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OVERVIEW Petroleum engineers apply the principles of geology, physics, and the engineering sciences to the recovery, development, and processing of petroleum.As soon as an exploration team has located an area that could contain oil or gas, petroleum engineers begin their work, which includes determining the best location for drilling new wells, as well as the economic feasibility of developing them. They are also involved in operating oil and gas facilities, monitoring and forecasting reservoir performance, and utilizing enhanced oil recovery techniques that extend the life of wells. There are approximately 16,000 petroleum engineers employed in the United States. HISTORY Within a broad perspective, the history of petroleum engineering can be traced back hundreds of millions of years to when the remains of plants and animals blended with sand and mud and trans formed into rock. It is from this ancient underground rock that petroleum is taken, for the organic matter of the plants and animals decomposed into oil during these millions of years and accumulated into pools deep underground. In primitive times, people did not know how to drill for oil; instead, they collected the liquid substance after it had seeped to above-ground surfaces. Petroleum is known to have been used at that time for caulking ships and for concocting medicines. Petroleum engineering as we know it today was not established until the mid-1800s, an incredibly long time after the fundamental ingredients of petroleum were deposited within the earth. In 1859, the American Edwin Drake was the first person to ever pump the so-called rock oil from under the ground, an endeavor that, before its success, was laughed at and considered impossible. Forward- thinking investors, however, had believed in the operation and thought that underground oil could be used as inexpensive fluid for lighting lamps and for lubricating machines (and therefore could make them rich). The drilling of the first well, in Titusville, Pennsylvania (1869), ushered in a new worldwide era: the oil age. At the turn of the century, petroleum was being distilled into kerosene, lubricants, and wax. Gasoline was considered a useless by product and was run off into rivers as waste. However, this changed with the invention of the internal combustion engine and the auto mobile. By 1915 there were more than half a million cars in the United States, virtually all of them powered by gasoline. Edwin Drake’s drilling operation struck oil 70 feet below the ground. Since that time, technological advances have been made, and the professional field of petroleum engineering has been established. Today’s operations drill as far down as six miles. Because the United States began to rely so much on oil, the country contributed significantly to creating schools and educational programs in this engineering discipline. The world’s first petroleum engineering curriculum was devised in the United States in 1914. Today there are fewer than 30 U.S. universities that offer petroleum engineering degrees. The first schools were concerned mainly with developing effective methods of locating oil sites and with devising efficient machinery for drilling wells. Over the years, as sites have been depleted, engineers have been more concerned with formulating methods for extracting as much oil as possible from each well. Today’s petroleum engineers focus on issues such as computerized drilling operations; however, because usually only about 40 to 60 percent of each site’s oil is extracted, engineers must still deal with designing optimal conditions for maximum oil recovery. THE JOB Petroleum engineer is a rather generalized title that encompasses several specialties, each one playing an important role in ensuring the safe and productive recovery of oil and natural gas. In general, petroleum engineers are involved in the entire process of oil recovery, from preliminary steps, such as analyzing cost factors, to the last stages, such as monitoring the production rate and then repacking the well after it has been depleted. Petroleum engineering is closely related to the separate engineering discipline of geoscience engineering. Before petroleum engineers can begin work on an oil reservoir, prospective sites must be sought by geological engineers, along with geologists and geophysicists. These scientists determine whether a site has potential oil. Petroleum engineers develop plans for drilling. Drilling is usually unsuccessful, with eight out of 10 test wells being “dusters” (dry wells) and only one of the remaining two test wells having enough oil to be commercially producible. When a significant amount of oil is discovered, engineers can begin their work of maximizing oil production at the site. The development company’s engineering manager oversees the activities of the various petroleum engineering specialties, including reservoir engineers, drilling engineers, and production engineers. Reservoir engineers use the data gathered by the previous geo science studies and estimate the actual amount of oil that will be extracted from the reservoir. Reservoir engineers determine whether the oil will be taken by primary methods (simply pumping the oil from