The Gulf Coast of Texas has been a known hydrocarbon basin for many years with various structural trapping mechanisms such as anticlines, faults and salt domes. While most large salt domes have been extensively studied in the Gulf Coastal Plain, many smaller normal faults have not been studied in detail. This research study employs an integrated geophysical approach to mapping the Big Barn fault in Montgomery County, Texas. This fault is located on the Gulf Coastal Plain and is approximately 20 miles north of Houston, Texas. Most normal faults in the Gulf Coastal Plain formed as a result of the Gulf of Mexico basin which started during the Jurassic Period as a result of the breakup of Pangea and the rifting of North and South America. The Big Barn fault formed during the Jurassic but there is evidence that the fault plane has been recently reactivated. Within the past 20 years, extensive deformation and fractures within the vicinity of the fault have formed on Interstate Highway 45 (IH 45) and caused damage to nearby businesses and residences. In this study gravity, electrical resistivity surveys and traditional mapping techniques were conducted to determine the cause of deformation and the extent of faulting. Two-dimensional inverted resistivity models were made to determine the structures and stratigraphy of the area.
","abstract_html":"<p>The Gulf Coast of Texas has been a known hydrocarbon basin for many years with various structural trapping mechanisms such as anticlines, faults and salt domes. While most large salt domes have been extensively studied in the Gulf Coastal Plain, many smaller normal faults have not been studied in detail. This research study employs an integrated geophysical approach to mapping the Big Barn fault in Montgomery County, Texas. This fault is located on the Gulf Coastal Plain and is approximately 20 miles north of Houston, Texas. Most normal faults in the Gulf Coastal Plain formed as a result of the Gulf of Mexico basin which started during the Jurassic Period as a result of the breakup of Pangea and the rifting of North and South America. The Big Barn fault formed during the Jurassic but there is evidence that the fault plane has been recently reactivated. Within the past 20 years, extensive deformation and fractures within the vicinity of the fault have formed on Interstate Highway 45 (IH 45) and caused damage to nearby businesses and residences. In this study gravity, electrical resistivity surveys and traditional mapping techniques were conducted to determine the cause of deformation and the extent of faulting. Two-dimensional inverted resistivity models were made to determine the structures and stratigraphy of the area. </p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Minteer, Danielle"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science - Geology","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Geology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Dr. Wesley A. Brown","Dr. Melinda Faulkner","Dr. Chris Barker"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-05-12T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2018-05-12T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:30:15Z","subjects":["Geophysics","Electrical Resistivity","Gravity","Fault","Montgomery County","Geology","Geophysics and Seismology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/153","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Dr. Wesley A. Brown","Dr. Melinda Faulkner","Dr. Chris Barker"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Minteer, Danielle"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-05-11T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Geology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science - Geology"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Geophysics","Electrical Resistivity","Gravity","Fault","Montgomery County","Geology","Geophysics and Seismology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/153"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The Gulf Coast of Texas has been a known hydrocarbon basin for many years with various structural trapping mechanisms such as anticlines, faults and salt domes. While most large salt domes have been extensively studied in the Gulf Coastal Plain, many smaller normal faults have not been studied in detail. This research study employs an integrated geophysical approach to mapping the Big Barn fault in Montgomery County, Texas. This fault is located on the Gulf Coastal Plain and is approximately 20 miles north of Houston, Texas. Most normal faults in the Gulf Coastal Plain formed as a result of the Gulf of Mexico basin which started during the Jurassic Period as a result of the breakup of Pangea and the rifting of North and South America. The Big Barn fault formed during the Jurassic but there is evidence that the fault plane has been recently reactivated. Within the past 20 years, extensive deformation and fractures within the vicinity of the fault have formed on Interstate Highway 45 (IH 45) and caused damage to nearby businesses and residences. In this study gravity, electrical resistivity surveys and traditional mapping techniques were conducted to determine the cause of deformation and the extent of faulting. Two-dimensional inverted resistivity models were made to determine the structures and stratigraphy of the area.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["A Geophysical Delineation of A Normal Fault Within the Gulf Coastal Plain, Montgomery County, Texas"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Dr. Wesley A. Brown","Dr. Melinda Faulkner","Dr. Chris Barker"],"dc:creator":["Minteer, Danielle"],"dc:date.available":["2018-05-11T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The Gulf Coast of Texas has been a known hydrocarbon basin for many years with various structural trapping mechanisms such as anticlines, faults and salt domes. While most large salt domes have been extensively studied in the Gulf Coastal Plain, many smaller normal faults have not been studied in detail. This research study employs an integrated geophysical approach to mapping the Big Barn fault in Montgomery County, Texas. This fault is located on the Gulf Coastal Plain and is approximately 20 miles north of Houston, Texas. Most normal faults in the Gulf Coastal Plain formed as a result of the Gulf of Mexico basin which started during the Jurassic Period as a result of the breakup of Pangea and the rifting of North and South America. The Big Barn fault formed during the Jurassic but there is evidence that the fault plane has been recently reactivated. Within the past 20 years, extensive deformation and fractures within the vicinity of the fault have formed on Interstate Highway 45 (IH 45) and caused damage to nearby businesses and residences. In this study gravity, electrical resistivity surveys and traditional mapping techniques were conducted to determine the cause of deformation and the extent of faulting. Two-dimensional inverted resistivity models were made to determine the structures and stratigraphy of the area.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarworks.sfasu.edu/etds/153"],"dc:subject":["Geophysics","Electrical Resistivity","Gravity","Fault","Montgomery County","Geology","Geophysics and Seismology"],"dc:title":["A Geophysical Delineation of A Normal Fault Within the Gulf Coastal Plain, Montgomery County, Texas"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Geology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science - Geology"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:30:15Z"}