Geochemistry

Biogeochemistry

The study of chemical cycles of the earth that are either driven by or influence biological activity

Carbon cycle

Biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere

Geochemical cycle

Pathway that chemical elements take in the surface and crust of the Earth

Geochemistry

Science that applies chemistry to analyze geological systems

Igneous differentiation

Processes by which magmas undergo bulk chemical change during the partial melting process, cooling, emplacement, or eruption

Isotope geochemistry

Subfield of geology focused on the study of natural variations in the relative abundances of isotopes of various elements

Metamorphic reaction

Chemical reaction that takes place during the geological process of metamorphism

Organic geochemistry

Study of the impacts and processes that organisms have had on the Earth

Oxygen cycle

Biogeochemical cycle of oxygen

Partial melting

Partial melting occurs when only a portion of a solid is melted. For mixed substances, such as a rock containing several different minerals or a mineral that displays solid solution, this melt can be different from the bulk composition of the solid.

Primordial nuclide

Nuclides predating the Earth's formation (found on Earth)

Recrystallization (geology)

Metamorphic process that occurs under temperature and pressure where atoms of a mineral are reorganized by diffusion and/or dislocation glide

Remineralisation

Breakdown of organic matter to simple chemicals by living organisms

Trace element

Element of low concentration

δ13C

Measure of relative carbon-13 concentration in a sample

δ18O

Measure of the ratio of stable isotopes oxygen-18 and oxygen-16