Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Santamarina was born in Cordoba, Argentina, and studied civil engineering at the Universidad Nacional de Cordoba (degree in Civil Engineering, 1982), the University of Maryland (master's degree in 1984) and Purdue University (doctorate in 1987).
He was a member of the faculty at NYU Polytechnic University (1987–1991), University of Waterloo (1992–1995), and Georgia Tech (1996–2015) before he joined KAUST in March 2015 as the Associate Director of the Ali I. Al-Naimi Petroleum Engineering Research Center (ANPERC). Santamarina returned to Georgia Tech in 2023, where he leads the Energy GeoEngineering Laboratory, EGEL.
May 30
Fine-grained sediments, mudrocks and shales have unique fabric and pore topology that reflect their mineral composition and formation history. Atomic-scale clay-clay electrical interactions coexist with the micron-scale mechanical interactions between silicate and carbonate grains, clay tactoids and organic matter; layering adds cm-scale vertical heterogeneity. The resulting strata define the performance of km-scale natural and engineering systems including oil and gas reservoirs and the long-term geological storage of CO2 and nuclear waste.
We conduct multi-scale studies to gain new insights into the behavior of fine-grained sediments, mudrocks and shales. Atomic-scale studies show the effect of isomorphic substitution and adsorbed water molecules on clay tactoid stiffness. Pore-scale analyses based on SEM images reveal spherical pores in organic matter and elongated/aligned pores bound by clay tactoids. Particle-scale simulations capture fabric evolution including tactoid alignment facilitated by organic matter deformation to accommodate the evolving mineral fabric, effectively giving rise to shale fissility. Layer-scale simulations help understand the brittle-to-ductile transition, and multi-strata studies elucidate the evolution of fracture networks during tectonism.
