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Research Vision
The
Department of Earth Science seeks to establish itself as an internationally
competitive, research-intensive Department, committed the provision of high
quality research and consultancy and to the transfer of this knowledge to the
community.
In
order to do this we will
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focus on the research areas identified above (geophysics, hard-rock,
sedimentary) in order to maximize the benefit of the ‘world class’ geology
which we have on our doorstep;
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preferentially develop those research areas in the Department which are
relevant to the needs of industry (principally this is the oil and gas
industry). These research areas are at present in geophysics and sedimentology;
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channel our resources (staff and equipment) to preferentially build the
research areas identified above;
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seek sources of funding and external collaborations which will develop
the research areas identified above;
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build our postgraduate programmes around these designated research areas;
As
we succeed, we will identify further areas of research in which we can engage.
We predict that these will be in the broad areas of Environmental Geology and
Quaternary Geoscience (including hydrogeology). These topics are the subject of
current research by scientists from abroad, and yet with little collaboration
with, or benefit to, scientists in Oman. They are, however, topics of
considerable international scientific interest, and of great economic importance
to the Sultanate and for these reasons we strongly believe that, as soon as we
have sufficient resources, we should give these research areas an academic home
in this Department. Particularly pressing is the area of hydrogeology, an
important area for research and consultancy on topics of national interest.
Furthermore there is a ready market for an MSc in this area, which we are
seeking to develop as staffing levels permit.
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Research Groups
Igneous and
Metamorphic Geology (+ Mineral deposits)
This group
currently includes three of the more senior members of the Department. The
research focus is broad and includes studies of continental and oceanic crust,
the nature of the sub-continental and sub-oceanic lithosphere and related
mineralization. This group has some synergy with the University’s Centre for
Remote Sensing.
Members
Hugh Rollinson; Sobhi Nasir; Salah Al-Khirbash
Projects
Crust Mantle interaction in the late Archaean
evolution of the Baltic and Ukrainian Shields: the sources, parental melts and
magmatic evolution of the sanukitoid-lamprophyre and syenite lamprophyre
associations. (funded by INTAS, European Union) Rollinson, H.R. (PI). (2002)
A synthesis of the Precambrian geology of the
Arabian Shield. (funded by MENA, Sweden) Al-Khirbash, S (PI); Whitehouse, M
Tectonomagmatic Evolution of the
Hydrocarbon Basins of Central Oman. (funded by PDO) Worthing, M.A. (PI)
(2002)
The chemical and mineralogical
characterization of chromite from the Oman ophiolite: implications for magma
genesis at oceanic spreading centers. Prof. H Rollinson; Dr A. Gimelseed
(Dept. Physics); Dr A. M. Rais (Dept. Physics)
Ion-probe dating of the Earth’s early
continental crust. Rollinson (PI)
Diamond potentiality in Kimberlites of Batin
Nappes, Eastern Oman. Nasir, S., Rollinson, M. Ali, S. Al-Khirbash, A.
Al-Harthy, N. Darkel, A. Lazki & A. Al-Sayigh.
The genesis of the earliest Archaean
continental crust: An analogue study from the trondjemites of the Oman
Ophiolite. H Rollinson, PI.
Collaborations
Swedish Natural History Museum, Stockholm,
Sweden
University of Montpellier II
Institute of Mineralogy, University of
Stuttgart, Germany
KM diamond exploration, Vancouver, Canada
GEMOC, ARC, National Key Centre, Macquarie
University Australia.
Royal Holloway College, London University, UK
University of Cardiff, UK
University of Hanover Germany
Stockholm University, Sweden
Institute of Precambrian Geology and
Geochronology, St Petersburg, Russia
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Sedimentology,
Paleontology and Petroleum Geology
The principal focus of this group is on
sedimentological processes and the Phanerozoic sediments of Oman, with
particular relevance to the petroleum industry. Originally it included the
staff in the Joint Virtual Reality and Carbonate Centre (JVRCC), although this
unit has effectively now been subsumed into the department. The research
group has synergies with the Oil and Gas Research Centre and the Shell
Professor (Professor John Warren) in Carbonate Geology works closely with this
group.
