Short Courses

• Short Course Chairmen: John Thomas (jthomas@fo-fm.com) and Dr. Ira Sasowsky (ids@uakron.edu) have pulled together an impressive set of continuing education opportunities:

  • SC-I  Induced Seismicity: Potential from Injection/SWD Operations from Hydraulic Fracturing
  • SC-II  Enhanced Oil Recovery in the East (Appalachian, Illinois & Michigan Basins)
  • SC-III  Petrophysical Evaluation of Mudstone Reservoirs
  • SC-IV  Advanced Geophysical Techniques for Unconventional Reservoirs INSTRUCTOR CANCELLED
  • SC-V  Uncertainty Modeling and Risk Analysis WITHDRAWN
  • SC-VI  Drilling and Completion Optimization for Horizontal Wells
  • SC-VII  Introductory Geochemistry for Shale-Gas, Condensate-Rich Shale and Tight-Oil Reservoirs

   

  Important Notes for Short Courses, some fine print:

  Short courses are limited in size and are reserved on a first-come basis. Registration must be accompanied with a full payment in order to qualify for a seat.

  A waiting list is automatically created if a short course sells out. An AAPG committee member will notify you if a space becomes available.  If you are wait listed for a course, and are not seated, your Short Course registration fee will be refunded.

  Short course participants who are registering for the full AAPG-ES meeting have placement priority.

  Please register before September 7th, 2012.  Undersubscribed short courses may be cancelled shortly after this date.

  No refund will be made for short courses after September 7th, 2012, although participants may be substituted.

  All courses will be held at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel unless otherwise indicated.

   

  - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – SATURDAY September 22nd - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - - 
  Short Course I: Induced Seismicity: Potential from Injection/SWD Operations and
  From Hydraulic Fracturing (PTTC Sponsored Session)

  Instructors: Don Clarke, labasindon@gmail.com, Dr. Fred Aminzadeh, Greg Wrightstone and Dr. Jeff Daniels

  Saturday morning half day, 08:00 to 12:00, 3rd Floor – Whitehall Room.

  Cost: $145 (includes course materials and mid morning break).

  Earthquakes in south central Oklahoma actually shook houses and caused damage, something essentially unheard of in that area. Earthquakes in Ohio occurred near a disposal well. Considering media attention, the public is certainly concerned, as is industry. This workshop will address just what we know, what we don’t know and the studies and work in progress to get better answers. Industry itself needs to develop a full understanding of the issue, then how to best convey that understanding to a rightly concerned public.

  Participants should either have or be near earning degrees in geology, geophysics or petroleum engineering. The course will also be of direct interest to managers, with or without technical degrees, as the induced seismicity issue interfaces with communications and public relations concerns.

  Don Clarke, Geological Consultant, Long Beach, CA, Geological Consultant for Tidelands Oil Production Company, Signal Hill Petroleum, Vintage, and Terralog. He currently is also a Petroleum Geology instructor at the University of Southern California. Mr. Clarke has earned a B.S. in Geology from California State University, and graduate work at CSUN, CSU Long Beach and CSU Los Angeles. He has been at active member of AAPG since 1986. Mr. Clarke has over 60 published papers and abstracts, as well as three geological guidebooks. Mr. Clarke is on the National Research Council Committee on Induced Seismicity Potential in Energy Technologies, for the The National Academies of Science.

  Dr. Fred Aminzadeh, Research professor at the University of Southern California’s Center for Integrated Smart Oil Fields (CiSoft). He is also associated with USC Energy Institute. President of Society of Exploration Geophysicists 2007-2008. Aminzadeh previously worked for Unocal with both technical and management responsibilities. Before Joining USC he was the president and CEO of dGB Earth Sciences USA (dgbes.com) and held many full time and part time academic positions during his career. He has a Ph. D. from University of Southern California. His thesis dealt with the analysis of layered earth media. He is a fellow of IEEE, member of Russian Academy of Science, a member of Azerbaijan Oil academy, and National Research Council’s Committee on Seismology. He has served as a member of DOE’s Unconventional Resources Technology Advisory Committee, the chairman of the SEG Research Committee and chairman of the advisory board of Western Standard Energy Corp (WSEG.com) He has publications in diverse areas such as those on Reservoir Characterization, Petroleum Geology of South Caspian Basin, 3-D Seismic Modeling Advances in Seismic Data Processing, Geophysics for Engineers, and Petroleum Industry Applications of Pattern Recognition and Soft Computing. Founder of the Induced Seismicity Consortium.

  Greg Wrightstone, Director of Geology for Texas Keystone,Inc (Pittsburgh, PA) He is a past president of the Eastern Section of AAPG, and three times past president of the Pittsburgh Association of Petroleum Geologists.

