Introduction to Petroleum

Engineering

An overview of
Petroleum Engineering Activities

Seyed Hassan Fallahzadeh

Research Associate
Petroleum Engineering/Geomechanics
Department of Petroleum Engineering
Tel: +61 8 9266 5606
Email: seyed.fallahza@curtin.edu.au

DISCLAIMER

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However, in the event that thirdparty content has inadvertently been
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referencing, then please notify the Department of Petroleum Engineering
accordingly seyed.fallahza@curtin.edu.au

If it is established that an unintended breach of copyright has occurred, we will

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4 March 2015

PETENG 101

Course Objective

The main objectives of this course is to provide with an

introductory overview of Petroleum Engineering. This
course introduces:

role of the petroleum engineer,

the nature of gas and oil,
the formation of oil and gas,
source rock, reservoir rock, and petroleum traps,
petroleum exploration,
rock and fluid properties;
introduction to drilling and completion, reservoir and petroleum
production engineering , and
general aspects of petroleum field developments.

Tentative topis to be covered

Overview, introduction to petroleum engineering

Nature of petroleum (oil and gas)
Generation, migration and accumulation of petroleum,
Source, reservoir rocks, petroleum trap
Introduction to petroleum fluid properties
Introduction to reservoirs rock properties
Introduction to reservoir fluid flow through porous media, Darcys law
Introduction to drilling and completion engineering
Introduction to petroleum production engineering
General aspects of petroleum exploration and field developments.

References

Reservoir Engineering Handbook - 3rd Edition, by Tarek Ahmed, Chapter 1-4

(download from www.knovel.com )
Supplementary reading
1.
2.
3.
4.

Geology of Petroleum by Lavorsen, A. I, 2nd ed., 1967, W. H. Freeman and

Company
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration, Drilling and Production
(2nd Ed., 2001) - Norman. J. Hyne, Penn Well Corp Publisher
Petroleum engineering : principles and practice (1986), J.S. Archer and
C.G. Wall,
Graham & Trotman Publisher, London
Geology and Geochemistry of Oil and Gas by Chilingar, G.V., Buryakovsky, L.A.,
Eremenko, N.A., Gorfunkel, M.V. 2005 Elsevier (download from www.knovel.com)

Expected unit learning

outcome
1.

Explain basic terminology related to petroleum exploration and production

(E&P) processes including use of technology and role of various professionals
involved in E&P business.

2.

Illustrate principles and mechanisms of some of the key areas of petroleum

engineering such as reservoir engineering, and petroleum production
engineering.

3.

Calculate and solve representative problems related to reservoir rock and

fluid properties, and petroleum production.

4.

Analyse various data or information obtained from a range of sources.

5.

Integrate, synthesise and communicate knowledge and/or findings

from review studies in specified areas.

Assessment/Evaluation

Assignments 30% (2 assignments, 15%

each)
Midterm test 20 %

Final Exam (closed book) 50%

For date and other details see the unit

outline.
However, you will be notified in due
course via email
7

Fossil Fuels Natures Batteries

1. 86% of energy used
2. is derived from fossil fuels
3. Fossil fuels are natures
batteries. They have stored the
suns energy from millennia past,
and we draw on them today as
Oil
Natural Gas
Coal
12

Courtesy - SPE

Why is Petroleum (Oil/Gas) so important in Todays World?

It is very versatile, powerful and natural source of energy

Petroleum Engineering
Activities

14

10

Petroleum Engineering
Overview

11

The prime concern of Petroleum Engineers is:

To extract commercial amount of petroleum (oil and gas) from deep

underground (subsurface) by providing sound engineering basis through the
design and implementation of most viable and cost effective techniques.
Petroleum engineer is a technology driven engineer.

Must have to have adequate knowledge and expertise on

15

Foundations of engineering,
Geology, and Geophysics,
Physics,
Mathematics,
Chemistry,
Economics as well as
Geostatistics

Core People in Petroleum E&P

Business
Land-men

12

Petroleum
Engineer

Petroleum
Production
Technologist

Production Geologist

Drilling Engineer

Exploration
Exploration

Reservoir Engineer

Petrophysicist

Production

Production Economist

Engineer
The Finders:
Geologist and
Geo-physicist Land men- take care the legal aspects of extracting hydrocarbons

Front End or
Facilities
Engineer

Man hours involvement of a

petroleum engineer
Exploration
Development

Man hours

Production
Geophysics

Petroleum Engineer

Geology

First Well
Drilled

Times

Discovery
Made

Production
begins

13

14

Petroleum Exploration
Geology

Paleontology

Sedimentology
Stratigraphy

Geophysics

Exploration Techniques

Seismic
Magnetic
Electric
Gravity
Electromagnetic (EM)
Organic Geochemistry

Geochemistry

(source rock)
Reservoir Geochemistry

Drilling: will be covered in drilling lecture

Advanced New Techniques: Remote Sensing

15

Exploration Workflow

Discover

Appraise

Geology, Geoscience & New Ventures

Develop

Produce

DPATS + Operations

DPATS: Data Processing and Analysis Tool Set

16

Exploration Workflow
1) Identify presence of sedimentary basin (aeromagnetic, gravity,
outcrop, seismic).
2) Evaluate source rock, reservoir, seal potential (basin analysis).
3) Generate structure maps (seismic and well data).
4) Identify possible traps seismic data.
5) Evaluate the relationships between reservoir, source rocks, seals,
migration to potential traps.
6) Drill well evaluate stratigraphic section (well logs, cuttings,
cores, sidewall cores, tests).
7) Update maps and concepts integrating data obtained from well.
8) If a discovery is made, evaluate it commerciality.
9) Assess risks and develop prospect/lead portfolio; maintain data
base.
20.

