Petroleum Engineering

Petroleum Engineering

As a petroleum engineer, one would have to apply their "technical skills and knowledge" to solve different challenges. They connect an area that lies just below the surface and top to bring oil and gas from a reservoir to the to where they need it to be. Their aim is always to work economically as well as safely. The diverse topics covered by petroleum engineering are closely related to the earth sciences. Petroleum engineering topics include economics, geology, geochemistry, geomechanics, geophysics, oil drilling, geopolitics, knowledge management, seismology, team building, teamwork, tectonics, thermodynamics, well logging, well completion, oil and gas production, reservoir development, and pipelining. A petroleum engineer must acquire knowledge in areas which include petrophysics, drilling and product operations, reservoir engineering, production geology, production technology, field development economics and of course a lot of math with an emphasis on ‘a lot'. Entry requirements include: aeronautical engineering, astrophysics, chemical engineering, civil engineering, earth sciences, and mechanical engineering. Working in this field means you also have to learn to manage material resources and practice contractor relationships to supervising drilling personnel. They work in multidisciplinary teams alongside other engineers, scientists, drilling teams and contractors. Schools that offer such studies and programs include Texas A & M University, Texas Tech University, The University of Texas at Austin, Stanford University, and University of Oklahoma with their ‘Departments of Petroleum Engineering'. Potential candidates must show technical capability, strong business awareness, analytical and creative skills, managerial potential, the ability to motivate staff at all levels, the ability to work internationally and in offshore environments, team working skills, drive and enthusiasm, the ability to solve complex problems, tackle challenges, flexibility and ability to work on a range of projects, and computer literacy.

The typical work activities and what you might expect as a petroleum engineer would be liaising with geoscientists, production and reservoir engineers, and other such people to predict production potential. They also compile development plans using mathematical models and select accurate tubing size and suitable equipment for their plans and move onto designing "completions", which are the part of the well that communicates with the reservoir rock and fluids. Next, they design systems that will help the flow. For example, I can across some information that stated they use submersible pumps to help the flow. Of course, it is always important to keep a close eye on the fluid's behavior and its production and managing how a set of different wells might interact with one another.