Compressional Deformation and Uplift of Australia's Passive Southern Margin. The key project benefit will be to advance our understanding of the processes which cause active deformation of continental margins that are predicted by plate tectonic theory to be passive. We will analyse Australia's 'passive' southern margin because it is an ideal natural laboratory in which to investigate the causes of the deformation of 'passive' continental margins. Hydrocarbon exploration interest and investment ....Compressional Deformation and Uplift of Australia's Passive Southern Margin. The key project benefit will be to advance our understanding of the processes which cause active deformation of continental margins that are predicted by plate tectonic theory to be passive. We will analyse Australia's 'passive' southern margin because it is an ideal natural laboratory in which to investigate the causes of the deformation of 'passive' continental margins. Hydrocarbon exploration interest and investment has waned along much of Australia's southern margin because of lack of understanding of the relative age of the formation of potentially hydrocarbon-bearing structures and the timing of hydrocarbon charge. This project will clarify their relative ages.Read moreRead less
Deciphering the tectonic history of the Musgrave Block to assist mineral explorers and regional synthesis programs. Effective mineral exploration strategies in complex basement terrains are increasingly reliant on integrated, data-rich, tectonic models. In this project we will focus a large multidisciplinary team to develop a tectonic model for the evolution of the Musgrave Block in central Australia. This large, poorly understood terrain occupies a critical structural location, separating the ....Deciphering the tectonic history of the Musgrave Block to assist mineral explorers and regional synthesis programs. Effective mineral exploration strategies in complex basement terrains are increasingly reliant on integrated, data-rich, tectonic models. In this project we will focus a large multidisciplinary team to develop a tectonic model for the evolution of the Musgrave Block in central Australia. This large, poorly understood terrain occupies a critical structural location, separating the northern and southern Australian cratons. By constraining models of crustal evolution and architecture, the project will underpin future mineral exploration programs in this highly prospective greenfields region and define the role of the Musgrave Block in the assembly of Proterozoic Australia.Read moreRead less
Developing a Tectonic Framework for the Gawler Craton: Paving the Way for Successful Mineral Exploration Programs. The late Archaean to Mesoproterozoic Gawler Craton is the major Precambrian province in southern Australia. However, despite containing one of the largest orebodies on Earth, exploration expenditure in the craton has been comparatively low, and hampered by insufficient knowledge of the craton's tectonic systems. This project uses an integrated package of geochemical, isotopic and ....Developing a Tectonic Framework for the Gawler Craton: Paving the Way for Successful Mineral Exploration Programs. The late Archaean to Mesoproterozoic Gawler Craton is the major Precambrian province in southern Australia. However, despite containing one of the largest orebodies on Earth, exploration expenditure in the craton has been comparatively low, and hampered by insufficient knowledge of the craton's tectonic systems. This project uses an integrated package of geochemical, isotopic and geophysical tools to develop a comprehensive model for the tectonic evolution of the Gawler Craton. The project will constrain the development of the Gawler Craton in the context of Precambrian Australian evolution, and offer insights into universal processes of lithosphere formation, growth and stabilisation.Read moreRead less
Tectonic links between the Musgrave Province and the North Australian Craton: correlations, event chronology, and tectonothermal regimes. Developing effective mineral exploration strategies relies on data-rich tectonic models that seek to explain the full history of a terrain. In the Australian context the tectonic evolution of the Musgrave Province is a key focus of the minerals industry due to its widely recognised potential for base-metal mineralisation. This project will develop tectonic mod ....Tectonic links between the Musgrave Province and the North Australian Craton: correlations, event chronology, and tectonothermal regimes. Developing effective mineral exploration strategies relies on data-rich tectonic models that seek to explain the full history of a terrain. In the Australian context the tectonic evolution of the Musgrave Province is a key focus of the minerals industry due to its widely recognised potential for base-metal mineralisation. This project will develop tectonic models that encompass the evolution of the Musgrave Province and the adjacent North Australia Craton. The outcomes of the project will reduce risk to mineral explorers and make an important contribution to the broader question Australia's Proterozoic evolution.Read moreRead less
Physical and Chemical Constraints of Fluid Activated Processes During the Polyphase Tectonic Evolution of the Olary Domain, S.A. The Olary Domain, eastern South Australia, underwent several phases of deformation and metamorphism. These events mobilised fluids leading, amongst other features, to the formation of breccia bodies and mineral deposits. The complex nature of the geological evolution of the region obscures relationships of fluid migration to the structural history. Fluid inclusion stud ....Physical and Chemical Constraints of Fluid Activated Processes During the Polyphase Tectonic Evolution of the Olary Domain, S.A. The Olary Domain, eastern South Australia, underwent several phases of deformation and metamorphism. These events mobilised fluids leading, amongst other features, to the formation of breccia bodies and mineral deposits. The complex nature of the geological evolution of the region obscures relationships of fluid migration to the structural history. Fluid inclusion studies and stable isotope analyses combined with structural analyses on micro to macro scales shall establish links between the thermal and structural evolution of the area. This will provide insigth into the scale and physico-chemical characteristics of fluids and mineralising processes an relate these to the tectono-thermal history.Read moreRead less
