Personal Research Website

https://geoenergylab.com/

Education

• Ph.D. –2020, Energy Resources and Engineering, KAUST (Saudi Arabia)
• M.S. – 2016, Earth Sciences and Engineering, KAUST (Saudi Arabia)
• B.S. – 2015, Petroleum Engineering, Universidad Nacional de Colombia

Professional History

• 2026 to Present –  Assistant Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering, NMSU
• 2022 to 2026 – Research Associate, Institute for Geophysics, The University of Texas at Austin
• 2020 to 2022  – Postdoctoral Fellow, Institute for Geophysics, The University of Texas at Austin

Research Interests

• Energy geotechnics
• Flow and transport in geological media
• Coupled thermo-hydro-chemo-mechanical processes in porous media
• Experimental rock physics and rock mechanics

Select Publications

Cardona A., Finkbeiner T. and Santamarina J.C., Hydro-mechanical coupling in fractured rocks: A numerical study using the implicit joint-continuum model (2026). International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, v. 200, 106460. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2026.106460

Cardona A., Fang, Y., DiCarlo D. and Flemings P.B., Dissolution and Flow Channeling in Hydrate-Bearing Sediments: Implications for Permeability (2026). Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth. v. 131, e2025JB033350. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2025JB033350

Cardona A., Liu Q., and Santamarina J.C. (2023). The capillary pressure vs. saturation curve in a fractured rock mass: fracture and matrix contributions, Scientific Reports, v. 13, 12044. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-38737-y

Cardona A., and Santamarina J.C. (2023). Immiscible fluid displacement in fractured media: A dual porosity microfluidics study, International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, v. 170, 105555. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms.2023.105555

Cardona A., Bhandari A., Heidari M., and Flemings P.B. (2023). The viscoplastic behavior of natural hydrate bearing sediments under uniaxial strain compression (K0 loading), Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, v. 128, e2023JB026976. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2023JB026976

Cardona A., and Santamarina J.C. (2023). A Convenient Device to Measure the Permeability of Intact Rock (Heterogeneity and Anisotropy), Geotechnical Testing Journal, v. 46 (5), p 699-711. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1520/GTJ20220112

Cardona A., Finkbeiner T., and Santamarina J.C. (2021). Natural Rock Fractures: From Aperture to Fluid Flow, Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering, v. 54, p 5827-5844. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-021-02565-1

Cardona A., and Santamarina J.C. (2020). Carbonate rocks: Matrix permeability estimation, AAPG Bulletin, v. 104 (1), p 131-144. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1306/05021917345