the field) or by enhanced methods (using additional energy such as water pressure to force the oil up). The reservoir engineer is responsible for calculating the cost of the recovery process relative to the expected value of the oil produced and simulates future performance using sophisticated computer models. Besides performing studies of existing company-owned oil fields, reservoir engineers also evaluate fields the company is thinking of buying. Drilling engineers work with geologists and drilling contractors to design and supervise drilling operations. They are the engineers involved with the actual drilling of the well. They ask: What will be the best methods for penetrating the earth? It is the responsibility of these workers to supervise the building of the derrick (a platform, constructed over the well, that holds the hoisting devices), choose the equipment, and plan the drilling methods. Drilling engineers must have a thorough understanding of the geological sciences so that they can know, for instance, how much stress to place on the rock being drilled. Production engineers determine the most efficient methods and equipment to optimize oil and gas production. For example, they establish the proper pumping unit configuration and perform tests to determine well fluid levels and pumping load. They plan field workovers and well-stimulation techniques such as secondary and tertiary recovery (for example, injecting steam, water, or a special recovery fluid) to maximize field production. Various research personnel are involved in this field; some are more specialized than others. They include the research chief engineer, who directs studies related to the design of new drilling and production methods, the oil-well equipment research engineer, who directs research to design improvements in oil-well machinery and devices, and the oil-field equipment test engineer, who conducts experiments to determine the effectiveness and safety of these improvements. In addition to all of the above, sales personnel play an important part in the petroleum industry. Oil-well equipment and services sales engineers sell various types of equipment and devices used in all stages of oil recovery. They provide technical support and service to their clients, including oil companies and drilling contractors. REQUIREMENTS High School In high school, you can prepare for college engineering programs by taking courses in mathematics, physics, chemistry, geology, and computer science. Economics, history, and English are also highly recommended because these subjects will improve your communication and management skills. Mechanical drawing and foreign languages are also helpful. Postsecondary Training A bachelor’s degree in engineering is the minimum requirement. In college, you can follow either a specific petroleum engineering curriculum or a program in a closely related field, such as geophysics or mining engineering. In the United States, there are fewer than 30 universities and colleges that offer programs that concentrate on petroleum engineering, many of which are located in California and Texas. The first two years toward the bachelor of science degree involve the study of many of the same subjects taken in high school, only at an advanced level, as well as basic engineering courses. In the junior and senior years, students take more specialized courses: geology, formation evaluation, properties of reservoir rocks and fluids, well drilling, properties of reservoir fluids, petroleum production, and reservoir analysis. Because the technology changes so rapidly, many petroleum engineers continue their education to receive a master’s degree and then a doctorate. Petroleum engineers who have earned advanced degrees command higher salaries and often are eligible for better advancement opportunities. Those who work in research and teaching positions are usually required to have these higher credentials. Students considering an engineering career in the petroleum industry should be aware that the industry uses all kinds of engineers. People with chemical, electrical, geoscience, mechanical, environmental, and other engineering degrees are also employed in this field. Mean Annual Earnings by Specialty, 2008
Certification or Licensing Many jobs, especially public projects, require that the engineer be licensed as a professional engineer (P.E.). To be licensed, candidates must have a degree from an engineering program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. Additional requirements for obtaining the license vary from state to state, but all applicants must take an exam and have several years of related experience on the job or in teaching. For more information on licensing and examination requirements, visit http://www.ncees.org. Other Requirements Students thinking about this career should enjoy science and math. You need to be a creative problem-solver who likes to come up with new ways to get things done and try them out. You need to be curious, wanting to know why and how things are done. You also need to be a logical thinker with a capacity for detail, and you must be a good communicator who can work well with others. EXPLORING One of the most satisfying ways to explore this occupation is to participate in Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS) programs. JETS participants enter engineering design and problem-solving con tests and learn team development skills, often with an engineering mentor. Science fairs and clubs also offer fun and challenging ways to learn about engineering. Certain students are able to attend summer programs held at colleges and universities that focus on material not traditionally offered in high school. Usually these programs include recreational activities such as basketball, swimming, and track and field. For example, Worcester Polytechnic Institute offers the Frontiers program, a two- week residential session for high school seniors. For more information, visit http://www.admissions.wpi.edu/Frontiers. The American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) also sponsors two- to six-week mathematics and science camps that are open to Native American students and held at various college campuses. For more information, visit http://www.aises.org. Talking with someone who has worked as a petroleum engineer is also a very helpful and inexpensive way to explore this field. One good way to find an experienced person to talk to is through Internet sites that feature career areas to explore, industry message boards, and mailing lists. You can also explore this career by touring oilfields or corporate sites (contact the public relations department of oil companies for more information), or you can try to land a temporary or summer job in the petroleum industry on a drilling and production crew. Trade journals, high school guidance counselors, the career services office at technical or community colleges, and the associations listed at the end of this article are other helpful resources that will help you learn more about the career of petroleum engineer. EMPLOYERS Petroleum engineers are employed by major oil companies, as well as smaller oil companies. They work in oil exploration and production. Some petroleum engineers are employed by consulting companies and equipment suppliers. The federal government is also an employer of engineers. In the United States, oil or natural gas is produced in 42 states, with most sites located in California, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas, plus offshore regions. Many other engineers work in other oil-producing areas such as the Arctic Circle, China’s Tarim Basin, and the Middle East. Approximately 16,000 petroleum engineers are employed in the United States. STARTING OUT The most common and perhaps the most successful way to obtain a petroleum engineering job is to apply for positions through the career services office at the college you attend. Oil companies often have recruiters who seek potential graduates while they are in their last year of engineering school. Applicants are also advised to simply check the job sections of major newspapers and apply directly to companies seeking employees. They should also keep informed of the general national employment outlook in this industry by reading trade and association journals, such as the Society of Petroleum Engineers’ Journal of Petroleum Technology (http://www.spe.org/spe-app/spe/jpt/index.htm). Engineering internships and co-op programs where students attend classes for a portion of the year and then work in an engineering-related job for the remainder of the year allow students to graduate with valuable work experience sought by employers. Many times these students are employed full time after graduation at the place where they had their internship or co-op job. As in most engineering professions, entry-level petroleum engineers first work under the supervision of experienced professionals for a number of years. New engineers usually are assigned to a field location where they learn different aspects of field petroleum engineering. Initial responsibilities may include well productivity, reservoir and enhanced recovery studies, production equipment and application design, efficiency analyses, and economic evaluations. Field assignments are followed by other opportunities in regional and headquarters offices. ADVANCEMENT After several years working under professional supervision, engineers can begin to move up to higher levels. Workers often formulate a choice of direction during their first years on the job. In the operations division, petroleum engineers can work their way up from the field to district, division, and then operations manager. Some engineers work through various engineering positions from field engineer to staff, then division, and finally chief engineer on a project. Some engineers may advance into top executive management. In any position, however, continued enrollment in educational courses is usually required to keep abreast of technological progress and changes. After about four years of work experience, engineers usually apply for a P.E. license so they can be certified to work on a larger number of projects. Others get their master’s or doctoral degree so they can advance to more prestigious research engineering, university-level teaching, or consulting positions. Also, petroleum engineers may transfer to many other occupations, such as economics, environmental management, and groundwater hydrology. Finally, some