Space & Oilfield Technology!

Space-one topic on which I can discuss for long hours and that too without any breaks. Just a look at the night sky takes my imagination and thoughts deep into the universe.
I always wanted to be an astronaut, but life had different plans for me.
So, I finally ended up in Petroleum Engineering. And really telling, I never imagined that I would be doing this! But I have no regrets. Infact, I am totally in love with this branch. And I just love pondering on various topics of petroleum engineering.
Recently, I was going through an article in a magazine. The article was on how the oilfield technology has contributed in space exploration, like how the oilfield’s photo multiplier tube technology was used in designing the fine guidance sensor system for the Hubble space telescope. (I know that these all fancy terms are not easy to digest, but I also can’t avoid them. So if you want some more information and understanding on that so called alien terminology stated above, then you can just email me at any time to make those terms sound more human to you!) The article was interesting and what made it more interesting for me was the fusion of two of my favorites subjects- space and petroleum engineering.
Well, I am not writing this blog to tell about the contributions of the oilfield technology in space exploration, but the purpose of this blog is just to tell something opposite i.e. how the technology for space exploration can be of help in the oil industry? This question struck me while I was reading that article. At first, this seems to be very absurd and there are two reasons for it. The first is that imagining something like this seems to be illogical and the second is that even if we think of it, then there would be financial constraints because all space exploration projects involve high investments and investing such high amounts in oilfield is not preferable because one has to not only recover his investments but also he has to make profits from the oilfield.
So what I am trying to explain is that we can use the space exploration technology in the oilfield in a manner that it sounds logical and also economical.
I don’t mean that we will replace the mechanical systems of the oilfield with some high power space shuttle engines or something like semiconductors or superconductors. Instead what I want to explain is that how the software technology and automation used in space exploration technology can be used in the oilfields. But I would just like to give a word of caution. The following write up has some petroleum engineering stuff, so those who are not related with petroleum engineering may find it difficult to understand.
So, after this thought of technology exchange, I went to NASA’S website from which I move further on to the NASA’S technology website. This website had a list of about 200-300 software’s and automation systems. I browsed through nearly 100 of them to look upon something, which could serve some purpose in the oilfield.
One such software was NASALIFE. NASALIFE is a life prediction program for propulsion system components under cyclic thermo mechanical loading and creep rupture conditions. The program references empirical data for low cycle fatigue, creep rupture, and static material properties as part of the life prediction process.
Now such software could be of much use in well integrity management. Tubing’s, casings and other downhole equipments also face stress conditions. Moreover, if we are dealing with a HT/HP well, then well integrity management becomes a more ardent task. So, with the help of software like NASALIFE, we can keep a check on our downhole equipments and change/rectify them whenever necessary.
I know that already some software’s exist for well integrity management. But what makes NASALIFE special is it’s accuracy and the large amount of data, which it can process. NASALIFE can accurately determine the damages per mission before the failure of the component. This is what we need in well integrity management wherein we can determine any damages in the equipment well before its failure thereby saving a lot’s of dollars for the company. We can cut down the costs while modifying this software for the oil industry, as we are not dealing with propellants and turbo engine’s here which require much higher and complex calculations along with high degree of accuracy. So, our software can be prepared in lower budgets.
CARES is another software from NASA, which can be used in the oilfield. It is a life prediction software for ceramics. Thus, the modified version of this software can also be used in well integrity management.
Petroleum economics is yet another subject which is of much importance. There are already some software’s, which deal with this subject. Nowadays such software’s are made which incorporate the Monte Carlo simulation, which is one of the best financial tool. NASA also uses a software, SiCM, which is used to estimate the costs for performing different types of component testing at other NASA test facilities during the development of the space transportation propulsion system. SiCM is a simulation-based cost methodology with the designed purpose of estimating high-level cumulative costs for test programs of propulsion systems across a customer defined time period.
After going through its technical aspects, I felt that if we develop a software on the lines of SiCM, then we would have a much better financial analysis when compared to the existing software’s in the oil industry.
so, guys, this was just a sneak peak at whatever space exploration technology can do for the oilfield's. there are still many things to discuss which i will continue in my subsequent blogs.
see you at next blog then!