Staff Profile

Dr Mark Ireland is Director of Business Partnerships and Place in the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences at Newcastle University. He previously served as Associate Director for Research and Innovation within the School and as Associate Dean for Global Partnerships in the Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering (2022–2025).

A geologist by training, Mark holds a PhD from Durham University and an MEarthSci in Exploration and Resource Geology from Cardiff University. Before joining Newcastle in 2019, he spent nine years with bp in a range of technical roles across its upstream business.

His research focuses on the application of geoscience to the energy transition, combining geological, geophysical and quantitative methods to address challenges in subsurface characterisation and uncertainty. He leads collaborative research with industry, government and academic partners across geothermal energy, geological energy storage, carbon capture and storage, critical minerals, and seismic imaging of the subsurface.

Alongside his research, Mark develops strategic partnerships between academia and industry, helping translate geoscience research into real-world applications. He has led numerous collaborative research and innovation projects spanning fundamental science, technology development and commercial deployment.

Mark is Treasurer of the British Geophysical Association and served as Chair of the Energy Group of the Geological Society of London (2024–2025). He is also an Associate Editor of Earth Science, Systems and Society, the Geological Society of London's open-access journal.

Profiles

• Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.co.uk/citations?hl=en&user=QGpeT8kAAAAJ
• ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9777-0447

Research

My research develops quantitative approaches to understanding and monitoring the subsurface for the energy transition. I combine geological, geophysical and geotechnical data to improve subsurface characterisation, reduce interpretation uncertainty and support evidence-based decision making for energy and infrastructure projects.

My work spans the full lifecycle of subsurface developments, from resource assessment and site characterisation to monitoring and risk assessment. Current research focuses on seismic imaging and inversion, passive and active seismic methods, uncertainty quantification, and the integration of multi-disciplinary datasets to better understand subsurface processes.

Applications include geothermal energy, geological energy storage, carbon capture and storage, hydrogen storage, critical minerals, and the long-term performance of geological repositories.

Newcastle University Subsurface Quantitative Intelligence (NUSQI), provides a mechanism for our research and innovation to deliver quantitative methods and digital technologies that improve confidence in subsurface decision making. NUSQI brings together expertise from geoscience, geophysics and geotechnical engineering to translate research into practical solutions for industry and infrastructure. Find out more about NUSQI here

I work closely with industry, government and academic partners to develop practical solutions to real-world challenges, accelerating the adoption of quantitative subsurface technologies through collaborative research and innovation.

Current and Recent Research Funding

Commercial Demonstration of Passive Seismic Methods for Geotechnical Site Investigation

Northern Accelerator | Principal Investigator (2026 - 2027)

Delivering a commercial-scale demonstration of ambient noise tomography for rapid, non-invasive subsurface characterisation, validating passive seismic methods for geotechnical site investigation in partnership with industry.

Ambient Noise Seismic for Geotechnical Site Investigations

Northern Accelerator | Principal Investigator (2025 - 2026)

Developing and demonstrating ambient noise seismic methods for rapid, cost-effective geotechnical site investigations, validating accelerated processing workflows and supporting the commercial adoption of passive seismic technologies.

Fast-Track Processing of Ambient Noise Tomography for Geotechnical Investigations

EPSRC Northern Net Zero Accelerator | Principal Investigator (2025 - 2026)

Developing rapid processing workflows for ambient noise tomography to deliver fast, cost-effective subsurface characterisation for geotechnical investigations supporting critical energy infrastructure.

ViTAL Living Lab

Royal Air Force | Co-Investigator (2021–2025)

Investigating the role of geothermal energy within the ViTAL Living Lab, evaluating technologies that support the RAF's pathway to Net Zero.

Developing a Site Survey for Scientific Ocean Drilling on the Mauritanian Continental Margin

NERC | Principal Investigator (2022–2024)

Identified candidate drilling sites to investigate methane hydrate systems and understand the relationship between ocean warming, methane release and climate change.

Net Zero Geothermal Research for District Infrastructure

EPSRC | Co-Investigator (2020–2023)

Research addressing geological, engineering and regulatory challenges associated with deep geothermal energy systems for low-carbon heating and cooling.