The group has successfully run an MSc program
with three completions and has two PhD students who will complete their
studies and graduate this calendar year.
Members
Abdulrahman Al-Harthy; Abdulrazak Al-Sayigh;
Osman Salad-Hersi; Oliver Weidlich; Iftikhar Ahmed Abbasi; S. Nasir; John
Warren (O&G Centre)
Projects
Biostratigraphy and environmentalof Jurassic
sediments of the north Oman Mountains; Dr Abdulrazak Al-Sayigh (PI); Dr
Abdullrahman Al-Harthy (2002).
Use of Carbonate Concretion as a Tool to
Understand Basin Evolution. Dr. Abdulrahman Al-Harthy (2003).
Development and emersion of Natih cretaceous
carbonate platforms in Oman; (funded by the JVRCC); Prof P. Homewood, Dr. O.
Al Ja’aidi, Dr. P. Razin, Dr. A. Schwab, H.Droste, C.Grelaud
Bar Al Hikman Pleistocene to
Modern Carbonate System (funded by the JVRCC). Prof P. Homewood, Dr.
A.Kwarteng, Dr.M.Mettraux, Prof. F.Van der Meer, Dr.P.Razin
Comparison between the Phanerozoic clastic
sequence of SE (Oman) and NW (Jordan) Arabian Peninsula. (Jointly funded by
SQU and University of Jordan, Abdulrahman Al-Harthy, PI)
Collaborations
University of Jordan
University of Bordeaux
Geological Survey of Canada
Shell, Oman
Occidental, Oman
Petroleum Development Oman
UAE University, Al-Ain, UAE
University of Leeds, UK
Natuurhistorisch Museum Maastricht,
Netherlands
Ein Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
University of Peshawar, Pakistan
University of Manchester, UK
Institute of Paleontolgy (IPAL), University of
Erlangen-Nuernberg, Germany
Institute of Geosciences,-Albrechts Universit
Kiel, Germany
Institute of Applied Geosciences, Technical
University Berlin, Germany
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Geophysics and
Tectonics Research Group
This research group focuses on seismic
interpretation of both crust and mantle, with relevance to the petroleum
industry, and on the application of gravity methods. They also investigate
tectonic problems in the north Oman mountains and in the oil basins of south
and central Oman. They are also working om geotechnical problems and in the
field of Neo-tectonics – recent tectonic activity. The group works closely
with the Earthquake Monitoring Centre (EMC).
Members
Ali Al-Lazki; Mubarik Ali; Abdulnaser Darkal;
Mohammed Al-Wardi; Issa El-Hussein (Earthquake monitoring centre) + Narisam
Sundar Rajan; (Sayyadul Arafin – Dept. Physics)
Projects
Geophysical modeling of Sur Area with special
emphasis to the North Ja'alan Fault. Dr Mubarik Ali (PI); Dr Abdullrahman
Al-Harthy (2002).
Anisotropy Orientation from Upper Mantle Shear
Wave Splitting along the Southeastern Margin of Arabia, Dhofar Region, Oman.
Ali Al-Lazki, Cindy Ebinger (University of London, UK), Michael Kendal, George
Helffrich (University of Bristol, UK), Sylvie Leroy, Christel Tiberi
(University of Paris 6, France), Graham Stuart (University of Leeds, UK),
Khalfan Al-Toobi, Issa Elhusain
Post Emplacement Stress History In Oman
Mountains. AbdulNaser Darkal, Abdulrahman Al-Harthy, Abdulrazak Al-Sayigh,
Salah Al-Khirbash, Sobhi Nasir.
