State of Texas Advanced Resource Recovery (STARR) Program Team Hosts Successful Core Workshops and Field Trip in 2024

December 19, 2024

Dr. Lucy Ko at the Strawn STARR Core Workshop — Dr. Lucy Ko delivering a talk discussing petroleum systems of the Strawn Group to an audience of industry experts in Fort Worth, Texas. Future research will include geochemical work on oil samples provided by Texas operators.

The STARR research team at the Bureau of Economic Geology recently concluded a series of highly successful events, showcasing their ongoing commitment to advancing geological research and education.

In September, the Strawn Core Workshop was held at the Oil Information Library in Fort Worth. This full-day workshop focused on the Strawn play in Central Texas. Attendees engaged with STARR experts who have been studying mixed carbonate-siliciclastic systems and associated petroleum systems that are part of this active oil and gas play in the Eastern Shelf. The event featured in-depth core evaluations, discussions, and a networking happy hour.

In October, STARR hosted the Wilcox Core Workshop and Bastrop Field Trip. This two-day event combined a core workshop in Austin with a field trip to the Bastrop outcrops. Participants explored the Wilcox Group's stratigraphy and depositional systems, gaining hands-on experience with core samples and outcrop analysis. The field trip provided valuable insights into the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum succession, while the core workshop offered updates on recent biostratigraphic and chemostratigraphic work conducted by the team in collaboration with industry partners.

Dr. Peter Flaig at the Strawn STARR Core Workshop — Dr. Peter Flaig showcasing siliciclastic intervals on a Strawn core while engaging in discussion with colleagues that participated in the event that was co-organized by STARR and the Oil Information Library of Fort Worth in September 2024.

In November, the Ordovician Ellenburger Core Workshop took place in Austin. This workshop offered a comprehensive review of several Ellenburger cores, along with insights from seismic interpretations and a detailed examination of karst depositional models. Industry attendees benefited from expert-led sessions highlighting the latest research on karst systems, as well as group discussions on the relevance of the Ellenburger Group as an oil and gas producer, a water disposal option, and a CO₂ sequestration target.

These events underscore the STARR team's dedication to fostering collaboration and dissemination of knowledge within the industry and the broader geological community. As the energy landscape evolves, STARR remains committed to conducting geoscience and engineering research to enhance the production and profitability of energy resources in Texas. As part of this mission, STARR researchers continue to create opportunities for information exchange and to facilitate access to valuable data for operators across Texas in order to better understand subsurface conditions and increase their chances for success.

For more information on the State of Texas Advanced Resource Recovery program and its future workshops and field trips, please contact Principal Investigator Dr. Lorena Moscardelli.

Dr. Iulia Olariu at the Wilcox STARR Core Workshop — Dr. Iulia Olariu setting up the stage for the Wilcox core workshop that took place in the Bureau’s core repository in November 2024.

Bill Ambrose at the Wilcox STARR Core Workshop — Bill Ambrose walks participants through Wilcox core as part of the 2024 STARR workshop in Austin. Several colleagues from Gulf Coast geological surveys attended the event.

Dr. Bob Loucks at the Ellenburger STARR Core Workshop — Dr. Bob Loucks delivers a lecture to participants of the STARR Ellenburger workshop showcasing the complexity of karst depositional models.