Statement_of_Work_2.pdf

STATEMENT OF WORK

I. GENERAL INFORMATION

A. Introduction

The USGS ESC has a requirement for cosmogenic radionuclide analyses services to perform research that can reduce risk from natural hazards that affect public safety for the American People.

This work is mission critical. We are improving the hazard model for public-safety in the most seismically active area of California, the Mendocino Triple Junction. We need to know where the faults are in this area and how active they are in this difficult to study area (due to dense forest and rugged topography). We are doing this using cosmogenic radionuclide analysis – the motion on upper crustal faults is recorded in the erosion rates, and the ages and positions of marine and fluvial terraces that can be determined from their inventory of cosmogenic radionuclides that accumulate in the upper 2 meters of the Earth’s surface through time. This work will provide a new framework for detailed study of active faults that pose significant hazard to U.S.

Citizens and public safety in general but require multi-year effort using the latest research methods, such as cosmogenic radionuclide analysis.

This work builds on earlier work. If this work is not completed, we will not be able to interpret the results of early work and improvements to public safety will not be achieved. This research is multi-step and requires significant analysis to complete.

If the work is not completed, we will not be able to develop new understanding of the upper-crustal faults in the Mendocino Triple Junction.

B. Scope (state general purpose, objectives, magnitude). The laboratory is to perform the pretreatment and the Accelerator Mass Spectrometer (AMS). The lab determines the content of a specific isotope in a geologic sample. The most common isotopes targeted are 10Be (Beryllium) and 26Al (Aluminum).

1) This proposal envisions an ongoing contract to span 5 years. The initial scope is to analyze remaining material for 33 samples that have been analyzed for 10Be already, but now require 26Al analysis to evaluate potential for presence of excess 10Be due to meteoric or radiogenic rather than cosmogenic sources (this is a rare occurrence but possible in the current research site due to “young” oceanic rocks in the area). The ration of 10Be to 26Al will be used to evaluate for excess 10Be and to improve data.

2) We also need to analyze 3 new samples for both 10Be and 26Al using same methods for data continuity.

II. WORK REQUIREMENTS

A. Technical Requirements.

1. The samples will be crushed and ground, quartz will be separated and purified, samples will be chemically prepared, and the resulting sample will be analyzed using AMS. The results will be provided to us in a simple spreadsheet, sent via email, and will include sample weight, information about standards used, isotope ratios, and laboratory errors.

2. Receipt of the above information will be the criteria for acceptance of the age-determination service.

B. Deliverables.

1. Spreadsheet as described above.

2. Delivery within one year of submission of samples.

III. SUPPORTING INFORMATION

A. Period of Performance: 33 USGS samples are located at another vendor’s facility as leftover material from previous analysis of 10Be, and three more will be shipped by USGS to the contractor as soon as this contract is established. The period of performance is approximately 8/1/2025 to 07/31/2026 with four option years subject to continuing need and availability of funds.

B. Government Furnished Property (GFP): 33 samples already partially processed at another facility, and 3 samples currently at USGS-Moffett Field to be shipped to contractor (USGS pays for this shipping). Future samples would be collected by USGS personnel.

C. Special Considerations: None