Staff Profiles

Miss Samantha Clark, BSc (Hons)

Contact Miss Samantha Clark (email at samantha.clark@durham.ac.uk)

PhD Title

Direct and indirect diagenetic effects in igneous affected basins - Constraining diagenetic timings, processes and reservoir quality.

Project Description

Until recently, volcanic dominated sequences have been disregarded as being significant in terms of their potential to act as oil or gas reservoirs. However, recent exploration has identified new play models comprising of siliciclastic sedimentary rocks interbedded with intrusions, lavas and volcaniclastics. In Rosebank, and other volcanic rifted margin settings in the North Atlantic Igneous Province, the effect of diagenesis on potential reservoir volcaniclastic units is poorly understood.  Just how problematic are igneous bodies/material in sedimentary basins?

This research aims to answer questions such as: How much volcaniclastic material do you need incorporated within your sediment before the reservoir is degraded to unprofitable levels? Does the size/composition of the volcaniclastic material have an effect on reservoir quality? Do vent proximal deposits react differently under diagenetic processes than more distal facies?

On-shore field work in Mull is being combined with offshore core data (provided by Chevron) from the Rosebank field in the Fareo-Shetland basin in order to quantitatively assess the reservoir potential of volcaniclastic sands (and siliciclastic sands associated with volcanics).  This will ultimately lead to a better understanding of North Atlantic geology, from both hydrocarbon industry and volcanological perspectives.

My PhD research is funded by Chevron through the CeREES scholarship program.

Research Interests

•  Igneous and metamorphic petrology
• Diagenesis
• Petroleum geology
• Global scale tectonics

Research Groups

Volcanic Margins Research Consortium

https://www.dur.ac.uk/vmrc/consortium/research/phd_students/samantha_clark/

Durham University Volcanology Group

http://www.dur.ac.uk/volc.group/volc.group/Sam_Clark.html

Awards

• Awarded Best Poster at VMSG (Volcanic and Magmatic Study Group), Cambridge, 2011
• Awarded the Durham Energy Institute Award for Best Poster in the Centre for Doctoral Training in Energy poster competition, 2010
• Awarded a £500 BP travel grant at the departmental Research-in-Progress day, 2010
• Awarded an Honourable Mention at VMSG, Glasgow, 2010
• Awarded the Shields Prize, for best undergraduate mapping dissertation, Glasgow University, 2009
• Awarded the Scottish Environmental Research Centre Scholarship, 2008

Conference Presentations

Samantha Clark, David Brown and Dougal Jerram, 2011. Sedimentation of vent proximal pyroclastic and volcaniclastic deposits at Malcolm's Point, Mull, NW Scotland. VMSG (Volcanic and Magmatic Study Group), Cambridge.

Samantha Clark, 2010. Just how problematic are volcaniclastics and igneous bodies in sedimentary basins? Departmental Research-In-Progress day, 2010.

Samantha Clark, Dougal Jerram, Nicola De Paola & David Brown, 2010. The Next Petroleum Frontier - Volcanic Margins. Durham Energy Institute research day.

Samantha Clark, Dougal Jerram, David Brown and Steve Garrett, 2010. Just how problematic are igneous bodies in sedimentary basins? PETEX, London. 

Samantha Clark, Dougal Jerram, Nicola De Paola & David Brown, 2010. Diagenetic effects of igneous bodies in sedimentary basins.  VMSG, Glasgow.

Samantha Clark, 2010. Direct and indirect diagenetic effects in igneous affected basins- constraining diagenetic timings, processes and reservoir quality. Volcanic Margins Research Consortium, Skye Field Trip.

Dougal Jerram, Samantha Clark & Catherine Nelson, 2010. Volcanic research- linking outcrop to the subsurface. Chevron run CUE mini forum on volcanic margins, Aberdeen.

Samantha Clark, 2010. Direct and indirect diagenetic effects in igneous affected basins. Centre for Doctoral Training in Energy, Durham.

Qualifications

 BSc (Hons.) Earth Science- First Class (University of Glasgow, 2009)