Many papers have noted the association between micropaleontology and petroleum exploration, but no book has ever provided a comprehensive and thematic treatment. This book attempts to do just that. It begins with an overview of pure micropaleontology, then treats the principles and practice of applied micropaleontology and sequence stratigraphy; case studies of applications in various geographic, geologic, and stratigraphic settings are given. The final section deals with applications outside petroleum exploration, with sections on environmental monitoring, coal mining, mineral exploration and exploitation, and engineering. Extensively illustrated and referenced, this book will benefit academic and commercial paleontologists.

Many papers have noted the association between micropaleontology and petroleum exploration, but no book has ever provided a comprehensive and thematic treatment. This book attempts to do just that. It begins with an overview of pure micropaleontology, then treats the principles and practice of applied micropaleontology and sequence stratigraphy; case studies of applications in various geographic, geologic, and stratigraphic settings are given. The final section deals with applications outside petroleum exploration, with sections on environmental monitoring, coal mining, mineral exploration and exploitation, and engineering. Extensively illustrated and referenced, this book will benefit academic and commercial paleontologists.

Seven original case-studies are presented in this volume, each describing the application of micropaleontology and palynology in applied geology: (1) a study of the modern distribution of coccolith sedimentation in the North Sea and its potential for future application in basin analysis; (2) ostracods are shown to be good paleoenvironmental indicators in the early Cretaceous and Tertiary; (3) a biogenic gas seep in the North Sea is shown to be marked by diagnostic benthonic foraminifera; (4) in the North Sea hydrocarbon exploration, integrated studies of micropaleontology have provided invaluable data; (5) palynofacies analysis are shown to be vital in determining depositional events and hydrocarbon source rock potential; (6) the application of paleontology and sedimentology to sequence stratigraphy is demonstrated in the early Cretaceous; and (7) the application of micropaleontology is shown to be an essential tool in both engineering and economic geology. Most chapters have been prepared by earth scientists from industry. The study of microfossils presented in this book provides invaluable data for stratigraphers, petroleum geologists and for engineers and economic geologists working in hydrocarbon exploration and basin analysis.

Petroleum geoscience comprises those geoscientific disciplines which are of greatest significance for the exploration and recovery of oil and gas. These include petroleum geology, of which sedimentary geology is the main foundation along with the contextual and modifying principles of regional, tectonic and structural geology. Additionally, biostratigraphy and micropalaeontology, organic geochemistry, and geophysical exploration and production techniques are all important tools for petroleum geoscientists in the 21st century. This comprehensive textbook present an overview of petroleum geoscience for geologists destined for the petroleum industry. It should also be useful for students interested in environmental geology, engineering geology and other aspects of sedimentary geology

This book will help readers learn the basic skills needed to study microfossils especially those without a formal background in paleontology. It details key principles, explains how to identify different groups of microfossils, and provides insight into their potential applications in solving geologic problems. Basic principles are addressed with examples that explore the strengths and limitations of microfossils and their geological records. This overview provides an understanding of taphonomy and quality of the fossil records, biomineralization and biogeochemistry, taxonomy, concepts of species, and basic concepts of ecology. Readers learn about the major groups of microfossils, including their morphology, ecology, and geologic history. Coverage includes: foraminifera, ostracoda, coccolithophores, pteropods, radiolaria, diatoms, silicoflagellates, conodonts, dinoflagellates, acritarch, and spores and pollens. In this coverage, marine microfossils, and particularly foraminifera, are discussed in more detail compared with the other groups as they continue to play a major role in most scientific investigations. Among the various tracers of earth history, microfossils provide the most diverse kinds of information to earth scientists. This richly illustrated volume will help students and professionals understand microfossils, and provide insight on how to work with them to better understand evolution of life, and age and the paleoenvironment of sedimentary strata.

This beautifully illustrated text book, with state-of-the-art illustrations, is useful not only for an introduction to the subject, but also for the application of marine microfossils in paleoceanographic, paleoenvironmental and biostratigraphic analyses. The recent revival of interest in marine micropaleontology worldwide in the wake of the development of sequence stratigraphic models has led to the decision to reissue the volume in its original, but paperback, form. The ideas expressed in various chapters of this second edition remain as valid today as they were when the book was first issued. The text, however, includes an updated Phanerozoic geologic time which has been considerably modified since the 1980s.

Foraminiferal Micropaleontology for Understanding Earth's History incorporates new findings on taxonomy, classification and biostratigraphy of foraminifera. Foraminifera offer the best geochemical proxies for paleoclimate and paleoenvironment interpretation. The study of foraminifera was promoted by oil exploration due to its exceptional use in subsurface stratigraphy. A rapid technological development in the past 20 years in the field of imaging microfossils and in geochemical microanalysis have added novel information about foraminifera. Foraminiferal Micropaleontology for Understanding Earth's History builds an understanding of biology, morphology and classification of foraminifera for its varied applications. In the past two decades, a phenomenal growth has occurred in geochemical proxies in shells of foraminifera, and as a result, crucial information about past climate of the earth is achieved. Foraminifera is the most extensively used marine microfossils in deep-time reconstruction of the earth history. Its key applications are in paleoenvironment and paleoclimate interpretation, paleoceanography, and biostratigraphy to continuously improve the Geologic Time Scale. - Provides an overview of the Earth history as witnessed and evidenced by foraminifera - Discusses a variety of geochemical proxies used in reconstruction of environment, climate and paleobiology of foraminifera - Presents a new insight into the morphology and classification of foraminifera by modern tools of x-ray microscopy, quantitative methods, and molecular research