Skip to content Skip to navigation

Home

Research Topics

machinery

Rock Deformation and Fluid Transport

Using state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, we investigate why natural rocks deform, and how this changes local fluid transport. We perform mechanical and permeability tests in combination with micro and nanoscale analysis/imaging to identify the mechanisms that control bulk deformation, fault movement and fluid transport at the crustal & reservoir scale.
State of stress in the Permian Basin

Faulting and Crustal Mechanics

Our group carries out a variety of studies that approach problems of faulting and crustal mechanics in geologic environments by integration of various types of data. Typically, these studies involve working with data on the magnitude and orientation of in situ stresses, seismological data, geodetic data, etc.
US Map

Reservoir Geomechanics

We are carrying out a series of studies, usually in close collaboration with the oil and gas industry, on problems in oil and gas reservoirs, potential CO2 repositories and geothermal reservoirs. The emphasis of this research recently has been on shale gas, tight gas and tight oil reservoirs.

News

Mar 20 2019
Quality criteria for maximum horizontal stress orientation (SHmax) and relative principal stress magnitude (Aϕ) measurements were recently updated by Lund Snee and Zoback (2018). The latest quality criteria can be found here.
Stanford University Reservoir Geomechanics
Mar 15 2019
Registration is now open for two free online courses taught by Professor Zoback: Reservoir Geomechanics (RESGEO202) and the newly offered Unconventional Reservoir Geomechanics (UNCONVRESGEO208). Unconventional Reservoir Geomechanics focuses on issues related to producing from tight oil and gas reservoirs and builds upon the content of Reservoir Geomechanics.
Oct 16 2018 | Read More Details
See the times and locations of presentations given by members of the Stanford Stress Group at AGU this December in Washington, D.C.
See more news