Overview
Background
Ray is currently Professor of Well Engineering & Production Technology in the School of Chemical Engineering and Energi Simulation Co-chair in the Centre for Natural Gas. There he is researching projects related to low permeability, unconventional reservoirs (i.e., tight gas, coal seam gas, shale gas reservoir). In addition, he is an instructor and course coordinator in several courses in the ME Petroleum Engineering program at the University of Queensland.
Outside of teaching and research, Prof Johnson is the Principal at Unconventional Reservoir Solutions, a provider of reservoir engineering, stimulation consulting, and training services to the petroleum and mining industry, focusing on unconventional resources such as gas or oil from coal, shale, or naturally fractured reservoirs.
From 2014 to 2020 Ray was an Adjunct Associate Professor at the ASP, University of Adelaide.
Availability
- Professor Ray Johnson is:
- Available for supervision
- Media expert
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
Research interests
-
Unconventional Reservoir Appraisal and Development Strategies
Ray's research focuses on integrating elements of reservoir engineering, geomechanics and hydraulic fracturing to improving appraisal and development strategies for unconventional resources such as gas from coal as well as oil and gas from shales and naturally fractured reservoirs.
Research impacts
A lot of people state that they are researching or investigating hydraulic fracturing, which in most cases is limited to modelling some aspect of rock fracture mechanics or fracture propogation in some geological or rock mechanical framework. Whist this may progress the science of hydraulic fracture propagation, hydraulic fracturing design optimisation in a petroleum well stimulation context is not that concise, exact or simple!
Well stimulation in the petroleum industry context is much larger and represents an overall process to create an economic outcome from a low-permeability reservoir by implementing the proper selection of fluids, stage/job placement, proppant selection, onsite job execution, post-frac clean-up and long term production management along with the hydraulic fracturing modelling, a small portion of the process. It is an overall design, execute, and then evaluate process that cannot be optimised by a discrete element model.
My research benefits societies' need to identify and develop unconventional resources as a part of it's overall energy mix by effectively implementing economical hydraulic fracturing solutions in unconventional reservoirs. Advances of my research integrating geomechanics, hydraulic fracturing, reservoir engineering, and production technology will aid us in maintaining low cost energy thereby benefitting overall economic growth in Australia by economically unlocking more of Australia's unconventional gas resources (i.e., tight gas sandstone, shale gas, and coal seam gas reservoirs).
Works
Search Professor Ray Johnson’s works on UQ eSpace
2024
Journal Article
Don’t forget your keys when trying to unlock the productivity of low-permeability coals
Johnson, Raymond L. (2024). Don’t forget your keys when trying to unlock the productivity of low-permeability coals. Australian Energy Producers Journal, 64 (1), 80-90. doi: 10.1071/ep23158
2024
Journal Article
The implementation of subterranean barriers with mine pre-drainage to reduce coal mine methane emissions from open-cut and underground metallurgical-coal mines
Johnson, Raymond L. (2024). The implementation of subterranean barriers with mine pre-drainage to reduce coal mine methane emissions from open-cut and underground metallurgical-coal mines. International Journal of Coal Geology, 283 104402. doi: 10.1016/j.coal.2023.104402
2024
Conference Publication
Successful implementation of two decades of Australian coal seam gas research can improve low-permeability coal productivity and recovery
Johnson, Raymond (2024). Successful implementation of two decades of Australian coal seam gas research can improve low-permeability coal productivity and recovery. SPE/AAPG/SEG Unconventional Resources Technology Conference, Houston, TX, United States, 17-19 June 2024. Tulsa, OK, United States: Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE). doi: 10.15530/urtec-2024-4025119
2023
Conference Publication
The implementation of subterranean barriers to reduce shallow gas migration and coal mine methane emissions from open-cut metallurgical-coal mines
Johnson, Raymond L. and Sedaghat, M. (2023). The implementation of subterranean barriers to reduce shallow gas migration and coal mine methane emissions from open-cut metallurgical-coal mines. Asia Pacific Unconventional Resources Symposium, Brisbane, QLD Australia, 14-15 November 2023. Richardson, TX USA: Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/217310-MS
2023
