OxTalks will soon move to the new Halo platform and will become 'Oxford Events.' There will be a need for an OxTalks freeze. This was previously planned for Friday 14th November – a new date will be shared as soon as it is available (full details will be available on the Staff Gateway).
In the meantime, the OxTalks site will remain active and events will continue to be published.
If staff have any questions about the Oxford Events launch, please contact halo@digital.ox.ac.uk
Thermodynamic modeling has been the backbone of interpreting geologic data and modelling geologic systems for decades. However, more recent advancements in computational capabilities and a marked increase in researchers’ accessibility to computing tools has outpaced the functionality and extensibility of currently available modeling tools. VESIcal is the first comprehensive modelling tool for H2O, CO2, and mixed (H2O-CO2) solubility in silicate melts. VESIcal provides a thermodynamic framework that: a) allows users access to all commonly used models, including easy intercomparison between models; b) provides universal functionality for all models (e.g., functions for calculating saturation pressures, degassing paths, etc.); c) can process large datasets (1,000’s of samples) automatically; d) outputs computed data into an excel spreadsheet for simple post-modelling analysis; e) integrates advanced plotting capabilities directly within the tool; and f) provides all of these within the framework of a python library, making the tool extensible by the user and allowing any of the model functions to be incorporated into any other code capable of calling python.
VESIcal is the first substantive cog in a broader vision on the future of thermodynamic modeling of volatiles in magmatic systems. In this talk, I will discuss this vision, describe how VESIcal is the first large step toward meeting some ambitious goals, and demonstrate the power of VESIcal by performing some modeling in real time.