Using Geochemical Data: To Understand Geological Processes

This textbook is a complete rewrite, and expansion of Hugh Rollinson's highly successful 1993 book Using Geochemical Data: Evaluation, Presentation, Interpretation. Rollinson and Pease's new book covers the explosion in geochemical thinking over the past three decades, as new instruments and techniques have come online. It provides a comprehensive overview of how modern geochemical data are used in the understanding of geological and petrological processes. It covers major element, trace element, and radiogenic and stable isotope geochemistry. It explains the potential of many geochemical techniques, provides examples of their application, and emphasizes how to interpret the resulting data. Additional topics covered include the critical statistical analysis of geochemical data, current geochemical techniques, effective display of geochemical data, and the application of data in problem solving and identifying petrogenetic processes within a geological context. It will be invaluable for all graduate students, researchers, and professionals using geochemical techniques.

Table of Contents:
1. Geochemical data; 2. Analysing geochemical data; 3. Using major element data; 4. Using trace element data; 5. Using geochemical data to identify tectonic environments; 6. Using radiogenic isotope data; 7. Using stable isotope data; Appendices; References; Index.

About the Author :
Hugh Rollinson is Emeritus Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Derby. His particular interest is in the application of geochemistry to the early history of the Earth and he has published on the geochemistry of Archaean rocks from Scotland, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe, India, west Greenland and Russia. Victoria Pease is Professor of Tectonics and Magmatism at Stockholm University. Her research focuses on unravelling Arctic tectonics. She sits on a number of international committees and is a Chief Editor of Precambrian Research.

Review :
'The new edition of Using Geochemical Data is not only an excellent text for a geochemistry course, but it also provides an easy source to find geochemical information … The chapter on analyzing geochemical data is outstanding and the information in this chapter is not generally available in other geochemical texts. The chapters on major and trace elements are not only useful in geochemistry, but are also important in igneous and sedimentary petrology courses … it is easy to look up specific geochemical diagrams in the book, see how they are constructed, and what the limitations are for their applications. The discussion of trace elements in evaluating various magmatic processes and tectonic settings … is clearly in a league of its own … I strongly recommend the book as both a geochemical textbook and as an easy-to-use reference for geochemists and non-geochemists alike.' Kent C. Condie, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology 'This welcome second edition combines geochemical approaches in the tackling of geological problems, with descriptions of widely used techniques. It ranges from major and trace element geochemistry, to geochemical discriminant diagrams, and radiogenic and stable isotopes, ensuring that it will be a key resource for those seeking to utilize the breadth of geochemistry now available. For me, the strength of this textbook is the combination of the breadth of topics covered in one place, providing a resource that people can dip into and learn how to apply different approaches.' Chris Hawkesworth, University of Bristol 'The new Rollinson and Pease version of Using Geochemical Data is a very welcome second edition of the classic original … This revised and much expanded text is very well illustrated and covers many new developments in geochemistry … It will be of great value to petrology undergraduates as well as to postgraduate students starting to use their own data.' Stephen Daly, University College, Dublin 'Geochemists of a certain vintage and with petrological inclinations usually have at least one much-used copy of Rollinson (1993). This second edition is an impressive distillation of the classic and the current, carefully updated and expanded. It is still, at its heart, a pragmatic 'how to do it' guide anchored in numerical and a new statistical rigour, and so will take pride of place on many a geochemical bookshelf.' Mike Fowler, University of Portsmouth 'From A-F-M to Zr/Y, this timely update to a classic textbook provides an accessible introduction to geochemical data analysis, accompanied by numerous practical recipes, and built on solid statistical foundations. Rollinson and Pease have created an essential reference for a new generation of geochemists.' Pieter Vermeesch, University College London 'This thoroughly contemporary revamp of Rollinson's text - with updates and additions on analytical methods, data analysis, and modern interpretations - reinforces the critical role of this authoritative practical reference for robust use of geochemical data across a broad swath of solid Earth geochemistry.' Peter Reiners, University of Arizona 'After having broken apart several copies of the first edition of Using Geochemical Data from extensive use, it is great to see a thoroughly updated version of the book, which will again see much use as a shelf reference and for graduate-level coursework. The second edition follows a similar format as the first, but completely modernized to include more on advanced instrumental and data analysis techniques followed by dedicated sections that center on how to understand and illustrate major- and trace-element data, as well as radiogenic and stable isotope data. Unlike most books that would be specifically geared to rock type, Using Geochemical Data focuses discussion on explaining how and why different geochemical approaches apply to the study of different rock types. This approach not only does an excellent job of explaining how and why certain elemental groups are used and illustrated, but also allows readers to build an understanding of the geochemical connections between different fields of geosciences.' Chris Fedo, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Praise for the first edition: '… a well-balanced, clearly written account of how to deal with geochemical data … Students, researchers, academic and industrial professional geologists will need to have this manual at their elbow when dealing with geochemical data.' Mineralogical Magazine