Projects
Our research on structural diagenesis is supported by Chemical Sciences, Geosciences and Biosciences Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Office of Science, U.S. Department of Energy.
Grant No. DE-SC0022968, ‘Reconstructing and Predicting Fracture Pattern Evolution” supports our current research.
Grant No. DE-FG02-03ER15430, Predicting Fracture Porosity Evolution in Sandstone has made breakthroughs in discovering fundamental processes in how natural fracture grow in the Earth.
Our efforts were helped initially by a major start up grant was provided to the JSG Structural Diagenesis Initiative by the Geology Foundation, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences (2005-2008), William Fisher, Dean.
Research on all aspects of subsurface fractures is supported by Industrial Associates of the Fracture Research and Application Consortium and by Jackson Research Fellowships.
The Fracture Research & Application Consortium supports a wide range of student projects focused on fractured shale, sandstone, and carbonate rocks. Major studies are underway in Colorado, Wyoming, East Texas, western Canada, Scotland and Argentina.
We are grateful for ongoing support from the Geology Foundation, John A. and Katherine G. Jackson School of Geosciences.
Elements of the program are supported by the Cockrell School of Engineering Department of Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering.
Some elements of our research are supported by the Bookout Chair for Structural Geology (Laubach)
In addition, many separately funded projects support our structural diagenesis research. Among these (current and recent):
- RPSEA New Albany Shale, a comprehensive study of fractured shale.
- RPSEA Marcellus Shale, a comprehensive study of fractured shale.
- RPSEA Multiazimuth seismic diffraction imaging for fracture characterization.
- NETL hydraulic fracture and natural fracture research, I and II.
- STARR projects in fractured shale, tight gas sandstones and fractured reservoirs on State of Texas lands.
- Shell SUTUR program.
- ExxonMobil/Jackson School initiative in unconventional reservoirs.
- GDL Foundation scholarships (student support).
Program Support
If you would like to support the program, contact Steve Laubach.
Study Opportunities
- Reconstruction of natural fracture aperture, height and length growth and interaction (microstructural, fluid inclusion, and numerical modeling study)
- Core and log-based fracture and diagenesis research on Cretaceous sandstones (East Texas; Wyoming) and tight gas and oil reservoir analog studies (Scotland; Argentina; other locations)
- Core and log-based fracture and diagenesis research on Cretaceous sandstones (Western Canada) and tight oil reservoir analog studies (Canada)
- Core and log-based fracture and diagenesis research on reservoir sandstones (Wolfcamp, West Texas) and reservoir analog studies (various locations)
- Horizontal drilling and fracture analysis applications of spatial scaling analysis methods
- Fluid inclusion studies in fracture cements and fault rocks
- Fractured carbonate reservoirs and reservoir analogs
- Hydraulic fracture growth in naturally fractured rock
- Fault zone growth, fault rock evolution and diagenesis
- Experimental structural diagenesis
- Multi-phase flow in fracture systems
- Regional and field-scale fracture and fault studies
Contact Laubach, Olson, Gale or Ukar for more information.
Student & Postdoctoral Research Projects
The SDI Thesis and Dissertation page lists current student research topics as well as past graduate student and postdoctoral fellow projects and where students and postdoctoral fellows went after their time in the program.