Ellis, Brian
Faculty
(734) 763-5470
Climate and Energy | CO2 Capture, Storage and Use | Energy and Water | Oil and Gas |
Assistant Professor, Civil & Environmental Engineering
Topics
» Climate and Energy
» CO2 Capture, Storage, and Use
» Energy and Water
» Oil and Gas
Biography
My research interests cover topics related to the sustainable and safe development of emerging energy technologies. Included among these activities are geologic storage of CO2 and large-scale hydraulic fracturing of unconventional oil/gas reservoirs. We examine important water-rock interactions that occur in these subsurface systems through a combination of experimental studies (bench-scale high-pressure flow-through and batch reactors), imaging techniques (computed micro-tomography, SEM, XRF, XANES), and geochemical modeling. Specific topics of interest: permeability evolution in fractured geologic media, release/transport of groundwater contaminants from shale gas reservoirs, development of regulatory policy pertaining to hydraulic fracturing activities.