Thanks to Schlumberger — a worldwide provider of technology for reservoir characterization, drilling, production, and processing to the oil and gas industry — University of Arkansas students in the Department of Geosciences can now use the company’s world-class, industry-leading software tools in the classroom and in their research for the next three years.

Schlumberger is providing the Petrel* E&P software platform and ECLIPSE* industry-reference reservoir simulator for U of A student and faculty use.

“Technology is a crucial component of contemporary education and this is especially true in the field of geosciences,” said Christopher Liner, professor and chair of geosciences in the U of A’s J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences.

Liner said Schlumberger’s software will help students become familiar with both the tools and skills they will need when they graduate and begin their careers.

“Our students already accept jobs with the best companies in the industry and they attend the best graduate programs in the country,” Liner said. “Having access to Schlumberger software makes them even more competitive.”

The Petrel platform is currently being used as the 2D/3D seismic interpretation platform in a geosciences course built around the Imperial Barrell Award (IBA), an international competition sponsored by the American Association of Petroleum Geologists (AAPG).

The IBA course is taught each spring, but every year AAPG changes the project area and data. This year the area is offshore Newfoundland and the IBA team will use the Petrel platform to interpret 2D/3D seismic data for hydrocarbon potential.

The Petrel platform has also had an impact on research, as evidenced by the 2019 paper, Interpretation of Paleozoic paleokarst features in the Arkoma Basin of Oklahoma using 3D seismic and well logs, co-authored by U of A Ph.D. student Olanrewaju Aboaba and Liner.

Todd Shields, dean of Fulbright College, agreed and said that the ability to use software of this caliber and significance will have a substantial influence on all levels of research and teaching at the U of A. 

“We are so grateful for Schlumberger’s support and access to this level of software at the forefront of contemporary geoscience industry,” Shields said. “This incredible opportunity will not only help undergraduate and graduate students, but faculty research as well.”

A version of this story also appeared in the Fulbright REVIEW.