Tapan Mukerji
Professor (Research) of Energy Science Engineering, of Earth and Planetary Sciences and of Geophysics
Research
The focus of my research, with students and colleagues, has been on integrating rock physics, wave propagation physics, data sciences and machine learning, and their broad applications in remote sensing of subsurface systems and processes and subsurface uncertainty quantification. Over the years, I have been involved in the research activities of different industrial consortia - Stanford Rock Physics and Borehole Geophysics (SRB), Stanford Center for Earth Resources Forecasting (SCERF), Basin Processes and Subsurface Modeling (BPSM), Stanford Rocks and Geomaterials Project (SRGP), Smart Fields Consortium (SFC) and Stanford Geologic Hydrogen (SGH). My research uses theoretical, computational, and statistical models, to discover and understand fundamental relations between geophysical data and reservoir properties, to quantify uncertainty in our models, and to address value of information for decision making under uncertainty. I am particularly interested in forging links between research disciplines in geosciences, engineering, and decision sciences. I believe such research links across traditional boundaries are critical for the future of energy resources research.
Teaching
My courses for advanced undergraduates and graduates introduce students to mathematical methods for modeling, data analysis, and simulation using modern high-level software. The students come not only from the School of Earth Sciences but also from engineering, and biology. I continue to co-teach graduate level courses on rock physics and practice of geostatistics and seismic data integration. With my co-authors, I have written The Rock Physics Handbook, Quantitative Seismic Interpretation, Seismic Reservoir Modeling, Quantitative Analysis of Geopressure, and Value of Information in the Earth Sciences. These books are valuable resources for students, and researchers, and have been used as course material for university and industry courses. I enjoy advising and mentoring graduate students in their research work. Of course, one of the special rewards of teaching students is that I often learn as much from them as they do from me!
Professional Activities
Co-director SCERF, SRGP, BPSM, SGH; associate editor, Computers and Geosciences (2011-2023), associate editor, Geophysics, (2001-2023); invited instructor, Mathematical Geophysics Summer School, Stanford, (2001); co-chair, technical committee, 11th Venezuelan Geophysical Congress, (2002); proposal review, Department of Energy and American Chemical Society; manuscript review for professional journals; member, AAAS, AGU, SEG, EAGE, SPE.