PRH04.1 - INTERDEPARTMENTAL DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM FOR THE OIL AND GAS SECTOR

• Grant number: 24/10276-8
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: July 01, 2024
• End date: June 30, 2029
• Field of knowledge: Interdisciplinary Subjects
• Principal Investigator: Alexandre Gonçalves Evsukoff
• Grantee: Alexandre Gonçalves Evsukoff
• Host Institution: Instituto Alberto Luiz Coimbra de Pós-Graduação e Pesquisa (COPPE). Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Ministério da Educação (Brasil)

Abstract

Since the beginning of the 20th century, the oil and gas industry has played a fundamental role in the world's economic transformation. In the 21st century, the oil industry is faced with the challenge of redefining its limits through digitalization.Despite fluctuations in the price of oil on the world market, the operating costs of the oil industry have remained high. Digital technologies have been used in several industries to reduce operational costs and increase productivity. The petroleum industry is highly complex, involving a multidisciplinary chain of knowledge and different technologies in carrying out the stages of the process. There are great opportunities for the use of digital technologies in all sectors of the industry, from exploration, development and production of fields, as well as refining and distribution of derivatives. Digital transformation is not just an opportunity for the oil industry, but a necessary necessity, since companies that do not master this technology run the risk of becoming obsolete in the face of competitors' productivity gains.Currently, there is a wide variety of digital technologies that are ready and can add value to the oil industry. However, in addition to the use of new technologies, digital transformation involves a new vision of the business and new forms of asset management, being mainly an organizational and cultural transformation and not simply a technological development. In this context, the training of human resources specialized in digital technologies in their applications in the oil industry is vital for the development of the sector.Training in digital technologies is inherently multidisciplinary as it requires the integration of different areas of knowledge with knowledge of specific industry problems. With the evolution of mathematical modeling and high-performance computing technologies, PRH 4.1 aims to align research carried out at Coppe in the oil area with the use of new digital technologies, bringing together research groups with long experience in modeling and simulation, artificial intelligence, process automation and visualization.The integration of several areas of undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and research (concepts 6 and 7 at CAPES) of the largest engineering postgraduate school in Latin America will form a center of excellence for the multidisciplinary training of engineers in different segments of the industry with specialization in digital technology and will make the national oil industry more competitive and more efficient. (AU)