  Dr. Jeff Daniels, The Ohio State University, co-Director of Subsurface Energy Resource Center. Profession in the School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University with interests in subsurface imaging, imaging software, geologic carbon sequestration  site integrity, and 3D interpretation of ground penetrating radar data. Director of collaborative Research on NSF Project on Adaptive Fusion  of Stochastic Information for Subsurface Imaging of Fractured Vadose Zones

   

  Short Course II: Enhanced Oil Recovery in the East (Appalachian, Illinois & Michigan Basins) 

  Instructor: Dr. Dwight F. Rychel, rychel@cox.net.

  Saturday afternoon, half day, 13:00-17:00, 3rd Floor – Whitehall Room.

  Cost: $145 (includes course materials and mid morning break).

  Today domestic O&G producers are focusing on oil or liquids-rich production. Drilling for new oil, often in unconventional or tight oil plays, is strong and looks to remain so. For many though, the drilling game does not fit their situation, so their focus is on recovering more oil from existing reservoirs – from improved waterflooding to stimulation/cleanup treatments to “today’s” chemical flooding to CO2 flooding. Field results prove that independents can successfully apply all of those leading edge technologies.

  In the first session three low cost innovative technologies will be presented via recordings.  Brad Govreau of Titan Oil Recovery will discuss his work using existing reservoir microbes for enhanced oil recovery.  J.T. Portwood of Eclipse Oil Recovery will discuss improved recovery through injection-side conformance.  Kishore Mohanty of the University of Texas will describe the latest developments in chemical flooding. Finally, Dwight Rychel of PTTC will describe the technology and activity in the growing area of Low Salinity Waterflooding.  James Damico of the Illinois State Geological Survey will present the results of Alkaline Surfactant Polymer (ASP) flood activity in the Rex Energy operated Lawrence field in Lawrence County, Illinois.  Alkali Surfactant Polymer flooding is an emerging EOR technology that has been untested in the mature reservoirs in the Illinois Basin but has excellent potential. However, there are several steps needed to be taken to ensure a successful EOR project and one of the important steps is performing a detailed reservoir characterization and determining the heterogeneity of the reservoir. As part of the Rex Energy project, partially supported by a DOE grant, the Illinois State Geological Survey has undertaken an extensive study of the reservoir. The research being conducted on Lawrence Field focuses on the geological characteristics that need to be taken into account while designing EOR chemical floods.

  In the second session, Scott Frailey of the Illinois State Geological Survey will present the results of two small-scale CO₂ injection tests in Illinois Basin oil reservoirs. The purpose of these Phase II tests was to gauge the large scale CO₂ storage potential that might be realized from enhanced oil recovery of mature oil fields via miscible and immiscible CO₂ flooding. Bill Harrison will discuss the current activity and CO₂ EOR potential of the Michigan Basin.  Most of this activity is focused on the Silurian Niagaran Reef trend.  Sixty seven of the 1,000 reef fields have seen some improved recovery activity – waterflood, natural gas reinjection and seven with CO2. The results of this activity ranged from 1.5% to 47.7% of original oil in place, averaging 16.4%. Steve Bryant will be featured in the last recorded presentation discussing the leading edge research in which the University of Texas is engaged in the use of nanotechnology to improve the performance of CO2 foams.

  Learn what you need to know to make improved oil recovery decisions, mini-case studies, new trends and future directions in the different IOR areas.

  Dr. Dwight F. Rychel, an engineering consultant to the Petroleum Technology Transfer Council (PTTC), specializes in the evaluation and commercialization of leading edge oil and gas exploration and production technology, including drilling, production, reservoir, improved oil recovery and renewable energy. He is a key Team member for PTTC in the Permian Basin CCUS (carbon capture, utilization and storage) Center, a DOE-supported regional training center for CCS in the Permian Basin. The Permian Basin CCUS Center focuses on using captured carbon for CO₂ EOR. Dr. Rychel has been an instructor in several short courses the Center has offered. He has been involved with the SPE Improved Oil Recovery Symposium in Tulsa for eight years, serving as the General Chairman in 2010. He is a registered professional engineer in Pennsylvania and Oklahoma. He is a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers and other specialty associations. He has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Oklahoma State University, M.B.A. in Business Administration from Florida State University and Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering (Operations Research) from Oklahoma State University. Plans are for other speakers to address special topics during the short course.

   

  - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – SUNDAY September 23rd - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - - 

   

  Short Course III: Petrophysical Evaluation of Mudstone Reservoirs

  Instructor: Matt Weinreich, Talisman Energy USA,  mweinreich@talismanusa.com

  Sunday morning, half day 08:00 – 12:00, 3rd Floor – Whitehall Room.

  Cost $145, includes course materials and mid morning break.

  This course will introduce a petrophysical workflow that can be used to evaluate mudstone reservoirs.  The material will include a detailed summary of key petrophysical parameters that affect the viability of a mudstone play.  The course will outline current core and logging methodologies and discuss limitations to these techniques.  Exercises will include basic log calculation and expose the sensitivity of the results to various parameters.  An overview of porosity, permeability, thermal maturity, and mineralogy will highlight the link between regional geologic concepts and petrophysical analysis.  Attendees will walk away with an understanding of the importance of petrophysical attributes in mudstone plays and the basic skills to complete an analysis.

