petroleum engineering

Introduction

      the branch of engineering that involves the development and exploitation of crude oil and natural gas fields as well as the technical analysis and forecasting of their future performance. Its origins lie in both mining engineering and geology. The petroleum engineer, whose aim is to extract gaseous and liquid hydrocarbon products from the earth, is concerned with drilling, producing, processing, and transporting these products and handling all the related economic and regulatory considerations.

History

      The foundations of petroleum engineering were established during the 1890s in California. There geologists were employed to correlate oil-producing zones and water zones from well to well to prevent extraneous water from entering oil-producing zones. From this came the recognition of the potential for applying technology to oil-field development. The American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers (AIME) established a Technical Committee on Petroleum in 1914. In 1957 the name of the AIME was changed to the American Institute of Mining, Metallurgical, and Petroleum Engineers.

      Petroleum technology courses were introduced at the University of Pittsburgh, Pa., in 1910 and included courses in oil and gas law and industry practices; in 1915 the university granted the first degree in petroleum engineering. Also in 1910 the University of California at Berkeley offered its first courses in petroleum engineering and in 1915 established a four-year curriculum in petroleum engineering. After these pioneering efforts, professional programs spread throughout the United States and other countries.

      From 1900 to 1920 petroleum engineering focused on drilling problems, such as establishing casing points for water shutoff, designing casing strings, and improving the mechanical operations in drilling and well pumping. In the 1920s petroleum engineers sought means to improve drilling practices and to improve well design by use of proper tubing sizes, chokes, and packers. They designed new forms of artificial lift, primarily rod pumping and gas lift, and studied the ways in which methods of production affected gas–oil ratios and rates of production. The technology of drilling fluids was advanced, and directional drilling became a common practice.

      The economic crisis that resulted from abundant discoveries in about 1930, notably in the giant East Texas Field, caused petroleum engineering to focus on the entire oil–water–gas reservoir system rather than on the individual well. Studying the optimum spacing of wells in an entire field led to the concept of reservoir engineering. During this period the mechanics of drilling and production were not neglected. Drilling penetration rates increased approximately 100 percent from 1932 to 1937.

      Petrophysics (determination of fluid and rock characteristics) was introduced late in the 1930s. By 1940 electric logging had developed to the state that estimates could be made of oil and water saturations in the reservoir rocks.

      After World War II, petroleum engineers continued to refine the techniques of reservoir analysis and petrophysics. The outstanding event of the 1950s was development of the offshore oil industry and a whole new technology. At first little was known of such matters as wave heights and wave forces. The oceanographer and marine engineer thus joined with the petroleum engineer to initiate design standards. Shallow-water drilling barges evolved into mobile platforms, then into jack-up barges, and finally into semi-submersible and floating drilling ships.

Branches of petroleum engineering

      During the evolution of petroleum engineering, the areas of specialization developed: drilling engineering, production engineering, reservoir engineering, and petrophysical engineering. In each specialization engineers from other disciplines (mechanical, civil, electrical, geological, chemical) freely entered, and their contributions were significant; however, it remained the unique role of the petroleum engineer to integrate all the specializations into an efficient system of oil and gas drilling, production, and processing.

      Drilling engineering was among the first applications of technology to oil-field practices. The drilling engineer is responsible for the design of the earth-penetration techniques, the selection of casing and safety equipment, and, often, the direction of the operations. These functions involve understanding the nature of the rocks to be penetrated, the stresses in these rocks, and the techniques available to drill into and control the underground reservoirs. Because modern drilling involves organizing a vast array of machinery and materials, investing huge funds, and acknowledging the safety and welfare of the general public, the engineer must develop the skills of supervision, management, and negotiation.

      The production engineer's work begins upon completion of the well—directing the selection of producing intervals and making arrangements for various accessories, controls, and equipment. Later his work involves controlling and measuring the produced fluids (oil, gas, and water), designing and installing gathering and storage systems, and delivering the raw products (gas and oil) to pipeline companies and other transportation agents. He is also involved in such matters as corrosion prevention, well performance, and formation treatments to stimulate production. As in all branches of petroleum engineering, the production engineer cannot view the in-hole or surface processing problems in isolation but must fit solutions into the complete reservoir, well, and surface system.

      Reservoir engineers are concerned with the physics of oil and gas distribution and their flow through porous rocks—the various hydrodynamic, thermodynamic, gravitational, and other forces involved in the rock–fluid system. They are responsible for analyzing the rock–fluid system, establishing efficient well-drainage patterns, forecasting the performance of the oil or gas reservoir, and introducing methods for maximum efficient production.

      To understand the reservoir rock–fluid system, the drilling, production, and reservoir engineers draw assistance from the petrophysical, or formation-evaluation, engineer, who provides tools and analytical techniques for determining rock and fluid characteristics. The petrophysical engineer measures the acoustic, radioactive, and electrical properties of the rock–fluid system and takes samples of the rocks and well fluids to determine porosity, permeability, and fluid content in the reservoir.

Baxter D. Honeycutt Ed.

Additional Reading

Oil and Gas Journal, vol. 57, no. 5 (Jan. 28, 1959), is a special issue surveying the first 100 years of the petroleum industry, and vol. 75, no. 35 (August 1977), provides additional historical information. Standard textbooks are James W. Amyx, Daniel M. Bass, Jr., and Robert L. Whiting, Petroleum Reservoir Engineering, vol. 1, Physical Properties (1960); T.E.W. Nind, Principles of Oil Well Production, 2nd ed. (1981); Sylvain J. Pirson, Geologic Well Log Analysis, 3rd ed. (1983); and B.C. Craft and M.F. Hawkins, Applied Petroleum Reservoir Engineering, 2nd ed., rev. by Ronald E. Terry (1991). Other informative works include J.S. Archer and C.G. Wall, Petroleum Engineering: Principles and Practice (1986); and Howard B. Bradley (ed.), Petroleum Engineering Handbook (1987).Baxter D. Honeycutt Ed.

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