A new experiment by Elizabeth Swanner evaluating the reduction of iron in prehistoric oceans may reinterpret the conditions under which iron-rich sedimentary rock is formed.
A new experiment by Elizabeth Swanner evaluating the reduction of iron in prehistoric oceans may reinterpret the conditions under which iron-rich sedimentary rock is formed.
Swanner, assistant professor of geological and atmospheric sciences, was part of an internationally collaborative research team including researchers from the University of Tuebingen, Germany and the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, China. The team modeled the prehistoric ocean, similar to that of the Archean Era 2.5 billion years ago within a graduated cylinder.
"We really only wanted to simulate it in the vertical dimension, so we used a graduated cylinder and modified it," Swanner said.
Read more at: Iowa State University
Image: A graduated cylinder model of the ocean. The green shows cyanobacteria and the brown shows the oxidized iron.
CREDIT: Iowa State University