Can petroleum be recovered

commercially?
Is there a basin full of sediments is it sufficiently
deep and large?
Has petroleum been generated?
Has the petroleum been trapped?
Is there sufficient volume to be commercial?
Porosity: measure of volume of hydrocarbons.

Does the reservoir rock have sufficient properties for

flow?
Permeability: measure of ease of flow.
Pressure: drive energy required for flow.

17

Risking

18

Potential reserves
Risking of parameters (closure, source, seal, reservoir, timing)
Peer reviews to assess key risks

Appropriate mix of low risk, (generally low potential)

and high potential (high risk) opportunities.
The mix will vary from company to company, and will be
largely dependant upon how much capital a company has
available to risk on exploration and/or development
opportunities.
22.

We need the right tools to find oil and gas

accumulations

23.

19

20

Exploration Tools
Oil seep (Arizona)

Surface Outcrop (New Zealand)

Seismic section

Key Role of Core People in Petroleum

Business

21

Geoscientists (geologists, geophysicists) The Finders

Study the earth to search for clues to where oil and gas might be hidden.

Analyze minerals, soil, and rocks samples.

Evaluate underground geologic structures to find oil and gas fields.

Petroleum engineers The Movers

Team with geoscientists to understand rock formations.

Analyse oil and gas fields qualities, determine the best drilling methods to find oil
and gas deep in the Earth.

Manage production when oil and gas are drained from underground.

Design equipment, processes so maximum amount of oil and gas is recovered.

E & P project success =

Petroleum Engineers + High Tech Tools
Walk around virtually inside an image of underground earth
surface
Guide drilling rigs from control
rooms miles away Using:

Source Unknown

Advanced directional drilling technology

Sophisticated software

Remoteoperated vehicles (ROVs)

under water
3D visualization

22

What do Petroleum Geoscientists

do?
Geologists and Geophysicists
mainly office based applying
highend technology
Explore for oil and gas accumulations 1,000 8,000
metres beneath the earths surface
Assist in appraising the discovery is it good
enough to spend millions of dollars (up to a
billion+) to get the oil or gas to the buyers??

Assist in making field development decisions

more wells in the appropriate places

23

What Does a Geologist Do?

Looks at areas not previously found to bear

hydrocarbons.

Extrapolate which areas are most likely to

contain petroleum or natural gas reservoir by

surveying and mapping the surface and subsurface characteristics of a certain area.

Development geologist takes a "discovery

well"- i.e. a well that produces hydrocarbons,

and figures out the most economic way of
developing the newly discovered oil/gas field.

24

What Does a Geophysicist Do?

Once the geologist has determined

an area of oil, or natural gas bearing
formation, or potential source of oil
or natural gas,

The more accurate mapping of

underground formations,

These tests are commonly performed

by a geophysicist, one who uses
technology to find and map
underground rock formations.
29

25

26

What Is Seismic Exploration

Study of how energy, in the

form of seismic waves,

moves through the Earth's

crust and interacts

differently with various
types of underground
formations.

27

What Is Seismic Exploration?

Measure the elastic properties of the subsurface.
Variations and discontinuities in subsurface elastic properties may be
indicative of changes in lithology or pore fluids.
Applicable for 10 - 150 km.

Capable of detecting and spatially resolving features at scales as small

as tens of meters or less.
This resolving power is significantly finer than the resolving ability of
other remote geophysical methods for such depth regime.

28

What Is Onshore Seismology ?

Involves artificially creating seismic

waves, the reflection of which are then

picked up by sensitive pieces of

equipment called geophones,

imbedded in the ground.

The data picked up by these

geophones are then transmitted to a
seismic recording truck, which
records the data for further

interpretation by geophysicists and

petroleum reservoir engineers.

29

What Is Offshore Seismology ?

A ship is used to pick up the seismic data.
Offshore exploration uses hydrophones, which
are designed to pick up seismic waves
underwater.
These hydrophones are towed behind the ship in
various configurations depending on the needs of
the geophysicist.

Instead of using dynamite or impacts on the

seabed floor, the seismic ship uses a large air
gun, which releases bursts of compressed air
under the water, creating seismic waves that can
travel through the Earth's crust and generate the
seismic reflections that are necessary to plot the
map.

30

Seismic Exploration

Identify the

hydrocarbon bearing
layers, structural
features, etc.

35.

31

3D Seismic Analysis

35.