entrepreneurial- minded workers become independent operators and owners of their own oil companies. EARNINGS Petroleum engineers with a bachelor’s degree earned average starting salaries of $61,516 in 2005, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers. A survey by the Society of Petroleum Engineers reports that its worldwide members earned an average salary of $108,742 in 2006. The survey also reports the following average salaries in 2006 for U.S. petroleum engineers by years of experience: zero to 10 years, $75,168; 16 to 20 years, $111,902; and 26 or more years, $121,201. Salary rates tend to reflect the economic health of the petroleum industry as a whole. When the price of oil is high, salaries can be expected to grow; low oil prices often result in stagnant wages. Fringe benefits for petroleum engineers are good. Most employers provide health and accident insurance, sick pay, retirement plans, profit-sharing plans, and paid vacations. Education benefits are also competitive. WORK ENVIRONMENT Petroleum engineers work all over the world: the high seas, remote jungles, vast deserts, plains, and mountain ranges. Petroleum engineers who are assigned to remote foreign locations may be separated from their families for long periods or be required to resettle their families when new job assignments arise. Those working overseas may live in company-supplied housing. Some petroleum engineers, such as drilling engineers, work primarily out in the field at or near drilling sites in all kinds of weather and environments. The work can be dirty and dangerous. Responsibilities such as making reports, conducting studies of data, and analyzing costs are usually tended to in offices either away from the site or in temporary work trailers. Other engineers work in offices in cities of varying sizes, with only occasional visits to an oil field. Research engineers work in laboratories much of the time, while those who work as professors spend most of their time on campuses. Workers involved in economics, management, consulting, and government service tend to spend their work time exclusively indoors. OUTLOOK Employment for petroleum engineers is expected to decline through 2014, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Despite this pre diction, opportunities for petroleum engineers will exist because the number of degrees granted in petroleum engineering is low, leaving more job openings than there are qualified candidates. Additionally, employment opportunities may improve as a result of the federal government’s plans to construct new gas refineries, pipelines, and trans mission lines, as well as to drill in areas that were previously off-limits to such development. The challenge for petroleum engineers in the past decade has been to develop technology that lets drilling and production be economically feasible even in the face of low oil prices. For example, engineers had to rethink how they worked in deep water. They used to believe deep wells would collapse if too much oil was pumped out at once. But the high costs of working in deep water plus low oil prices made low volumes uneconomical. So engineers learned how to boost oil flow by slowly increasing the quantities wells pumped by improving valves, pipes, and other equipment used. Engineers have also cut the cost of deep-water oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, predicted to be one of the most significant exploration hot spots in the world for the next decade, by placing wellheads on the ocean floor instead of on above-sea production platforms. Cost-effective technology that permits new drilling and increases production will continue to be essential in the profitability of the oil industry. Therefore, petroleum engineers will continue to have a vital role to play, even in this age of streamlined operations and company restructurings. FOR MORE INFORMATION For information on careers in petroleum geology, contact: American Association of Petroleum Geologists PO Box 979 Tulsa, OK 74101-0979 Tel: 800-364-2274 For information on summer programs, contact: American Indian Science and Engineering Society PO Box 9828 Albuquerque, NM 87119-9828 Tel: 505-765-1052 Email: info@aises.org For general information on the petroleum industry, contact: American Petroleum Institute 1220 L Street, NW Washington, DC 20005-4070 Tel: 202-682-8000 For information about JETS programs, products, and engineering career brochures (all disciplines), contact: Junior Engineering Technical Society (JETS) 1420 King Street, Suite 405 Alexandria, VA 22314-2750 Tel: 703-548-5387 Email: info@jets.org For a petroleum engineering career brochure, a list of petroleum engineering schools, and scholarship information, contact: Society of Petroleum Engineers PO Box 833836 Richardson, TX 75083-3836 Tel: 800-456-6863 Email: spedal@spe.org For information on career guidance literature, scholarships, and mentor programs, contact: Society of Women Engineers 230 East Ohio Street, Suite 400 Chicago, IL 60611-3265 Tel: 312-596-5223 Email: hq@swe.org For a Frontiers program brochure and application, contact: Worcester Polytechnic Institute 100 Institute Road Worcester, MA 01609-2280 Tel: 508-831-5286 Email: frontiers@wpi.edu http://www.admissions.wpi.edu/Frontiers |