Research Portal

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

Central Atlantic Paleo-Oceans and Climates (CAPOC) (part of the PAGEO research program)

December 2020 – December 2022

CAPOC aims to develop the first integrated and high resolution biostratigraphic and isotopic proxy correlation for key intervals of the Jurassic/Cretaceous across the Central Atlantic conjugate margin.

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

Palaeobathymetry and Tectonic Evolution of Lower Jurassic Source Rocks of the Conjugate Nova Scotia-Moroccan Margins (part of the PAGEO research program)

December 2020 – July 2022

This project will address key questions related to the formation processes, structure and subsidence history of the Nova Scotia rifted margin, which are relevant to constrain the Upper Triassic to Jurassic palaeogeography and petroleum systems offshore Nova Scotia.

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

A Spatiotemporal Analysis of Paleobiogeographic Data to Constrain the Timing of Oceanic Connections between the Atlantic, Tethyan, and Pacific domains (part of the PAGEO research program)

November 2020 – May 2022

This project is based on a large-scale collection of previously generated Jurassic and Early Cretaceous nannofossil biostratigraphic data and aims to apply both traditional micropaleontological methods and modern data science methodologies to the in-depth analysis of that large dataset.

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

Scotian Shelf Oils Geochemistry

December 2019 – December 2020

Twenty-five significant hydrocarbon discoveries have been made on the Scotian Shelf in shallow water. Additionally, staining is observed in many wells and over a large geographical area.

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

Aspy Well Geochemistry

December 2019 – September 2020

This project determines if indications of migrated hydrocarbons or potential source rocks were encountered during the 2018 drilling of BP’s deep-water well Aspy D-11 well.

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

Predictive Modeling of Sandstone Reservoir Distribution in the SW Scotian Basin

March 2018 – April 2020

The SW Scotian Basin is considered an under-explored passive margin sedimentary basin, however, it is also the most probable location to find oil on the Scotian Margin.

Geoscience » Source Rock & Depositional Environment

Piston Coring Geochemistry Program

January 2015 – January 2020

Confirming the presence of hydrocarbons from an oil-prone Jurassic age source rock would encourage exploration in the deep water portion of Nova Scotia’s offshore.

Seasonal Erodibility of Sediment in the Upper Bay of Fundy

February 2012 – January 2015

This project developed methods for studying sedimentation to the macro-tidal flats of the upper Bay of Fundy. The researchers looked at seasonal variation in the erodibility of sediments in tidal creeks and flats using a Gust Erosion Chamber and repeated grain size surveys.

Testing of Temporal Monitoring Techniques for Benthic Habitat Impacts of Tidal Energy Developments

September 2011 – November 2014

This project tested and developed monitoring procedures for assessing the impact of the placement of in-stream tidal devices (e.g. turbines, cables and other seafloor hardware) on the seafloor environment.

Implications of Tidal Energy Extraction on Sedimentary Processes within Shallow Intertidal Environments

September 2011 – April 2014

This project assessed the implications of tidal energy extraction on sedimentary processes within shallow inter-tidal ecosystems.