Tuscaloosa Marine Shale Graduate Research (TMSGRC) Consortium 

The hydrocarbon bearing Tuscaloosa Marine Shale (TMS) is similar in composition and in age to the Eagle Ford formation. The estimated reserves are 7 billion barrels of oil. The TMS requires hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling for recovery of hydrocarbons. Understanding how the TMS can be efficiently, effectively, and safely fractured is important of recovery of hydrocarbons and of lowering costs. There are two aspects to this work. One is focused on a new method to determine the presence of thin sand beds interlayered in the shale that appear to facilitate fracturing and product recovery. The other is focused on determining the elastic constants that are required to design a hydraulic fracturing plan.

LSU Researchers who are associated with the TMSR are Arash Taleghani, Stephen Sears, Richard Hughes, Karen Luttrell, and Carol Wicks. Contact Dr. Arash Taleghani for information about membership in the TMSR.