Mechanisms of fracture sealing in carbonates
rocks. Dr. Al-Wardi M. with Al-Riami K, Tony Rid (Occidental Oman
Incorporated)
Illite crystallinity within the Mesozoic rocks
of Jabal Akhdar. Dr. Al-Wardi M. (with Chris Hilgers, Aachen
University)
Collaborations
CGG, Oman
Occidental Oman
University of Bristol, UK
Royal Holloway College, University of London,
UK
Quaid-e-Azam University, Pakistan
Aachen University, Germany
University of Leeds, UK
University of Rochester, New York, USA
MIT, USA
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, USA
Osmania University, India
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Hydrogeology and
Environmental Geology Research Group
This research group works in the area of water
resources, in particular the manner in which water supply is controlled by
geology. The group works closely with staff in the Water Resources Research
Centre, the Centre for Environmental Research and the Centre for remote
Sensing and GIS. The Department of Earth Sciences has run a successful MSc
program in hydrogeology and graduated 6 students in 2002/3 and has another
cohort of 6 graduating in 2007/8.
Members
Osman Abdalla; Talal Al-Hosni; Andy Kwarteng
(Remote Sensing Centre); Issa El-Hussein (EMC); Khadija Semhi;
Projects
Recharge Potential of Khareef Fogwater in
Salalah Area. Tariq Cheema; Salem Alesh (2003)
Assessment and modeling of the oil spill fate
in the coastal region of Sultanate of Oman. HM Project. Dr. Ahmad Sana
(PI—Civil Engineering Department); Dr. Michel Claereboudt (Marine Sciences and
Fisheries Department; Mr. Ghazi Al Rawas (Remote Sensing and GIS Center); Andy
Kwarteng (Remote Sensing and GIS Center) 2003.
Role of Evapotranspiration in Groundwater
discharge. Osman Abdalla (with Fathelrahman Ali Bereir, University of
Khartoum, Ulf Thorweihe, Technical University Berlin, Germany) 2004
Isotope and Water chemistry and their role in
Groundwater Recharge. Osman Abdalla. (with Fathelrahman Ali Bereir, University
of Khartoum, Ulf Thorweihe, Technical University Berlin, Germany) 2004
Modeling the Pollutant Plume at Wadi Suq, a
Geostatistical Approach. SR/ENG/PMRE/02/01. Dr. Osman Satti(Petroleum and
Chemical Eng , SQU), Dr. Osman Abdalla (Dept. of Earth Sciences / SQU), Dr.
Khalid AlRawahi (Petroleum and Chemical Eng , SQU), Dr. Anvar Kacimov (Dept of
soil and water, CAMS, SQU). 2004
SQU/JCCP Joint Study on Evaluation and
Remediation of Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Groundwater & Soil in the Sultanate of
Oman, Phase II. Dr. Rashid Al-Maamari (Dept. of Petroleum Engineering, SQU),
Dr. Ali Al-Bemani (Dept. of Petroleum Engineering, SQU), Dr. Akihiko Hirayama
(Shimizu Corporation, Japan), Dr. Osman Abdalla, Department of Earth Sciences,
SQU). 2005
Water resources of Wadi Al Far Alluvium
Aquifer, numerical simulation. Dr. Osman Abdalla, Dr. Abdelaziz Almasheykhi
(Department of water Resources Assessment, Ministry of Regional
Municipalities, Environment and Water Resources). 2006
Seawater Intrusion in two catchments from
Al-Batinaha region: Numerical simulation approach IG/SCI/ETSC/07/01. Abdalla,
O. (Dept. of Earth Sciences / SQU) El-Hussein, I. (Dept. of Earth Sciences /
SQU), Satti O. (Dept. of Petroleum Engineering, SQU), Al-Harthy, A. (Dept. of
Earth Sciences / SQU) and Ali, M. (Dept. of Earth Sciences / SQU). 2007
Collaborations
Kansas University, USA
CGS/ CNRS, Strasbourg, France
IRD, France
Ministry of Regional Municipalities,
Environment and Water Resources
University of Technology, Berlin, Germany
Freie University of Berlin, Germany
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