Publications

The value of national coal deposits is determined for the Solid Fuel Energy Resources Assessment and Research Project through economic evaluations using hypothetical mining models. Deposits near the surface are evaluated with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) surface-mining model, which is patterned after the standard mining techniques and infrastructures of commercial mining projects...

Isolated, detached sands provide opportunities for large-volume stratigraphic traps in many deepwater petroleum systems. Here we provide a review of the different types of sandbody detachments based on published data from the modern-day seafloor and recent (generally Quaternary-present), shallow-buried strata. Detachment mechanisms can be classified based on their timing of formation...

No abstract available.

Chemically, petroleum is an extraordinarily complex mixture of different types of hydrocarbons that are now possible to isolate and identify because of advances in geochemistry. Here, we use biomarkers and carbon isotopes to establish genetic differences and similarities among oil samples. Conventional approaches for evaluating biomarker and carbon isotope relative abundances include...

A central challenge in applied ecology is understanding the effect of anthropogenic fatalities on wildlife populations and predicting which populations may be particularly vulnerable and in greatest need of management attention. We used 3 approaches to investigate potential effects of fatalities from collisions with wind turbines on 14 raptor species for both current (106 GW) and...

Vitrinite reflectance (VRo; %) generally is considered the most reliable technique to determine the thermal maturity of sedimentary rocks. However, it is a time-consuming process to collect reflectance (Ro; %) measurements and is subjective to the interpretation of each trained technician, who must be able to discern between vitrinite and solid bitumen and other organic matter types...

No abstract available.

Coal mine gas originates from the gas emission zone (GEZ) of the mine, as well as the longwall face and pillars. Gas emissions are controlled directly at the sources using horizontal or vertical boreholes drilled from surface or from the entries in advance of mining, or it is captured from the fractured and caved zones (gob) using ventholes during mining. The rest of the gas, especially...

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated a mean of 2,438 billion (2.4 trillion) cubic feet of gas resources in the Williston Basin Province, in North Dakota, Montana, and South Dakota.

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 83 million barrels of oil and 351 billion cubic feet of gas in lower Paleozoic strata of the Williston Basin Province, North Dakota, Montana, and South Dakota.

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean resources of 161 million barrels of oil and 93 billion cubic feet of gas in the Tyler Formation of the Williston Basin Province, North Dakota.

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated undiscovered, technically recoverable mean oil and gas resources of 134 million barrels of oil and 81 billion cubic feet of gas in upper Paleozoic strata of the Williston Basin Province in North Dakota, Montana, and South Dakota.