CGeol - Chartered Geologist, Geological Society of London
Chair Of Energy Geoscience
- About
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- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 273713
- School/Department
- School of Geosciences
Biography
How and why sediment is deposited, the processes by which it consolidates and lithifies, and its micro- and macro-mineralogy fascinate me. I integrate data from global to sub-micro-scale, examining basin evolution, sediment provenance and its relationship to climate change including weathering and erosion and diagenesis. While focussing on understanding process, my research has a strong element of resource evaluation, and its contribution to the inventory of Earth resources.
For more than 25 years, the Sand Injection Research Group (SIRG) studied the natural injection of fluidised sand into actively propagating hydraulic fractures, and their influence on fluid migration and expulsion. This is significant for resource entrapment and recovery, and waste (nuclear, CO2) or resource (hydrogen, CH4) sequestration. Other research includes a) self-sufficient low C energy systems in rural environments, b) the origin, physical characterisation, and climatic significance of loessite, specifically associated with mass extinction events, c) modelling the effect of micro-scale granular features on rock physical characteristics, d) mineral-chemical stratigraphy.
Since 1992 I held the Chair in Production Geoscience (now Energy Geoscience). I am a former Director of MSc IPG and taught MSc IPG, OGEM & Oil & Gas Engineering, as well as level 1 and 4 UG courses. In 2015 I was awarded a Blaustein Professorship at Stanford University.
I was an elected Trustee of the Geological Society of London and served on various GSL committees. I served on senior committees in the AAPG and EAGE and I am an active member of the International Association of Sedimentology. I co-founded and was Chief Editor of Petroleum Geoscience (GSL/EAGE). As part of the Deepwater Horizon Trial between 2011 and 2014, I was engaged as an expert witness for the prosecution during which I was cross examined in court.
Sand Injection Research Group (SIRG)
Sand injectites - Regional development of natural hydraulic fractures in the shallow crust, and concomitant sand fluidisation and injection; their role in the evolution of sedimentary basins.
Loessite – Origin and provenance of loessite and its significance as extra-basinal fill and as an indicator of ancient atmospheric circulation patterns.
Green rural energy – Self-sustainable energy by repurposing domestic waste, integrating agricultural waste with energy crops, and reduction of transport.
Qualifications
- PhD Geology1981 - University of Reading
- BSc Hons Geology & Mineralogy1977 - University of Aberdeen
Memberships and Affiliations
- Internal Memberships
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Throughout my career I assiduously avoided serving on University of Aberdeen committees.
- External Memberships
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I am member of the: Geological Society of London (C Geol), European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers (EAGE), American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG), International Association of Sedimentologists (IAS), and Geoscience Energy Society of Great Britain.
Latest Publications
Investigation of coupled hydro-mechanical modelling of hydraulic fracture propagation and interaction with natural fractures
International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, vol. 169, 105418Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2023.105418
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Outcrop Characterization and Modelling of Sand Injection Complexes
Chapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: Conference Proceedings- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Provenance Variability in Coeval Slope Channel Systems: Hermod S2 Member Sandstone (Eocene), South Viking Graben (North Sea)
Geosciences (Switzerland), vol. 12, no. 12, 450Contributions to Journals: ArticlesPermeability heterogeneity of sandstone intrusion fluid-escape systems, Panoche Hills, California: Implications for sedimentary basins globally
Sedimentology, vol. 69, no. 6, pp. 2463–2485Contributions to Journals: ArticlesA giant sand injection complex: Processes and implications for basin evolution and subsurface fluid flow
American Journal of Science, vol. 322, no. 6, pp. 729-794Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.2475/06.2022.01
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Prizes and Awards
1993 William Smith Award (Geological Society of London)
2004 Wegener Medal (European Association of Geoscientists & Engineers)
2007 Distinguished Service Award (American Association of Petroleum Geologists)
2012 Grover E Murray Distinguished Educator Award (American Association of Petroleum Geologists)
2015 Blaustein Professor in Geology, Stanford University
- Research
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Research Areas
Funding and Grants
Since 1998 research on sand injectites became a huge part of my research activity. Chevron UK initiated the first 2-year project in 1998 that in 2000 became the Sand Injection Research Group (SIRG) consortium, which remains active today. Almost 40 energy companies have invested in SIRG consortia
- Publications
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Page 11 of 11 Results 101 to 109 of 109
Fuzziness, incompleteness and randomness: Classification of uncertainty in reservoir appraisal
Petroleum Geoscience, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 203-209Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1144/petgeo.3.3.203
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Upper Jurassic sandstone reservoir quality and distribution on the Fladen Ground Spur
Geological Society Special Publication, vol. 114, pp. 235-249Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.1996.114.01.11
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Thorium distribution in some North Sea sandstones: Implications for petrophysical evaluation
Petroleum Geoscience, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 59-68Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1144/petgeo.2.1.59
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Correlation of sandstones using heavy minerals: An example from the Statfjord Formation of the Snorre Field, northern North Sea
Geological Society Special Publication, vol. 89, pp. 3-22Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.1995.089.01.02
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Permeability heterogeneity within massive Jurassic submarine fan sandstones from the Miller Field, northern North Sea, UK
Geological Society Special Publication, vol. 94, pp. 201-219Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.1995.094.01.14
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
The sedimentological record of a late Jurassic transgression: Rona Member (Kimmeridge Clay Formation equivalent), West Shetland Basin, UKCS
Geological Society Special Publications , vol. 94, pp. 155-176Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Origin of quartz cements in some sandstones from the Jurassic of the Inner Moray Firth (UK)
Sedimentology, vol. 41, no. 2, pp. 363-377Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3091.1995.tb02108.x
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Recommended practice for probe permeametry
Marine and Petroleum Geology, vol. 10, no. 4, pp. 309-317Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0264-8172(93)90075-4
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus
Introduction: Geological Society Special Publication
Geological Society Special Publication, vol. 65, pp. vii-viiiContributions to Journals: Editorials- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.1992.065.01.01
- [ONLINE] View publication in Scopus