai, D., Bonifacie, M., Breitenbach, S. F. M., Fiebig, J., Fernandez, A. B., Henkes, G. A., Hodell, D., Katz, A., Kele, S., Lohmann, K. C., Passey, B. H., Peral, M. Y., Petrizzo, D. A., Rosenheim, B. E., Tripati, A., Venturelli, R., Young, E. D. and Winkelstern, I. Z. (2019). Effects of improved 17 O correction on interlaboratory agreement in clumped isotope calibrations, estimates of mineral‐specific offsets, and temperature dependence of acid digestion fractionation. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 20 (7) 2018GC008127, 3495-3519. doi: 10.1029/2018gc008127
Sample, James C., Torres, Marta E., Fisher, Andrew, Hong, Wei-Li, Destrigneville, Christine, Defliese, William F. and Tripati, Aradhna E. (2017). Geochemical constraints on the temperature and timing of carbonate formation and lithification in the Nankai Trough, NanTroSEIZE transect. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 198, 92-114. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2016.10.013
Meltwater pulse recorded in last interglacial mollusk shells from Bermuda
Winkelstern, Ian Z., Rowe, Mark P., Lohmann, Kyger C., Defliese, William F., Petersen, Sierra V. and Brewer, Aaron W. (2017). Meltwater pulse recorded in last interglacial mollusk shells from Bermuda. Paleoceanography, 32 (2), 132-145. doi: 10.1002/2016pa003014
Loyd, S. J., Sample, J., Tripati, R. E., Defliese, W. F., Brooks, K., Hovland, M., Torres, M., Marlow, J., Hancock, L. G., Martin, R., Lyons, T. and Tripati, A. E. (2016). Methane seep carbonates yield clumped isotope signatures out of equilibrium with formation temperatures. Nature Communications, 7 (1) 12274. doi: 10.1038/ncomms12274
Evaluation of meteoric calcite cements as a proxy material for mass-47 clumped isotope thermometry
Defliese, William F. and Lohmann, Kyger C (2016). Evaluation of meteoric calcite cements as a proxy material for mass-47 clumped isotope thermometry. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 173, 126-141. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2015.10.022
Horton, Travis W., Defliese, William F., Tripati, Aradhna K. and Oze, Christopher (2016). Evaporation induced O-18 and C-13 enrichment in lake systems: A global perspective on hydrologic balance effects. Quaternary Science Reviews, 131, 365-379. doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2015.06.030
Non-linear mixing effects on mass-47 CO2 clumped isotope thermometry: Patterns and implications
Defliese, William F. and Lohmann, Kyger C. (2015). Non-linear mixing effects on mass-47 CO2 clumped isotope thermometry: Patterns and implications. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 29 (9), 901-909. doi: 10.1002/rcm.7175
Defliese, William F., Hren, Michael T. and Lohmann, Kyger C. (2015). Compositional and temperature effects of phosphoric acid fractionation on Delta(47) analysis and implications for discrepant calibrations. Chemical Geology, 396, 51-60. doi: 10.1016/j.chemgeo.2014.12.018
The role of internal water in carbonate clumped isotope resetting
Sun, Zeyang, Maupin, Christopher R., Perez-Beltran, Saul, Zaheer, Wasif, Defliese, William F., Banerjee, Sarbajit and Grossman, Ethan (2023). The role of internal water in carbonate clumped isotope resetting. GSA Connects 2023, Pittsburgh, PA USA, 15-18 Octoboer 2023. Boulder, CO USA: Geological Society of America. doi: 10.1130/abs/2023am-395967
Grossman, Ethan, Sun, Zeyang, Perez-Beltran, Saul, Zaheer, Wasif, Defliese, William, Thomas, Jay and Banerjee, Sarbajit (2023). Clumped isotope reordering kinetics in carbonate minerals: Experiments and first-principles atomistic simulations. France: European Association of Geochemistry. doi: 10.7185/gold2023.20450
The kinetics of clumped isotope reordering of synthetic inorganic carbonates
Sun, Zeyang, Texas A&M University, Defliese, William F. and Grossman, Ethan (2021). The kinetics of clumped isotope reordering of synthetic inorganic carbonates. GSA Connects 2021, Portland, OR USA, 10-13 October 2021. Boulder, CO USA: Geological Society of America. doi: 10.1130/abs/2021am-371185
Halogens in coral as paleoenvironmental proxies
(2023–2024) Australian National University
The halogen composition of subducting oceanic sediments
(2022) Australian National University
(2020–2022) Australian National University
Indian summer monsoon variability during the past ten thousand years
Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor
Diffusion rates of 13C-18O clumping in dolomite and high Mg/Mn calcite
Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor
Other advisors:
Recycling halogens and noble gases in sediments and meta-sediments
Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor
Other advisors: