Systems at the surface of the Earth are continually responding to energy inputs - rived ultimately from radiation from the Sun or from the radiogenic heat in the - terior. These energy inputs drive plate movements and erosion, exposing metastable mineral phases at the Earth’s surface. In addition, these energy ?uxes are harvested and transformed by living organisms. As long as these processes persist, chemical disequilibrium at the Earth’s surface will be perpetuated. In addition, as human populations grow, the need to produce food, extract - ter, and extract energy resources increases. These processes continually contribute to chemical disequilibrium at the Earth surface. We therefore ?nd it necessary to predict how the surface regolith will change in response to anthropogenic processes as well as long-term climatic and tectonic forcings. To address these questions, we must understand the rates at which reactions occur and the chemical feedbacks that relate these reactions across extreme temporal and spatial scales. Scientists and - gineers who work on soil fertility, nuclear waste disposal, hydrocarbon production, and contaminant and CO sequestration are among the many researchers who need 2 to understand geochemical kinetics. Fundamental questions concerning the lo- term geological, climatic and biological evolution of the planet also rely on g- kinetic information. In this book, we summarize approaches toward measuring and predicting the - netics of water-rock interactions which contribute to the processes mentioned above.
Systems at the surface of the Earth are continually responding to energy inputs derived from solar radiation or from the radiogenic heat in the interior. These energy inputs drive plate movements and erosion, exposing metastable mineral phases at the Earth’s surface. In addition, these energy fluxes are harvested and transformed by living organisms. As long as these processes persist, chemical disequilibrium at the Earth’s surface will be perpetuated. Chemical disequilibrium is also driven by human activities related to production of food, extraction of water and energy resources, and burial of wastes. To understand how the surface of the Earth will change over time, we must understand the rates at which reactions occur and the chemical feedbacks that relate these reactions across extreme temporal and spatial scales. This book addresses fundamental and applied questions concerning the rates of water-rock interactions driven by tectonic, climatic, and anthropogenic forcings.
