Ali Ghalambor: Well production testing

Ali Ghalambor photo credit: rogtecmagazine.com

Ali Ghalambor is known for his notable contributions in the oil and gas sector. Aside from working with prestigious universities and organizations, he has served international organizations including the United Nations.

While this article talks about Dr. Ghalambor, it also explores the purpose of testing in the clean-up and commission of the well preceding connection to the permanent production facility.

Over the years, there has been a dramatic change in the way well testing is viewed by the industry. This is due to the onset of computer-generated analyses and derivatives which comprise tools including well performance indicators and heavy-duty reservoir-characterization mechanisms.

Ali Ghalambor co-authored the Well Productivity Handbook.

Ali Ghalambor photo credit: theinnovationdiaries.com

Well testing is a complex and technical matter with regard to the assessment and exploitation of reservoir architectures and frontier assets. This is the reason why countless challenges ranging from ultra-deep wells to subsea subsalt developments confront the industry. Added to that is the rise of environmental issues that go up against well production and related processes.

Testing of production wells concerns in-line testing that measures oil, water, and/or gas contents from individual wells. Non-stop production measurements result to reduced costs, non-interference with normal production, and improvement in reservoir appreciation and knowledge. The need for accurate well test results is on the rise since crucial production decisions are based on them. Quality well tests also have implications on safety and accuracy to sustain the life of the well or reservoir.

From Ali Ghalambor

Visit Dr. Ali Ghalambor’s Facebook page to learn more about well production.

Ali Ghalambor: How Nigerian wells benefit from single-trip perforate and frac-pack completion

The Bonga development, a deepwater oil field in Nigeria, comprises a single-trip perforate and five frac-pack treatments operating in a porous medium. Petroleum engineers like Ali Ghalambor see the operation as a high-efficiency process that, when coupled with salt-tolerant fracture fluid, can substantially reduce pump rates and horsepower requirements. This in turn, will save more time and money, and produce better quality crude oil.

Ali Ghalambor Photo credit: Theinnovationdiaries.com

Frac-packing is the accelerated process of extracting oil or natural gas from a fractured rock layer. Perforating, on the other hand, involves the drilling of small holes in a petroleum-carrying rock to advance the flow of fluids.

Ali Ghalambor Photo credit: Kulim-kht.blogspot.com

The Frac-Packing Handbook, published by the Society of Petroleum Engineers, is a comprehensive collection of system guidelines that covers the fundamental to the highly advanced techniques in frac-packing operations. Co-written by Dr. Ali Ghalambor, the book discusses frac-pack treatments that compare different techniques with cost savings and well performance standpoints based on field applications. The authors detail the design, execution, and evaluation of the treatments and discuss the fluid system that will best suit the needs of a certain operation.

All treatments in the Bonga development were performed from a stimulation vessel, with some of the treatments using the conventional two-trip technique and others working on a single-trip perforating and frac-packing technique. The single-trip system reduced completion time by 1 to 2 days as compared with the extended time using a conventional system.

From Ali Ghalambor

Dr. Ali Ghalambor’s Frac-Packing Handbook contains specific discussions such as Candidate Recognition for High-Permeability Fracturing, Frac-Pack Mechanisms, Frac-Pack Fluids, Calibration-Test Design and Analysis, Post-Frac-Pack Treatment Analysis, and the Value of Frac-Packing. For more details, visit Dr. Ghalambor’s Facebook page.

Dr. Ali Ghalambor: The subsets of petroleum engineering

Ali Ghalambor Photo Credit: allamericanpatriots.com

Petroleum engineering has taken the world by storm. With the growing levels of industrialization in the planet, the demand for petrochemical resources has also soared high. Experts like Dr. Ali Ghalambor situate the petroleum industry on a sphere where it functions as the core of all industries—from food production and lumbering to vehicle engineering and space exploration.

Ali Ghalambor Photo credit: theinnovationdiaries.com

Petroleum engineering is an engineering discipline that specializes in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons, particularly crude oil and natural gas. Initially a very difficult industry to deal with, petroleum engineering has toned down its challenges through the improvements in computer modeling, the application of probability analysis, and the use of new technologies which has drastically improved the toolbox of the petroleum engineer in the recent decades. The field is generally divided into three types:


• Reservoir engineering is concerned in optimizing the production of oil and gas via proper well placement and enhanced oil recovery techniques.

• Drilling engineering, where Dr. Ali Ghalambor is most skilled at, is slated in managing the technical aspects of exploratory, production, and injection wells. Dr. Ghalambor is a recent recipient of a drilling award.

• Production engineering is focused on the management of the interface between the reservoir and the well, including perforations, sand control, down-hole flow control, and equipment monitoring. Production engineers assess artificial lift methods and employ surface equipment that separates the crude products such as oil, natural gas, and water. Dr. Ghalambor is a recipient of a production and operations award.

From Ali Ghalambor

Dr. Ali Ghalambor has received various technical awards from the Society of Petroleum Engineers, and the American Petroleum Institute. To learn more about his professional background and industrial pursuits, visit his Facebook page.