Developing Deep Science Laboratories from the Shale Gas Legacy

UKUH (NERC–ESRC) | Principal Investigator (2021)

Evaluated the potential to repurpose legacy shale gas wells as research infrastructure supporting carbon storage, geothermal energy and hydrogen storage, while engaging stakeholders on future reuse.

Geothermal Resource Assessment

North East Local Enterprise Partnership | Principal Investigator (2020–2021)

Developed new approaches to modelling heat flow within UK sedimentary basins to improve regional geothermal resource assessment.

Selected Media Contributions

2026 – How one massive gas field shapes the global stakes of conflict in the Middle East – The Conversation

2026 – What the UK’s first geothermal power plant means for the nation’s electricity supply – The Conversation

2025 – Plans to ‘maximise extraction’ of North Sea oil and gas would soon run into geological limits – The Conversation

2023 – Poole oil spill expert Q&A: Why is there an oil field in Dorset anyway? – The Conversation

2022 – Fracking for energy security in the UK: Four key considerations for government – Energy & Climate Intelligence Unit

2022 – Why fracking is not the answer to soaring UK gas prices – The Conversation

Selected Conference Presentations

2025 – The potential of Large-N passive seismology to image metre-scale reservoir heterogeneity – GeoThermExPro

2024 – The potential of Large-N passive seismology to image metre-scale reservoir heterogeneity – 11th UK Geothermal Symposium

2023 – Meeting heating demand from deep geothermal aquifers in the UK's sedimentary basins – 10th UK Geothermal Symposium

2023 – The UK's first high-density nodal joint active and passive seismic survey for geothermal exploration – Energy Geoscience Conference

2023 – Why reliable and reproducible structural interpretations are key for future energy projects – Tectonic Studies Group

2022 – Distinguishing initiation mechanisms for layer-bound faults – Tectonic Studies Group

2021 – Subsurface research laboratories and their role in delivering Net Zero – with A. Hart

2020 – A forcing template between bottom-water currents and differential compaction – British Sedimentological Research Group

2019 – How much do we really know about heat in the UK's onshore sedimentary basins? – London Geothermal Symposium

2018 – Seismic data collaboration: Maximising seismic data through collaboration – PETEX

2017 – An extended continuum from magma-rich to magma-poor margins: Implications for hydrocarbon exploration – AAPG International Conference

2016 – Insights into the evolution of the volcanic margin of Western India and associated intracratonic rifts – Geological Society of London, Rifts III: Catching the Wave

PhD Supervision

Current students

• William Norfolk (co-supervisor) – Improved treatment and valorisation of produced water and waste streams from subsurface developments
• Holly Lewis (co-supervisor) – Impact of geomicrobial interactions on subsurface hydrogen storage

Recent students

• Hector Barnett – Assessing the feasibility of large-scale hydrogen storage in UK Continental Shelf salt caverns using 3D seismic data (GeoNetZero CDT)
• Gianluca Amicarelli – Multi-scale characterisation of fault and fracture networks in granite: implications for geological disposal facilities
• Aidan Jaques – The geomicrobiology of subsurface hydrogen storage (EPSRC ICASE)

PhD opportunities

I welcome enquiries from prospective PhD students interested in quantitative geoscience, seismic imaging, passive seismology, subsurface characterisation, geothermal energy, geological energy storage, hydrogen storage, carbon capture and storage, critical minerals, and uncertainty quantification.

Undergraduate Teaching

NES1211 - Fundamentals of Environmental Sciences - Module Leader

NES3200 - Earth and Environmental Science Dissertations - Module Leader

NES3203 Current Issues in Earth and Environmental Sciences - Module Leader

Postgraduate Teaching

SPG8025 - Subsurface Energy Systems: Exploration, Evaluation and Sustainable Management

