Center for Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering

Induced Seismicity - What do we know, and what can we do?

In the past year, about three-dozen earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.0 or higher have struck communities atop North Texas' gas-rich Barnett Shale. Most of the quakes hit months ago, though three of them rattled the Dallas-Fort Worth area in September, waking some residents from sleep. A 2.2-magnitude quake shook an area outside of Irving in this past October.

(source Texas Tribune)

Recently Texas regulators tightened rules for wells that dispose of oilfield waste in response to the spate of earthquakes that have rattled North Texas.

 

Learn more about the relationship between hydraulic fracturing, fluid waste disposal, and earthquakes from UT experts Dr. Cliff Frohlich (earthquake seismologist) and Dr. Jon Olson (geomechanics expert) in the upcoming CPGE Webinar: Induced Seismicity, A Multidisciplinary Perspective.

 

Date: November 19, 2014

Time: Noon - 1:00 pm (including Q&A)

Continuing Education: .1 CEU available

More information and to register: www.cpge.utexas.edu/KnowledgePipeline

Webinar e-meeting room: meeting.austin.texas.edu/InducedSeismicity111914     

(no password necessary)

 

UT CPGE Receives $12 Million to Help U.S. Curtail Greenhouse Gas Emissions

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded the Center for Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering (CPGE) at UT Austin a $12 million grant to fund carbon storage research aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The four-year DOE grant will fund a carbon storage research project at the university’s Center for Frontiers of Subsurface Energy Security (CFSES), which is led by Professor Larry W. Lake. This grant is a renewal of the department’s five-year, $15.5 million research grant to the center in 2009.

The Center for Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering (CPGE) develops interdisciplinary research in petroleum and geosystems engineering as well as other areas related
to energy and the environment.

Technology transfer through training
is an important aspect of the CPGE. While faculty and researchers may work directly
with groups to provide workshops and short courses, we have several formal programs
that bring training to professionals.

Educating the educator is one of the best
ways to increase awareness and understanding of the petroleum engineering field, especially among kids and teenagers.

Our outreach programs target public audiences at a variety of venues such as schools, expositions and forums. Many of our faculty
and researchers volunteer their time
to discuss research and technology
in the energy industry with the public.

Welcome to CPGE


There is a strong link between the Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering and CPGE. More than 80% of CPGE’s principal investigators have faculty appointments in the department, and thus are committed to educating the next generation of petroleum engineering leaders. Faculty who impart knowledge about the world class research conducted at CPGE is an important aspect of the department's tradition of excellence. In addition, many of the faculty involve undergraduate and graduate students in their research programs. The department is home to the #1 petroleum engineering graduate program and the #2 petroleum and geosystems engineering undergraduate program.