PALYNOLOGY: Applications and Uses

John D. Shane
Director of Research
Emile Chamot Laboratory, McCrone Research Institute

Friday, March 26, 2004

Palynolgy is the study of spores, pollen and dinoflagellates. These seemingly unrelated organisms are useful to find oil and gas deposits, catch criminals, geolocate people and products, help resolve allergies, identify plants, manage forests, type honey, reconstruct environments, as well as a myriad of other applications. Dr. Shane will introduce palynology and discuss several applications that he has been involved with, including oil and gas applications and forensic science. Techniques for finding, processing and mounting pollen and spores will be addressed.

Bio Sketch
Dr. Shane earned his B.S. in Botany from Brigham Young University and a Ph.D. in Palynology from Arizona State University, Botany Department. John also has a minor in geology.

In 1981 he was employed by EXXON Company, USA, Houston, Texas as a Senior Geologist. He transferred to EXXON Production Research Company in 1985. In 1989 John moved to Anchorage, AK with ARCO Alaska, as a Senior Staff Palynologist.

John was hired by Dr. McCrone in 1994 after John visited the Research Institute to complement their (ARCO) analytical capabilities.

In 1984, John co-founded The Society of Organic Petrologists (TSOP) that today has a worldwide membership.

SMSI Minutes 26 Mar 2004
John D. Shane, PhD. Palynology: Applications and Uses

In one of the applications, Shane stated that spores not pollen turn color as a function of heat. (No mention of Conodonts (RD Norby's presentation in 1994? to SMSI also covered this topic in relation to Conodonts.)) The correct color allows one to know if it was the temperature to turn algae to light oil or plants to heavy oil. Certain types of pollen also allow one to know the age and location of water which might indicate the presence of oil.