Department of Geology and Geophysics
1000 E. University Ave.
Laramie, WY 82071-2000
Department of Geology and Geophysics
Office Phone: . (307) 766-2554
Fax Phone: (307) 766-6679
P.O. Box 3006
Laramie, Wyoming 82071-3006
Office: ESB 1032
Ph.D., University of Hawaii
- Monitoring of carbon-sequestrated reservoirs- a feasibility study
- Seismic waveform inversion in three-dimensions- a unified practical approach to imaging exploration and deep seismic data
I have been working on various aspects of computational seismology including seismic modeling, seismic inversion, and seismic anisotropy. In my long career in the oil and gas industry, I have been actively involved in developing seismic modeling and inversion methodologies and applying them in solving real problems such as characterization of oil and gas reservoirs, characterization of gas-hydrates, and identification of drilling hazards. I am really excited to be at the University of Wyoming where I can now expand my research interests in collaboration with other colleagues in the department, post-docotral associates, and with new graduate and undergraduate students.
As global energy demands increase, oil and gas prices are setting record highs, and global warming is becoming a serious issue. Geophysical exploration now faces new challenges. It is not only important to find new reserves, but it is also important to use geophysical tools to monitor the evolution of existing reserves over time. In addition, to fight global warming, new initiatives of injecting (sequestering) carbon dioxide (CO2) into depleted reservoirs and aquifers are now being investigated. Such an initiative requires constant monitoring of the sequestrated formations using geophysical methods to make sure that the CO2 is in place and does not disturb the geological integrity of surrounding rock formations. Both in the exploration of new reserves and in the monitoring of existing CO2 sequestrated reservoirs and aquifers to reduce global warming, earth sciences will play the leading role—combining seismic, electromagnetic, and potential field data with local and regional geology and rock physics to produce detailed reservoir maps. Such an effort requires an inversion methodology that effortlessly combines a multitude of data types. My research interests are primarily centered on these challenges. In collaboration with my colleague Po Chen, we have recently purchased a state-of-the-art Linux cluster that is going to be the primary tool for this challenging research on computational and exploration geosciences.
Mallick, S., 2007, Amplitude-variation-with-offset, elastic impedance, and prestack waveform inversion, a modeling study, Geophysics, 72, C1-C7.
Lau, A., Gonzalez, A., Mallick, S., and Gillespie D., 2002, Waveform gather inversion and attribute-guided interpolation: a two-step approach to log prediction, The Leading Edge, 21, 1024-1027.
Benabentos, M., Mallick, S., Sigismondi, M., and Soldo, J., 2002, Seismic Reservoir Description Using Hybrid Seismic Inversion: A 3-D Case Study From the María Inés Oeste Field, Argentina, The Leading Edge, 21, 1002-1008.
Mallick, S., and Dutta, N.C., 2002, Shallow water flow prediction using prestack waveform inversion of conventional 3D seismic data and rock modeling, The Leading Edge, 21, 675-680.
Mallick, S., 2001, AVO and elastic impedance, The Leading Edge, 20, 1094-1104.
Mallick, S., Craft, K.L., Meister, L.J., and Chambers, R.E., 2000, Computation of principal directions of azimuthal anisotropy from P-wave seismic data, Applied seismic anisotropy: theory background and field studies, 20: Soc. Expl. Geophys, 682-685.
Berge, P.A., Mallick, S., Fryer, G.J., Herman, A.J., Carter, J.A., Sutton, G.H., and Ewing, J.I., 2000, In-situ measurement of transverse isotropy in shallow water marine sediments, Applied seismic anisotropy: theory background and field studies, 20: Soc. Expl. Geophys, 459-472
Wang, Z., Mallick, S., Frazer, L.N., Hirsche, W.K., and Sedgwick, G., 2000, Reflection/transmission coefficients and azimuthal anisotropy in marine seismic studies, Applied seismic anisotropy: theory background and field studies, 20: Soc. Expl. Geophys., 246-257.
Mallick, S., Huang, X., Lauve, J., and Ahmad, R., 2000, Hybrid seismic inversion: a reconnaissance tool for deep-water exploration, The Leading Edge, 19, 11, 1230-1237
Mallick, S., 1999, Some practical aspects of prestack waveform inversion using a genetic algorithm: an example from the east Texas Woodbine gas sand, Geophysics, 64, 326-336.
Mallick, S., Craft, K., Meister, L., and Chambers, R., 1998, Computation of principal directions of azimuthal anisotropy from P-wave seismic data, Geophysics, 63, 692-706.
Current Graduate Students:
- Debraj Mukherjee - PhD Candidate
- Amit Padhi - PhD Candidate
Teaching has always been a passion for me. Even during my career in the oil and gas industry, I found opportunities to teach courses at professional society meetings. I strongly believe that good teaching challenges a student’s mind, allowing it to grow and develop. I also believe in teaching that goes beyond standard classroom lectures and provides students with hands-on experience with solving practical problems. I currently teach a seismic modeling course that combines classroom lectures with student seminars and hands-on experience involving the use of seismic modeling to interpret field seismic data. I am also in the process of developing a course on seismic reservoir characterization that will enable students to play with real seismic data and use state-of-the-art industry software to extract reservoir fluid properties from them.