Microstructural Response of Zircon in High-Porosity Seeberger Sandstone Experimentally Shocked From 2.5 to 17.5 GPa

Abstract

This thesis studies the shock deformation of zircon in porous rocks. The significance of the findings are that during shock deformation porosity causes variations in shock pressure and temperature at a microstructural scale, forming shock metamorphic features at lower than expected pressures. This has implications for the study of shocked zircon in the field of impact cratering processes where zircon is hosted in porous sandstones.