Lin Yuan

To understand the current picture of global marine redox evolution during the Neoproterozoic Era &figure out how this would be related with relevant global carbon isotope anomalies.

PhD project title:

Investigating the history of Neoproterozoic ocean redox states: Implications for early animal evolution.

 

Lin Yuan

Project description:

The Neoproterozoic Era is currently subdivided into three periods: Tonian (1000–ca. 720 Ma), Cryogenian (ca. 720–635 Ma), and Ediacaran (ca. 635–539 Ma). Fossil records show globally that several important biological and evolutionary events occurred during the Neoproterozoic Era, suggesting pulses of an elevated oxygen level in the ocean, which might be related to the change and evolution of the ocean redox states. The exact timing and mechanism of the Neoproterozoic oxygenation, as well as its potential connection to the evolution of animals, are still the subject of debate.

To better understand the evolution of global ocean redox states and to constrain the oxygenation history between the Neoproterozoic era and early Cambrian period, this project will conduct systematic studies on different paleoredox proxies (e.g., Mo, U, and S isotopes), analysing samples spanning all three periods. The rock samples will be mainly collected from different field sites, including North China, Scotland, and Spain.

The aim of the PhD project is to understand the current picture of global marine redox evolution during the Neoproterozoic Era and figure out how this would be related with relevant global carbon isotope anomalies. Furthermore, the role of sulfur cycling in marine authigenesis and its relation to the carbon cycle will be explored, with possible implications for the relationship between extreme climate change and global biogeochemical cycles.
My previous research was focusing on the molybdenum isotopic system, which used this paleoredox proxy and other redox sensitive elements to demonstrate the occurrence of multiple ocean oxygenation events during the Ediacaran period. I have completed my BSc Geology degree at Imperial College London and MSc Geoscience degree at UCL, respectively.
 

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