Lecture 1

Introduction
GL5534 Fundamentals of Petroleum Geoscience

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In this lecture…

About the Course Course Structure Assessment

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About the course

Suitable for those with no background in

geoscience or engineering
• We will explain what you need to know
Breadth rather than depth
• Concepts and approaches, not fine detail
• You will not be an expert Geoscientist at the end…

But…
• you will know the broad picture, what geologists and
geophysicists exploring for petroleum are thinking and doing
Course Delivery Team

Dr Joe Armstrong Dr Colin North

• Course Coordinator • Course Coordinator
• Post-Doctoral Research Associate • Senior Lecturer in Petroleum Geology
• joseph.armstrong@abdn.ac.uk • c.p.north@abdn.ac.uk

You will also see other tutors in the course videos:

• Mike Scotting – independent exploration geoscience consultant based in Aberdeen
• David Macdonald – Professor of Petroleum Geology at University of Aberdeen (Now Retired)
• Lauren Chedburn – PhD Student at University of Aberdeen; Previously a Petroleum Geoscientist at BP

- Please note some of these tutors are no longer in the department so all queries should be directed
through Joe Armstrong in the first instance, or Colin North.
- Special thanks to Lauren Chedburn for extensive work on the course structure and content
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 Course
Structure
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What you will learn –
Course Learning Outcomes part 1
1. Explain the role of
geoscience in the context of
Petroleum exploration and
production
- Introduction to related
geological concepts, methods
and tools
2. Demonstrate how the
global tectonic framework
can be used to explain the
likely location of
prospective basins
- The plate tectonic framework
and how it helps with exploring
for petroleum
3. Describe the essential
elements and processes that
are encompassed in the
Petroleum System concept
- The origins of petroleum
- How to make an oil/gas field
- How do we go about finding
them in the subsurface
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What you will learn –
Course Learning Outcomes part 2

4. Explain how 5. Critique petroleum 6. Communicate key

geostatistical approaches volumetrics and concepts across technical
(e.g. exploration risking) production estimates to disciplines and to key
are used to determine the deduce the chance of stakeholders
probability of oil and gas commercial hydrocarbons - The issues of communication
between geoscience,
in a prospect being present engineering, management and
- Estimating amount of - Prospect maps and volumetrics non-technical/support disciplines
petroleum we might find - Reservoir models and fluid flow

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Course Structure – How you will learn

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On-Campus Lectures Practical Videos On Campus Labs

• 15 x Two Hour Lectures • Uploaded each week • Practical lab teaching

• Steep Learning Curve
• Time for revision in final
week
sessions in the new Science
• Try to watch in order Teaching Hub
• Provide practical • Hands-on experience with
demonstrations of key rocks!
concepts
Example Course Structure – When you will learn
Uni Week Course Week GL5534 Date 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6 Exercises
L 1 & 2 (Intro &
Basics of Geology)
A1 Issued
Mon 24 Jan 2022
History of time and Production Technology (Drilling) Videos
Tue 25 Jan 2022
26 1 L3 (Tectonics) Lab 1 (Rock Cycle)
Wed 26 Jan 2022
L4 (Structure)
Thu 27 Jan 2022
L5 (Petroleum
Fri 28 Jan 2022 Systems)
Week Week Date 9-10 10-11 11-12 12-1 1-2 2-3 3-4 4-5 5-6
L6 (Tectonics and
Hydrocarbons)
A1 Due
Mon 31 Jan 2022
Source Rock Video; Plate Boundaries and Stress Video
Tue 01 Feb 2022
27 2 L7 (Source Rocks) Lab 2 (Tectonics)
Wed 02 Feb 2022
L8 (Clastics)
Thu 03 Feb 2022
L9 (Carbonates)
Fri 04 Feb 2022

• University week numbers different to course weeks.

• Timetable subject to change at short notice.

• Inform course coordinator if unable to attend any classes. 9

LABORATORY CLASSES

Science Teaching Hub (STH)

• All labs will be held in new the Science
Teaching Hub, Ground Floor Flexi Lab 2
(West).
• All students must provide and wear their
own lab coats whilst attending labs at
the STH.
• Please arrive in good time and use
lockers for personal belongings.