• Articles

  • Barnett HG, Ireland MT, Dunham CK, van der Land C. Stochastic Gassmann fluid substitution for rapid assessment of hydrogen and carbon dioxide saturations in clastic storage reservoirs. Geoenergy 2026, epub ahead of print.
  • Jaques A, Ireland M, van der Land C, Dirmeier R, Williamson N, Christgen B. Experimental procedures for studying microbial reactions under high hydrogen gas saturations in microcosms. MethodsX 2025, 14, 103344.
  • Davies RJ, Yang J, Ireland MT, Berndt C, Maqueda MAM, Huuse M. Long-distance migration and venting of methane from the base of the hydrate stability zone. Nature Geoscience 2024, 17, 32-37.
  • Barnett HG, Ireland MT, van der Land C. Capturing geological uncertainty in salt cavern developments for hydrogen storage. Earth Science, Systems and Society 2024, 4, 10125.
  • Ireland MT, Guillermo A, Steventon M, Munafò M. How reproducible and reliable is geophysical research?. Seismica 2023, 2(1).
  • Barnett HG, Ireland MT, Van der Land C. Characterising the internal structural complexity of the Southern North Sea Zechstein Supergroup Evaporites. Basin Research 2023, 35(5), 1651-1673.
  • Graham SP, Aplin AC, Rouainia M, Ireland MT, Armitage PJ. A micromechanical investigation of diagenetically-induced changes to the anisotropic elastic properties of calcareous mudstones. Geomechanics and Geophysics for Geo-Energy and Geo-Resources 2023, 9(1), 107.
  • Steventon MJ, Jackson CAL, Hall M, Ireland MT, Munafo M, Roberts KJ. Reproducibility in subsurface geoscience. Earth Science, Systems and Society 2022, 2, 10051.
  • Graham SP, Rouainia M, Aplin AC, Ireland MT, Charlton TS, Armitage PJ. New Micromechanical Data and Modelling Framework for the Elastic Response of Calcareous Mudstones. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences 2022, 158, 105181.
  • Yang J, Xia Y, Yuan J, Ireland MT, Lu S, Wang M, Yu H, Li Y, Lu M. Depositional model of the Lower Cretaceous Nantun Formation and its implications for oil accumulation in the northern Wuerxun Sag of Hailar Basin, NE China. Sedimentary Geology 2022, 438, 106208.
  • Ireland MT, Morley CK, Davies RJ. Systematic spacing and topological variations in layer-bound fault systems. Basin Research 2021, 33(5), 2745-2762.
  • Ireland MT, Brown R, Wilson M, Stratesky P, Kingdon A, Davies RJ. Suitability of Legacy Subsurface Data for Nascent Geoenergy Activities Onshore United Kingdom. Frontiers in Earth Sciences 2021, 9, 629960.
  • Yang J, Qi N, Ireland MT, Lua S, Wang M, Lu M, Xia Y. Geological controls on the natural CO2 accumulation in the Surennuoer Oilfield of the Hailar Basin, China. Marine and Petroleum Geology 2021, 133, 105319.
  • Davies RJ, Morales Maqueda MA, Li A, Ireland M. Climatically driven instability of marine methane hydrate along a canyon-incised continental margin. Geology 2021, 49(8), 973-977.
  • Ireland MT, Davies RJ, Goulty NR, Moy DJ. Thick slides dominated by regular-wavelength folds and thrusts in biosiliceous sediments on the Vema Dome offshore of Norway. Marine Geology 2011, 289(1-4), 34-45.
  • Ireland MT, Davies RJ, Goulty NR, Carruthers D. Structure of a silica diagenetic transformation zone: the Gjallar Ridge, offshore Norway. Sedimentology 2011, 58(2), 424-441.
  • Davies RJ, Ireland MT. Initiation and propagation of polygonal fault arrays by thermally triggered volume reduction reactions in siliceous sediment. Marine Geology 2011, 289(1-4), 150-158.
  • Ireland MT, Goulty NR, Davies RJ. Influence of stratigraphic setting and simple shear on layer-bound compaction faults offshore Mauritania. Journal of Structural Geology 2011, 33(4), 487-499.
  • Ireland MT, Goulty NR, Davies RJ. Influence of pore water chemistry on silica diagenesis: evidence from the interaction of diagenetic reaction zones with polygonal fault systems. Journal of the Geological Society 2010, 167, 273-279.
  • Davies RJ, Ireland MT, Cartwright JA. Differential compaction due to the irregular topology of a diagenetic reaction boundary: a new mechanism for the formation of polygonal faults. Basin Research 2009, 21(3), 354-359.

• Conference Proceedings (inc. Abstract)

  • Graham SP, Rouainia M, Ireland MT, Aplin AC, Armitage PJ. Elastic Stiffening of Shale up to 200°C: Insights from High-load Nanoindentation Tests. In: 55th U.S. Rock Mechanics/Geomechanics Symposium. 2021, Virtual: OnePetro.