c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.Petroleum Engineering & Its ImportanceA Presentation by ONGC Videsh Limitedc2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd. What Is Petroleum EngineeringPetroleumEngineering,bydefinition,is findingcrudeoilandnaturalgasinthe ground and devising a way to bring it out of the ground.c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.What Is !he "ole O# A Petroleum EngineerPetroleumEngineerssupplysociety withcrudeoilandnaturalgasfor energy.Thisenergyfuelsourcars andplanes,heatsourhomes, powersourplantsandgenerates electricity.c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.Fish FossilPlant fossilWhat Is OilCrude oil, or petroleum, is an organic substancederivedfromtheremains ofprehistoricplantandanimal matter. Itisamixtureofhydrocarbons,i.e. moleculescontaininghydrogenand carbon,whichexistsometimesin liuid form !crude oil" and sometimes as a vapour !natural gas".c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.!he $ormation O# Oil#illionsofyearsago,rainswashed prehistoricplantandanimalremains intotheseasalongwithsandand silt, and layer upon layer piled up on theseabottom.Theselayerswere compressedundertheweightof thesesediments,andtheincreasing pressureandtemperaturechanged themud,sandandsiltintoroc$and theorganicmatterintopetroleum. This roc$ is $nown as source roc$. c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.%n example of porous roc$sOil %ources&ecauseoilandgasarelighterthan water, they float on top of water. 'il and gas that formed in the source roc$ deep withintheearthfloatedupthroughtiny porespacesintheroc$.(omeseeped outatthesurfaceoftheearth.(ome was trapped by dense, non)porous roc$, calledshale.Theseundergroundtraps ofoilandgasarecalledreservoirs. *eservoirscontainporousroc$swhich allowfluidstoflowthroughthepore spaces, i.e. whichare permeable.c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.This is what the roc$, where oil is found,loo$s li$e deep belowthe Earth+s surface.Core %amples,hen oil wells are drilled, sometimes acoringtoolisusedtoobtain samplesofthereservoirroc$for study.-eologistsstudythesecore samplestolearnaboutthereservoir andhelpdecidehowtoproducethe oil and gas from it. c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.E&tracting OilTherearetwowaystogetoiloutof the ground.'rilling Productionc2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.'ncethegeoscientistsanalyseaprospectiveoilfieldandthelandis leased,awildcatwellisdrilledtoobtainmoreinformationaboutthe reservoir.Inlate/0112s,oilwellsweredrilledbyhammeringsteel pipes into the roc$. Today, rotary drilling rigs are used, where a drill bit is turned around and around, deeper and deeper, cutting into the roc$. 3rilling fluid, or drilling mud, is used to lubricate the bit so it doesn2t get stuc$,andtoflushtheroc$piecestothesurface. Thesecuttingsare examined by a mud logger, who loo$s for signs of oil and gas. 4ot all wells are straight and vertical. 5ori6ontal drilling has become a veryprofitablewaytoincreaseproductionbyhavingthewellbore contacting more of the formation. #ore7'rillingc2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.,henthedrillingiscompleted,therigscanbedisassembledfor assemblyatanotherdrillsite.(omerigsareonshipsandbargesfor drilling offshore. %fter drilling, steel pipe called casing is set in the hole and is cemented intoplace.%heavy)dutysystemofvalvescalledaChristmasTreeis setintoplaceatthewellheadtocontroltheflowoftheoil,gasand water and prevent a blowout. Then the well casing is perforated at the right depths to ma$e holes for the oil and gas to flow into the wellbore and up to the surface.'rillingc2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.Producing !he Well&ecause oil, gas and water underground are underalotofpressureatfirst,thesefluids flowupawellboreallbythemselves,much li$easoftdrin$thathasbeensha$enup. ,hen oil and gas are produced this way, it is called primary reco(ery. ,hentheinitialpressureisspent,suc$er rod pumps are used to pull the oil out of the reservoirroc$andupthewell.(ometimes gas is in8ected at the bottom of the well, and as it expands, it lifts the oil up to the surface. This is called gas li#t. c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.Producing !he Well'peningupnewchannelsintheroc$fortheoilandgastoflow throughiscalledstimulation.Threestimulationtreatmentsare commonlyused.explosivestobrea$uptheroc$,in8ectionofacidto partially dissolve the roc$, and hydraulic fracturing to split the roc$ and prop it open with proppants. %fterprimaryrecovery,onlyaportionoftheoilandgashasbeen produced,sosecondaryreco(ery,or)ater#loodingisdone.,ater and oil do not mix9 oil is generally lighter than water and floats on top ofitinthereservoir.3uringawaterflood,waterisin8ectedintothe water6oneofsomeofthewellstopushtheoilandgasuptheother wells. c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.Consumption O# Oil$uels Fuel from produced oil and gas is used variously as gasoline for cars, 8et fuel, $erosene, propanegasforcoo$ing,heatingoilsforhomefurnaces,dieselfuelsfortruc$sand busesandtrains,industrialfuelsforboilersinfactoriesandships,andsolidco$efor burning. #any electricity generating plants are also run on oil or natural gas. Plastics* "ubber* Other Products #anyplasticsandpolymersaremadefrompetroleumfeedstoc$s.Theseareusedto manufacture things li$e food wrap, toys, containers, and automobile tires. 'ther products includelubricatingoilsformachinery,grease,waxforcandles,asphaltforroadsand roofs,agriculturalpesticidesandfertili6ers,andwhiteoilsandpetrolatumformedicinal purposes. $ibers Polyesterandnylonarepetrochemicalsthataremadeintothousandsofconsumer products li$e panty hose, nylon thread, and polyester.c2003 ONGC Videsh Ltd.Therearemanycareersintheoilindustry.4earlyeverytypeof engineercanbefoundupstreamordownstream,includingchemical, industrial,mechanical,civil,electrical,bioengineers,andofcourse, petroleum engineers. 4aturalandearthsciencesarealsoprevalentintheoilbusiness. Chemists,biologists,physicists,geologists,geophysicists,and computerscientistswor$togetheronmulti)disciplinaryteamswith engineers to research and optimise oil field and refinery operations. Therearealsootherprofessionalandsupportcareers,asinany business. These include business administration, accounting, law and tax, advertising, sales and mar$eting, secretarial and library functions, truc$ing,publicandemployeerelations,andahostofotherpositions to $eep operation smooth. Careers In Oil Industry