Tom Kettlety is the Oxford Net Zero Research Fellow in Geological Carbon Storage, working within the Department of Earth Sciences. Tom studies earthquakes triggered by fluid injection, and methods to mitigate induced seismicity. This has involved using a range of techniques from observational seismology, geomechanical modelling, and earthquake statistics to analyse microseismic datasets from injection operations around the world.
Tom’s work has looked at fluid-fault interaction and the geologic controls of fault activation. His current research involves using seismological techniques to better quantify the state of stress and seismic hazard around developing and prospective CO2 reservoirs, leading to improved assessment of risks to longterm geologic CO2 storage. His work has lead to frequent interaction with industry and regulatory stakeholders.
He completed his MSci in Physics at the University of Bristol in 2016, and his PhD in Geology at Bristol in 2020. Tom has held an Oxford Net Zero Fellowship since October 2021, and a Linacre College JRF since October 2022.
View Selected Publications
Kettlety, T., Martuganova, E., Kühn, D., Schweitzer, J., Weemstra, C., Baptie, B., Dahl-Jensen, T., Jerkins, A., Voss, P. H., Kendall, J. M., & Skurtveit, E. (2023). A unified earthquake catalogue for the North Sea to de-risk European CCS operations. First Break. Accepted
Kettlety, T., Kendall, J. M., & Roman, D. C. (2022). Self‐Similarity of Seismic Moment Release to Volume Change Scaling for Volcanoes: A Comparison With Injection‐Induced Seismicity. Geophysical Research Letters, 49(23). https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL099369
Kettlety, T., Verdon, J. P., Butcher, A., Hampson, M., & Craddock, L. (2021). High-Resolution Imaging of the ML 2.9 August 2019 Earthquake in Lancashire, United Kingdom, Induced by Hydraulic Fracturing during Preston New Road PNR-2 Operations. Seismological Research Letters, 92(1), 151–169. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220200187
Kettlety, T., Verdon, J. P., Werner, M. J., & Kendall, J. M. (2020). Stress transfer from opening hydraulic fractures controls the distribution of induced seismicity. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 125(1), e2019JB018794. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JB018794
View Extended Publications
Kettlety, T., Martuganova, E., Kühn, D., Schweitzer, J., Weemstra, C., Baptie, B., Dahl-Jensen, T., Jerkins, A., Voss, P. H., Kendall, J. M., & Skurtveit, E. (2023). A unified earthquake catalogue for the North Sea to de-risk European CCS operations. First Break. Accepted
Kettlety, T., Kendall, J. M., & Roman, D. C. (2022). Self‐Similarity of Seismic Moment Release to Volume Change Scaling for Volcanoes: A Comparison With Injection‐Induced Seismicity. Geophysical Research Letters, 49(23). https://doi.org/10.1029/2022GL099369
Kettlety, T., & Verdon, J. P. (2021). Fault Triggering Mechanisms for Hydraulic Fracturing-Induced Seismicity From the Preston New Road, UK Case Study. Frontiers in Earth Science, 9, 670771. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.670771
Kettlety, T., Verdon, J. P., Butcher, A., Hampson, M., & Craddock, L. (2021). High-Resolution Imaging of the ML 2.9 August 2019 Earthquake in Lancashire, United Kingdom, Induced by Hydraulic Fracturing during Preston New Road PNR-2 Operations. Seismological Research Letters, 92(1), 151–169. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220200187
Kettlety, T., Verdon, J. P., Werner, M. J., & Kendall, J. M. (2020). Stress transfer from opening hydraulic fractures controls the distribution of induced seismicity. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 125(1), e2019JB018794. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JB018794
Kettlety, T., Verdon, J. P., Werner, M. J., Kendall, J. M., & Budge, J. (2019). Investigating the role of elastostatic stress transfer during hydraulic fracturing-induced fault activation. Geophysical Journal International, 217, 1200–1216. https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggz080
Kettlety, T., Hesling, J., Phillipps, S., Bremer, M. N., Cluver, M. E., Taylor, E. N., Bland-Hawthorn, J., Brough, S., de Propris, R., Driver, S. P., Holwerda, B. W., Kelvin, L. S., Sutherland, W., & Wright, A. H. (2018). Galaxy and mass assembly (GAMA): the consistency of GAMA and WISE derived mass-to-light ratios. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 473(1), 776–783. https://doi.org/10.1093/MNRAS/STX2379