The Genesis and Tectonic Setting of Iron Oxide Associated Mineralisation in Germany and South Australia. FeOx associated mineralisations are not restricted to Olympic Dam and Ernest Henry types but occur in various geological settings, e.g. the Mt Painter and Olary region, S A. Ocurrences in Central Europe (Erzgebirge, Harz/Calvörde) contain U and other metals, their structural setting is well recorded. Together with the Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany, and the University of Nancy, France, these ....The Genesis and Tectonic Setting of Iron Oxide Associated Mineralisation in Germany and South Australia. FeOx associated mineralisations are not restricted to Olympic Dam and Ernest Henry types but occur in various geological settings, e.g. the Mt Painter and Olary region, S A. Ocurrences in Central Europe (Erzgebirge, Harz/Calvörde) contain U and other metals, their structural setting is well recorded. Together with the Bergakademie Freiberg, Germany, and the University of Nancy, France, these mineralisations shall be investigated with modern geological and geochemical methods to develop a unifying model for the genesis of iron oxide associated U-metal-REE deposits. This will help identifying exploration targets and distinguish different types of mineralisation upon their genetic setting.Read moreRead less
Subsurface fluid flow through fractures in sedimentary basins. This project aims to improve understanding of subsurface fluid transport through fractures. Fractures in rock provide interconnected, hydraulically conductive networks enabling large-volume fluid transport through sedimentary basins. The ability of a fracture to transmit fluid is primarily controlled by the in situ stress field, but also by rock strength, fracture plane orientation and roughness and pore-fluid pressure. We have a goo ....Subsurface fluid flow through fractures in sedimentary basins. This project aims to improve understanding of subsurface fluid transport through fractures. Fractures in rock provide interconnected, hydraulically conductive networks enabling large-volume fluid transport through sedimentary basins. The ability of a fracture to transmit fluid is primarily controlled by the in situ stress field, but also by rock strength, fracture plane orientation and roughness and pore-fluid pressure. We have a good understanding of in situ stress within many sedimentary basins, but know very little about the nature and origin of natural fractures. This project aims to provide a detailed, quantitative understanding of the nature and origin of natural fractures in the subsurface, which is critical for predicting fluid migration within aquifers, carbon dioxide storage sites, and geothermal and hydrocarbon reservoirs.Read moreRead less
Constraining conditions and timing of orogeny and reworking in the west Musgrave Province. The remote Musgrave Province is one of Australia's prime areas of mineral exploration interest, with about 30 companies holding more than 120 leases over the region. A major factor determining the economic prospectivity of a terrane is the availability of high quality geoscientific data. This project will produce pre-competitive structural, petrological, isotopic, geochemical and geophysical datasets for t ....Constraining conditions and timing of orogeny and reworking in the west Musgrave Province. The remote Musgrave Province is one of Australia's prime areas of mineral exploration interest, with about 30 companies holding more than 120 leases over the region. A major factor determining the economic prospectivity of a terrane is the availability of high quality geoscientific data. This project will produce pre-competitive structural, petrological, isotopic, geochemical and geophysical datasets for the west Musgrave Province that will rival or surpass that available for other regions of Australian crust. This project directly aligns with the National Research Priority goal, developing deep Earth resources, and will reduce the risk to mineral explorers and facilitate economic development within the Ngaanyatjarra Native Title Lands of Western Australia.Read moreRead less
Multiscale physics theory to understand secondary migration of hydrocarbons. This project aims to derive mathematical models to reveal the geological history of how petroleum accumulates at laboratory, reservoir, and basin scales. The project will identify secondary migration trajectories of hydrocarbons from source rocks to stratigraphic traps, to optimise exploration for energy resources. By enabling multiscale analytical modelling, the new model will improve the reliability of reservoir chara ....Multiscale physics theory to understand secondary migration of hydrocarbons. This project aims to derive mathematical models to reveal the geological history of how petroleum accumulates at laboratory, reservoir, and basin scales. The project will identify secondary migration trajectories of hydrocarbons from source rocks to stratigraphic traps, to optimise exploration for energy resources. By enabling multiscale analytical modelling, the new model will improve the reliability of reservoir characterisation at the crucial initial exploitation stage, and prediction of oil-gas distribution in petroleum basin. The novel multiscale approach is expected to significantly improve exploration and exploitation and create highly skilled jobs to incorporate such modelling into the energy sector.Read moreRead less
Detachments in evaporites and shales: their controls on fold-thrust belt style and wedge geometry. Deepwater fold-thrust belts comprise large structural traps, currently a major focus of Australian petroleum exploration. The structural style of a fold-thrust belt is controlled by its detachment and new field analogues will demonstrate the fundamental role of detachments.