Personal profile
Personal Statement
Engineering the subsurface is critical to reaching net zero: underpinning new clean energy (geothermal, offshore wind); enabling large-scale energy storage (pumped storage hydropower; thermal storage, compressed air, hydrogen); and providing safe long-term storage of waste (geological disposal of CO2, radioactive waste disposal). My research spans fundamental geoscience research on subsurface processes, understanding geological and interpretational uncertainties, through to the social science of communicating these geological concepts & uncertainties, and demonstrating novel technologies through in-ground experiments. To help achieve the large-scale changes in our energy system and society that are needed to meet - and ideally exceed - our net zero targets, I work in close collaboration between academia, industry, government and civil society across a wide range of disciplines.
Education/Academic qualification
Doctor of Philosophy, Displacement gradients at fault tips- the Chimney Rock fault array, Utah., University of Edinburgh
Award Date: 1 Jan 1999
Bachelor of Science, University of Leeds
Award Date: 1 Jan 1994
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Generative and Agentic AI for 3D Geological Modelling in Tunnelling
Suryasentana, S. (Principal Investigator), Kremer, Y. (Co-investigator) & Shipton, Z. (Co-investigator)
5/01/26 → 30/06/27
Project: Research
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Mechanochemical processing of silicate rocks for direct carbon capture (MACO2)
Lunn, R. (Principal Investigator), Giesekam, J. (Co-investigator), Shipton, Z. (Co-investigator) & Stillings, M. (Research Co-investigator)
EPSRC (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council)
1/04/24 → 30/09/27
Project: Research
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Modelling heat and fluid flow during heating of a water filled mine shaft
Dassow, J., Molnar, I., Flett, G., Attili, A., Burnside, N., Ewe, W. E., Flude, S., Mukherjee, I., Tuohy, P., Wang, H., Yang, S. & Shipton, Z., 1 May 2026, In: Quarterly Journal of Engineering Geology and Hydrogeology . 59, 2, 13 p., qjegh2025-121.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile1 Link opens in a new tab Citation (Scopus) -
Lifetime techno-economic modelling of underground mineshaft thermal storage for district heating
Flett, G., Tuohy, P., Dassow, J., Burnside, N., Ewe, W. E., Flude, S., Molnar, I., Mukherjee, I., Wang, H., Yang, S. & Shipton, Z., 20 Jun 2026, In: Journal of Energy Storage. 162, 27 p., 121544.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Open AccessFile
Datasets
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Data for "Nurturing a new industry rooted in geoscience: Stakeholder insights on Minewater Thermal in Scotland."
Deeming, K. (Creator), Shipton, Z. (Supervisor) & Roberts, J. (Supervisor), University of Strathclyde, 26 Nov 2024
DOI: 10.15129/e7b2f725-2e9b-45cf-8c09-b063cdda1e65
Dataset
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Data for: "International database of hot sedimentary aquifer geothermal projects: De-risking future projects by identifying key success and failure criteria"
Bremaud, M. (Creator), Burnside, N. (Supervisor), Shipton, Z. (Supervisor), Willems, C. J. L. (Contributor), Pujol, M. (Contributor) & Bossennec, C. (Contributor), University of Strathclyde, 17 Jul 2024
DOI: 10.15129/19dfb2af-13f6-45f5-a406-497ab15950b9
Dataset
Prizes
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Awarded the William Smith Fund for excellence in contributions to applied and economic aspects of geology in an under 40.
Shipton, Z. (Recipient), 2010
Prize: Prize (including medals and awards)
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Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Shipton, Z. (Recipient), 2016
Prize: Election to learned society
Activities
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Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) for Minewater Thermal Energy Technologies
Flude, S. (Participant) & Shipton, Z. (Participant)
8 May 2025 → 31 Jul 2025Activity: Presenting or Organising an Event › Conference, workshop, seminar or course
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Fault architecture in the Port Campbell Embayment, Otway Basin (Vic, Australia)
McMahon, C. (Speaker), Roberts, J. (Contributor), Shipton, Z. (Contributor), Tenthorey, E. (Contributor), Feitz, A. (Contributor), Gallagher, S. (Contributor), Soman, R. (Contributor) & Johnson, G. (Speaker)
10 Jan 2024Activity: Talk or Presentation › Oral presentation
Impacts
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Research on geological uncertainty informs UK Government policies on shale gas and radioactive waste disposal
Shipton, Z. (Participant) & Lunn, R. (Participant)
Impact: Impact - for External Portal › Policy and legislation, Public understanding, information and debate, Environment and sustainability - natural world and built environment
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