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 This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

Assessment
Overview and Key Dates
Course Assessment – 1

• There are 3 coursework assignments and 1 Class Test

Indicative Map to Course
Assessment Weighting Issue Date Due Date Learning Submission method
(%) Outcomes
A1. Volume of data from Upload 2-3 page
20 Mon 24th Jan Mon 31st Jan 1, 3, 4, 5
boreholes document

Upload image of
A2. Making a contour map 20 Mon 7th Feb Mon 14th Feb 1, 4, 5, 6
work

A3. Uncertainty in HIIP

30 Mon 14th Feb Mon 21st Feb 1-6 Upload typed report
calculations

Online Test (Set date

Class Test 30 Fri 25th Feb 1-6
and time)
Course Assessment – 2

CLASS TEST
• Final class test which is worth 30% of the overall course mark

 Week 5 (University Week 30) – exact date to be confirmed through MyAberdeen and email
 Multiple choice computer-based test
 90 minutes to complete approx. 30 questions
 Test will be open on MyAberdeen for 24hrs
 Presented with the questions one at a time - You cannot go backwards through the test
 No overall negative scoring: the lowest mark you can get for a single question is zero

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Assessment Marking
• Marking criteria will be provided for each exercise – you will know how many marks each
answer is worth

• There is a rigorous marking process with a number of different markers

• Feedback and grades through MyAberdeen

• We will aim to get feedback/grades out to you within 3 weeks of submission
• Please be patient as this may change given the uncertainties associated with Covid

• Marked on the Common Grading Scale (CGS)

https://www.abdn.ac.uk/students/academic-life/CAS.php

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This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
ASSESSMENT 1
5 MINS

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Scale of
Data

10km

This is Aberdeen

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Assessment A1- How much of the
subsurface do we directly sample?

Task – Calculate volume sampled by boreholes in a real oil

field case study. Full instructions are in the pdf in the
Assessment tab on MyAberdeen.
Submission – A concise set of answers that show a
sufficient amount of the working out for us to be able to
understand how you arrived at the answers (if you get the
wrong answer, we can see if it is an arithmetic slip or
because the method was incorrect).
You should be able to write this up in no more than two
sides of A4. Please make the file into PDF format before
submitting it.
Deadline – Monday 31st January 11:59pm (23:59)

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Assessment A1- How much of the
subsurface do we directly sample?

Pointers
• You do not need a geological background to do this exercise
• Consider how you would calculate the volume of borehole?
• You do not need to use in place volumetric calculations e.g.
STOOIP/STOIIP.
• Simple percentage calculations needed – don’t over complicate.
• Carefully consider the units you use using (e.g. meters versus
kilometres).
• Watch out for your use of decimal place (e.g. using 0.01 instead
of 0.1).
Deadline – Monday 31st January 11:59pm (23:59)

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Plagiarism
• Plagiarism is strictly prohibited at the University of Aberdeen
• “Plagiarism” is defined by the University as the use, without adequate acknowledgment,
of the intellectual work of another person in work submitted for assessment.
• All information sources must be appropriately cited in your assessment submissions.
• For the avoidance of doubt – All assessed submissions must be your own work and be in
your own words.
• The penalties for plagiarism vary, but will result in loss of marks at a minimum.
• More information on the university plagiarism policies can be found at:
• https://www.abdn.ac.uk/toolkit/skills/referencing/
• Please contact the course coordinator if you need help avoiding plagiarism.

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 VIRTUAL
FIELDTRIP
ST MONANS - FIFE
 Virtual Fieldtrip
Where to – A virtual trip to St Monans, Fife
When – Week 4 of the course
How – Online – A series of virtual fieldtrip videos will be uploaded
to MyAberdeen for you to watch in your own time

Image from: https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/stmonans/newarkcastle/index.html 21

Lecture 1 - Summary

• You should now be aware of the course aims/learning outcomes

• Due to the ever changing situation around Covid protocols and restrictions please be
vigilant for announcements about changes in course scheduling in MyAberdeen which
will also be sent as emails
• The course coordinators have been introduced and their contact details provided
• An outline of the course structure and assessment has been provided
• Assessment A1 has been introduced – due Monday 31st Jan @ 23:59
• There will be a virtual fieldtrip in the final week of the course
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