Juan Carlos Laya  

About me 

I am an Associate professor in carbonate sedimentology. My research interests are broadly in the field of carbonate sedimentology with a strong focus on the evolution of carbonate platforms. Carbonate diagenesis and dolomitization are also key focuses of my research; using a broad array of methods including field studies and laboratory experiments. I have worked on carbonate facies analysis and paleogeographic reconstructions of Permian carbonates, especially in South America and the Permian Basin. Recently, I am looking into fundamental problems in carbonate sedimentation and diagenesis using multi-scale approaches in the Middle East, Caribbean, and West Texas. I am also interested in Miocene carbonate platform evolution using ocean drilling material (IODP cores data). 

New articles:

• Laya, J. C., Harris, P. M., van Hengstum P. & Frazer, M. (2025). Controls on carbonate island formation and evolution: South Joulter Cay, Great Bahama Bank. The Depositional Record, n/a, https://doi.org/10.1002/dep2.70035.

• Manche, C. J., Markello, J., Laya, J. C., Pope, M., Fritsche, K. & Hill, K. (2025). Diagenetic and sequence stratigraphic controls on reservoir quality in the Upper Jurassic Smackover Formation, southern Arkansas, USA. Marine and Petroleum Geology, 177, 107363. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2025.107363

• Laya, J. C., *Prince, K., Budd, D., Jacquemyn C. & Manche, C.J., (2025). Dolomite formation in the Miocene Kardiva platform, Maldives archipelago: a tale of closed-system and open-system dolomitization with current pumping of seawater. Journal of Sedimentary Research 95, 1-27. doi 10.2110/jsr.2024.055

• Prince, K., Laya, J. C., Budd, D., Manche, C.J. & Jacquemyn C., (2024). Dolomite occurrence within drift deposits, Maldives Archipelago. Sedimentary Geology 470, 106711. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sedgeo.2024.106711

• Jayachandran, I.S.A.J., Gibbs, H.C., Laya, J.C., Qaiser, Y., Khan, T., Ansari, M.I., Ansari, M.Y.M.S., Malyah, M., Alyafei, N.& Seers T., (2024). An object-based approach to differentiate pores and microfractures in petrographic analysis using explainable, supervised machine learning. AGU, Earth and Space Science. 11, e2023EA003291. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023EA003291

Recent Conference presentations 

• Buffington, A.S., Becker, M., Laya J.C., Investigation on the Thermal History and Depositional/Exhumation Events in the Delaware Basin, W. Texas and SE New Mexico, USA. SPE/AAPG/SEG Unconventional Resources Technology Conference. Houston June 2025.

• Laya, J. C., Budd, D., Jacquemyn C. & Manche, C.J., Prince, K. Dolomitization below the seafloor within deepwater drift and platform margin deposits. Maldives Archipelago. Oral presentation at the IMAGE (AAPG-SEG) conference. Houston. August 2025. Invited Talk.

• #*Bianco J. Laya, J.C., Manche C.J., Assessing Ancient Fluid Flow Pathways Following Dissolution Features in Ooid Grainstone Deposits, Happy Field, Garza County, Texas. Advances in the Understanding and Interpretation of Carbonates (IMAGE) AAPG-SEG August. 2025.

• Laya, J. C., Harris, P. M., van Hengstum P. Did elevated hurricane activity drive South Joulter Cay development on the Great Bahama Bank? 38th IAS meeting of Sedimentology, Huelva, Spain, June 2025

• #*Martinez, N., Laya, J. C., #Stepanova, A., Anwar, S., Zarikian, C. A. & Hammond, T., (2024)  Board 379: SedimentSketch, Using interactive games to teach Sedimentology Concepts to College Students at Texas A&M, an HSI Institution. American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting. Washington D.C.

• #*Jayachandran, I.S.A.J., Seers T., Manche, C., Gibbs, H.C., Laya, J.C., Khan, T., *Ansari, M.I., *Ansari, M.Y.M.S., *Malyah, M., *Qaiser, Y., Alyafei, N., Hashim, M., Qadeer, A., (2024) Too Much Choice: Benchmarking of Segmentation Algorithms for SEM Images of Calcite Microcrystals Using Distortion Simulation. Oral presentation at the AAPG ICE conferences. Muscat. Oman