32

Drilling a Well
Once a potential natural petroleum deposit has
been pin pointed by a team of exploration geologists
and geophysicists, it is up to a team of drilling
experts to actually dig down to where the natural
deposit is thought to be existed.
The decision of whether or not to drill a well
depends on a various factors including the factors
related to the economic characteristics of the
potential natural deposits reservoir.
It costs a great deal of money for exploration and
production (E&P) companies to search and drill
for natural petroleum deposits, and there is
always the inherent risk that no petroleum will be
found.

33

Drilling a Well
The only way to verify that a prospect has oil or gas is
to drill a well; it would provide data on:
Source, reservoir and seal quality (cuttings / cores).

Existing fluids oil, gas, water (logs / tests).

Fluid samples.

Temperature and pressure.

Conduit from reservoir to earths surface.

Tie to seismic data correlations, depths,

velocities.
Geological data such as cores, logs for evaluation.
Productions potential through flow test.

34

Drilling Rig

35

Logging on land

Using mobile logging units (trucks).

Electronic tools are lowered to
measure rock properties.

Reservoir lithology
Porosity
oil/gas or water

Well Logs Diagrammatic

41.

36

d r h o

42.

DEPTH

SP

MV

40

badhole

CALI

0.2

16

0.2

GR

GAPI

DT

140

OHMM2000
OHMM2000

0.2

OHMM2000

6 6 0 0

2 9 5 7 . 9
2 9 5 9 . 7

2 9 5 7 . 7
2 9 5 9 . 1
2 9 5 8 . 9

2 9 6 0 . 5
2 9 5 9 . 7

6 6 5 0

2 9 7 4 . 6

40

B/E

10

NPHI

0.45

MSFL

200

US/F
pef

LLS
RFT

IN

OHMM2000
rt

DST

LLD

0.2

metres

10 LOGICAL

PERFORATIONS

-160

- 0G. 2/0C
5.3
2 5

V/V

-0.15

RHOB

1.95

G/C3

2.95

37

Petroleum Engineering
Specialization
Drilling
Engineer

Reservoir
Engineer

Well Design
Rig Selection
Drilling Operation

Completion
Engineer

Wellbore Completion
Ensure Safety
Wellbore Integrity

Production
Engineer

Well Design to
Abandonment
Optimise Production

Reserve Estimation
Reservoir Production
Production Forecasting
Work-over Planning
Reservoir Monitoring

38

Problem Solving

Petroleum reservoir is a complex naturally

occurring very ill-defined systems where there is

little or no information available.

Exact definition of the problem is barely
possible.

Need to deal with huge number of

uncertainties.

The problem may need re- defined/modified when

more information becomes available.
Problem needs to be solved iteratively.

39

40

Problem Solving
Problem definition
(including objectives)

Upgrade the base for

study by literature
survey, project
analogy, statistical
correlation etc.

Identify
economic/commercial
feasibility

Define study flow paths

and critical path, budget
time, capital rationalised
with reality.

Conduct study: perform intensive analysis of

data and results.
Evaluate, think and compare data with
expectation and physical behaviour.
Apply professional judgment and interpret results
in manner that provides best fit of facts.
If appropriate, express the results
probabilistically.

Organise and identify

application methods

Identify and study the

theoretical basis of the
model used for solution;
look for alternative
approaches.

Make technically sound,

reliable and unbiased
conclusion.

Prepare the outline of the study

plan and evaluate the
accuracy of available data

Select appropriate
methods or model to
solve the problem

Write summary of facts

leading to conclusion and
supporting the proposed
action.
Present results of study to
win all necessary
approvals to proceed.

41
Petroleum
Recovery
Systems

Petroleum
Recovery Process

Primary recovery process

(natural reservoir energy)

Water Diver
High water influx
Low water influx
Solution Driver
Gas Cap Drive
Compaction Drive
Gravity Drainage
Combination Drive

Secondary recovery process

(Pressure maintenance
Supplementary drive energy)

Water flooding injection)

hot water injection
cold water injection
Gas injection
miscible
immiscible
Combination (e.g.
Alternate gas water)
Other fluid injection
Non hydrocarbon
Miscible (N2)
Immiscible (CO2)
Intermediate
Hydrocarbon (e.g.
Gas, liquid miscible)

Tertiary recovery process

(EOR/IOR)

Stimulation
Acid Fracturing
Hydraulic Fracturing
Gas Condensate and
volatile oils
Gas cycling
Pressure maintenance
Miscible injection
CO2, N2
Hydrocarbon Foams
(water blocking)
Thermal for heavy oils
Steam
Soak
Dry
Combustion
Wet
Dry
Chemical Processes
Surfactants (miscibility
and low IFT control)
Slug
Continuous
Polymers (water
control)
Visco-elastic
Shear thinning
Alkalis (wettability
control)
Infill drilling

Advanced Petroleum
Recovery Process
Recent/Future trend

Nuclear Technology
Applications
Mining Technology
Applications
Insitu heating
Air injection
Microbial EOR
Subsurface oil water
and gas separation
and handling
New Chemicals,
Remote and frontier
facilities design
Subsea technology for
offshore field

42

46.

43

Thank you for your attention

Any question???
47