Organic Matter Analyses: Characteristics of bulk organic matter will be used to establish source, organic facies, and to provide thermal maturity parameters related to the history of burial and basin temperature gradients. Rock-eval measurements, used to establish kerogen type and thermal indices, will be determined at the USGS Energy Resources program geochemical laboratories (Denver, CO). Total organic carbon and its isotopic composition (δ13CTOC) are useful stratigraphically and provide key information about paleoenvironmental conditions. These data will importantly constrain and inform sample selection for labor-intensive biomarker and climate proxy studies.

Biomarker Studies and Compound-Specific Isotope Analyses: Biomarkers will be employed to discriminate between terrestrial and marine sedimentary inputs using leaf waxes (long, odd-numbered alkanes, n-C25 to n-C35), lignin monomers, and elevated pristine/phytane ratios (reviewed by Freeman and Pancost, 2014; Diefendorf et al., 2011).