PhD RESEARCH PROJECTS

There is currently no funding for the PhD project below but suitable candidates may be given advice on applying for appropriate research studentships from IRCSET and TCD. Students interested in other topics are invited to contact members of the Group to discuss possible projects.

The stratigraphy, palaeogeography and hydrocarbon source rock potential of mid-Carboniferous black shales on the Atlantic margins of Western Europe

Supervisors: Geoff Clayton & Robbie Goodhue

Background

Thick Mid Carboniferous black shales (MCBS) occur widely in Western Europe and constitute important hydrocarbon source rocks. Relatively little is known about these units in terms of their palaeogeography and depositional environment, though it is clear that deposition took place in a series of small, linked basins. The original extent of mid-Carboniferous black shales in the Irish offshore is unknown and no model currently exists that could predict their distribution.

Objectives

1. To elucidate the stratigraphy of the Clare shale, onshore western Ireland and the Quebradas Formation, onshore southwest Portugal and determine the palaeogeographic settings of these units and their depositional environments.

2. To integrate the results obtained with available data from the UK and with limited data from the Irish offshore and assess the probability of similar units being present in western Irish offshore basins.

Type of work involved

Palynofacies analysis, kerogen petrography and stable isotope geochemistry.