Unlocking national treasures: the core scanning approach

Drill core is a vital resource for subsurface characterisation and informs process understanding. However, it is expensive to collect and as a result, the geoscience community increasingly relies on data from legacy core to address today\x92s energy challenges. Many countries store geological materials collected over decades in national archives. In the UK, over 600 km of drill core is currently stored at the UK national core repository which covers a breadth of the UK\x92s geology, including those targeted for resources, energy and waste storage. The challenge is to maximise the value of these analogue archives and new core when deposited - improving access to materials and associated data, whilst simultaneously maximising preservation to ensure optimised use, now and in the future. This paper summarises the BGS approach to characterise drill core more efficiently and consistently using a multiple-technique core scanning approach set within a project-specific core scanning workflow to increase core data acquisition and complement traditional core characterisation practices. Thus, creating a digital record of the core, preserving it beyond its physical lifetime and improving accessibility. This paper highlights the benefits and challenges of this long-term endeavour, especially in making the data open access and discoverable