From Sediment to Rock – the role of Microbes in Early Lithification of Sabkha Sediments

Value, Duration and Start Date of the Award

The Doctoral Training Award is for £20,000 per annum. This award covers fees and a contribution to an annual stipend (living expenses). scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

Three year PhD

Start date: 14 September 2014

Sponsor

Science Agriculture and Engineering Faculty Doctoral Training Awards

Project Description

The Holocene to recent evaporite and carbonate sediments along the Abu Dhabi coastline are unique modern day geologic analogues of ancient carbonate deposits and exhibit features observed in core and outcrops deposited many millions of years ago. Such recent sediments thus greatly enhance our ability to interpret the properties of ancient sediments. The Abu Dhabi coastal sediments consist of a combination of microbial carbonate mats, carbonate mud, anhydrite and gypsum. We aim to use them as a recent analogue to inform our understanding of ancient Jurassic reservoir rocks and possibly other carbonate-evaporite subsurface sequences. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

In microbial carbonates, different mineral precipitation processes (abiotic, biotically induced or controlled) produce a range of textures and pore geometry development styles. Key components of the biologically-influenced mineralisation (organomineralisation) are the microbial metabolism and environmental conditions impacting the calcium carbonate saturation index and an organic matrix comprised of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), which may provide a template for carbonate mineral nucleation. Lithification of the microbe-constructed structures is essential for preservation in the sedimentary record and key to the retention of primary porosities within carbonate reservoirs. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

There is now a good understanding of the processes involved in carbonate precipitation in modern microbial mats. However, the link between the microbial community responsible for initial lithification, the micro environment in which they live and the volume and types of cements produced and the subsequent reduction in porosity is still not well understood. We will test the hypothesis that the spatial and temporal distribution of syndepositional mineralisation, associated with microbial communities, is a fundamental factor controlling the subsequent evolution of carbonate reservoir properties. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

Most of the samples required for these studies will be acquired directly from the Abu Dhabi sabkha during joint field expeditions by research team members from The Petroleum Institute and Newcastle University. The multi-disciplinary character of the proposed research requires specialist training in several techniques. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

This project benefits from the new geosciences microscope facilities at Newcastle University, enabling training in carbonate petrography and quantifying mineral phases through segmentation of rock images. The Newcastle University Bio-Imaging Unit provides access and training in confocal microscopy and other imaging techniques to quantify extrapolymeric substances (EPS), essential in organomineralisation. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

Name of the Supervisors

Dr Cees van der Land, School of Civil Engineering & Geosciences

Professor Ian Head, School of Civil Engineering & Geosciences

Dr Stephen Lokier, Petroleum Institute, UAE

Person Specification and Eligibility Criteria

You must have, or expect to achieve, a first-class or upper-second-class Honours degree (or international equivalent) in geosciences, (organic) geochemistry, environmental sciences or related subject. Affinity with field and laboratory work is essential. An MSc (or equivalent) in a relevant subject would be an advantage. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

This award is available to UK/EU and International candidates. If English is not your first language, you must have IELTS 6.5. scholarship daily news in www.rightman.ir

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