  A general oil and gas geologic background is recommended.  The course is catered towards persons with no petrophysical background to those with a basic level of experience with petrophysics and mudstone plays.

  Matthew Weinreich is a native of Northeast Ohio and holds a MS in geology from the University of Akron.  He is currently employed as a Petrophysicist with Talisman Energy and is focused on the exploitation of Appalachian Basin resource plays.  Previous experience includes geologic exploration and development in various unconventional plays across North America.  Matt specializes in the integration of regional geology and petrophysics to delineate resource plays for exploration and exploitation.

   

  - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – WEDNESDAY September 26th - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - – - - 

   

  Short Course VI: Best Drilling and Completion Procedures for Horizontal Wells

  Instructor: M. Deal, m.a.deal@aol.com

  Wednesday morning, half day 08:00-12:00,  4th Floor Severance Room.

  Cost: $145, includes course materials and mid morning break.

  This course will allow the participants to judge and recommend the best drilling and completion practices for their target reservoir by integrating reservoir characterization, rock properties, available drilling and completion technology, and economics.  After attending the course, the participants will gain an understanding that drilling and completion techniques must be reservoir-specific to ensure economic success.

  Mr. Deal is a 1987 graduate of the Pennsylvania State University.  He has spent almost 25 years in the Petroleum industry as an engineer, superintendent, and manager of drilling, completions, production, and reservoir engineering.  His involvement with horizontal drilling and completions began in 1992 in the Austin Chalk trend in Texas and Louisiana.  Over the last 20 years he has drilled and completed horizontal wells in numerous reservoirs in the Gulf coast, Mid-Continent, and Appalachian basins including horizontal coal bed methane wells

  Knowledge of basic completion design and reservoir mechanics is useful, but not required, for the course.  Participants do not need to bring any materials.

   

  Short Course VII: Introductory Geochemistry for Shale-Gas, Condensate-Rich Shale, and Tight-Oil Reservoirs

  Instructor: Christopher D. Laughrey, Christopher.Laughrey@weatherfordlabs.com

  Wednesday full day, 08:00-17:00, Lobby Level – Ambassador Room

  Cost: $305, includes course materials lunch, and coffee breaks.

  The course is a practical and applied introduction to geochemical techniques routinely employed in shale-gas, shale-condensate, and tight-oil reservoir assessment. Class emphasis is on explaining which tools and techniques can best address specific questions, what caveats must be kept in mind when employing these tools, what are the strengths and limitations of petroleum geochemistry in resource play evaluation, and how to interpret conflicting data from different analyses. Theory is kept to a minimum and selected practical exercises help participants learn to review geochemical data, recognize problems with the data, and begin to cultivate a feel for interpreting geochemical data and integrating these interpretations with other geological information. Several analytical techniques will be discussed including Leco TOC, bulk pyrolysis, Dean Stark and Soxhlet extraction, liquid and gas chromatography, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, organic petrology using reflected light microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, and advanced scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Several interpretive approaches will be discussed including routine parameters for TOC, programmed pyrolysis, extract composition and quantities, and organic petrology. Special emphasis is given to the many caveats associated with using vitrinite reflectance measurements in marine shales. Participants will complete exercises interpreting pyrograms, gas chromatograms, and elementary biomarker data. The class will employ various cross plots and simple mathematics to interpret gas isotope data and calculate original TOC, hydrogen index, and oil and cracked gas yields.

  Geoscientists and engineers who need to integrate basic petroleum geochemistry data with other geologic and engineering data for shale-gas and condensate reservoir and tight-oil resource play evaluation.  Technicians performing many of these fundamental geochemical measurements in commercial, government, and university laboratories also benefit from this course. Participants should have a solid background in petroleum geology and introductory college chemistry.

  Students should bring notebook and pencil/pen and a hand calculator for exercises (the calculator on the a laptop would work as well)

  Christopher D. Laughrey is a Senior Geosciences Advisor with Weatherford Laboratories in Golden, Colorado. He has 35 years of experience in reservoir petrology, basin analysis, and both isotope and petroleum geochemistry. He has conducted professional workshops worldwide in shale petrology/petroleum geochemistry, sequence stratigraphy, tight sandstone, and carbonate reservoirs for numerous oil and gas operators, AAPG, PTTC, and SPE. Before joining Weatherford, Christopher was a Senior Geological Scientist for the Pennsylvania Geological Survey where he conducted applied research in tight-gas sands, fractured carbonate reservoirs, sequence stratigraphy, shale petrology, and petroleum geochemistry of the Marcellus and Utica shales throughout the Appalachian basin. Christopher also taught graduate courses in sandstone and carbonate petrology at his alma mater, The University of Pittsburgh. He began his career in 1977 at the Western Geophysical Company (now WesternGeco) in Houston, Texas.