BRIAN J MCPHERSON

BRIAN J. O. L. MCPHERSON

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

University of Utah | Salt Lake City, Utah
Phone: 801-558-4043 | Email: b.j.mcpherson@utah.edu

 

RESEARCH LEADERSHIP AND IMPACT

·       Led multi-state DOE research consortia (SWP, CUSP, RMCCS, Paradox National Field Lab)

·       Designed and led field programs integrating deep drilling, geophysics, and large-scale subsurface monitoring for projects exceeding 1 million tons CO₂

·       Coordinated teams of dozens of faculty, staff, and students across universities, national labs, industry

·       Developed shared data infrastructure and multi-institutional research systems

·       Led multi-institutional training and workforce development initiatives

·       124 peer-reviewed publications, h-index 46

  

FUNDING SUMMARY

Total Career Funding as PI: $134,716,190  

Total Career Funding as co-PI: $41,003,830

Recent Awards (2024–2026): $26,961,555

 

MAJOR RESEARCH LEADERSHIP ROLES

PI and Science Director – (US DOE) Southwest Regional Partnership (SWP)

Technical Director and Co-PI – (US DOE) Carbon Utilization and Storage Partnership (CUSP)

PI – (US DOE) Rocky Mountain Carbon Capture and Storage (RMCCS)
PI – (US DOE) Paradox Emerging Play National Field Lab

Research Director – (NSF) DUSEL / EarthLab Initiative

 

RESEARCH AREAS

·       Subsurface multiphase flow, reactive transport and geomechanics

·       Uncertainty quantification and risk assessment

·       Enhanced oil recovery, geologic storage, geothermal systems, subsurface energy systems

·       Helium resource assessment, hydrogen storage assessment and design

·       Subsurface radioactive waste containment assessment

 

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

USTAR Endowed Professor, University of Utah (2013–Present)

Staff Member, Energy & Geoscience Institute (2006–Present)

USTAR Endowed Associate Professor, University of Utah (2006–2013)

Associate Professor, New Mexico Tech (2002–2006)

Assistant Professor, New Mexico Tech (1996–2001)

Postdoctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins University (1996)

 

ADMINISTRATIVE AND PROGRAMMATIC EXPERIENCE

·       Managed large federally funded programs with multi-institutional coordination  

·       Led multi-investigator proposal teams and center-scale initiatives

·       Directed workforce training programs

·       Mentored graduate students, postdocs, and early-career faculty

 

EDUCATION

Ph.D., Geophysics, University of Utah (1996)

M.S., Geophysics, University of Utah (1992)

B.S., Geophysics, University of Oklahoma (1989)