Journal Article
Hydrodynamic clogging of micro-particles in planar channels under electrostatic forces
Di Vaira, Nathan J., Łaniewski-Wołłk, Łukasz, Johnson, Raymond L., Aminossadati, Saiied M. and Leonardi, Christopher R. (2023). Hydrodynamic clogging of micro-particles in planar channels under electrostatic forces. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 960 A34. doi: 10.1017/jfm.2023.214
2023
Conference Publication
Probabilistic quantification of size segregation and screen-out of microparticles subject to electrostatic forces
Leonardi, Christopher R., Di Vaira, Nathan J., Laniewski-Wollk, Lukasz, Aminossadati, Saiied M. and Johnson, Raymond L. (2023). Probabilistic quantification of size segregation and screen-out of microparticles subject to electrostatic forces. SPE Hydraulic Fracturing Technology Conference and Exhibition 2023, HFTC 2023, The Woodlands, TX, United States, 31 January– 2 February 2023. Richardson, TX, United States: Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/212379-ms
2023
Conference Publication
Co-application of indirect hydraulic fracturing and micro-proppants with existing surface-to-inseam wells to improve pre-drainage of low permeability coals in mining areas
Ramanandraibe, H. M., Johnson, R. L., Sedaghat, M. and Leonardi, C. R. (2023). Co-application of indirect hydraulic fracturing and micro-proppants with existing surface-to-inseam wells to improve pre-drainage of low permeability coals in mining areas. ADIPEC, Abu Dhabi, UAE, 2-5 October 2023. Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/216613-MS
2022
Journal Article
Machine learning for drilling applications: a review
Zhong, Ruizhi, Salehi, Cyrus and Johnson, Ray (2022). Machine learning for drilling applications: a review. Journal of Natural Gas Science and Engineering, 108 104807, 1-17. doi: 10.1016/j.jngse.2022.104807
2022
Conference Publication
Estimation of rock permeability scores using machine learning methods
Qalandari, Roohullah, Zhong, Ruizhi, Salehi, Cyrus, Chand, Nathaniel, Johnson, Raymond Leslie, Vazquez, Gonzalo, Mclean-Hodgson, Jack and Zimmerman, Joel (2022). Estimation of rock permeability scores using machine learning methods. SPE Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Conference and Exhibition, Adelaide, SA Australia, 17-19 October 2022. Dallas, TX USA: Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/210711-ms
2022
Journal Article
Efficient implicit methods for wellbore shear failure analysis during drilling and production in coalbeds
Zhong, Ruizhi, Mitchell, Travis, Johnson Jr., Raymond and Leonardi, Christopher (2022). Efficient implicit methods for wellbore shear failure analysis during drilling and production in coalbeds. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Sciences, 155 105129, 105129. doi: 10.1016/j.ijrmms.2022.105129
2022
Journal Article
Modeling and economic analyses of graded particle injections in conjunction with hydraulic fracturing of coal seam gas reservoirs
Santiago, Vanessa, Ribeiro, Ayrton, Johnson, Raymond, Hurter, Suzanne and You, Zhenjiang (2022). Modeling and economic analyses of graded particle injections in conjunction with hydraulic fracturing of coal seam gas reservoirs. SPE Journal, 27 (3), 1633-1647. doi: 10.2118/208404-PA
2022
Journal Article
Co-application of micro-proppant with horizontal well, multi-stage hydraulic fracturing treatments to improve productivity in the Permian coal measures, Bowen Basin, Australia
Ramanandraibe, Honja Miharisoa, Sedaghat, Mohammad, Johnson, Raymond and Santiago, Vanessa (2022). Co-application of micro-proppant with horizontal well, multi-stage hydraulic fracturing treatments to improve productivity in the Permian coal measures, Bowen Basin, Australia. The APPEA Journal, 62 (1), 77-91. doi: 10.1071/aj21048
2022
Journal Article
Influence of particle polydispersity on bulk migration and size segregation in channel flows
Di Vaira, Nathan J., Łaniewski-Wołłk, Łukasz, Johnson, Raymond L., Aminossadati, Saiied M. and Leonardi, Christopher R. (2022). Influence of particle polydispersity on bulk migration and size segregation in channel flows. Journal of Fluid Mechanics, 939 A30. doi: 10.1017/jfm.2022.166
2022
Conference Publication
Implications of recent research into the application of graded particles or micro-proppants for coal seam gas and shale hydraulic fracturing
Johnson, Raymond Leslie, Ramanandraibe, Honja Miharisoa, Di Vaira, Nathan, Leonardi, Chris, You, Zhenjiang, Santiago, Vanessa, Ribeiro, Ayrton, Badalyan, Alexander, Bedrikovetsky, Pavel, Zeinijahromi, Abbas, Carageorgos, Themis, Sanchez-Barr, Angel, Chalaturnyk, Rick and Deisman, Nathan (2022). Implications of recent research into the application of graded particles or micro-proppants for coal seam gas and shale hydraulic fracturing. SPE Asia Pacific Oil & Gas Conference and Exhibition, Adelaide, SA, Australia, 17-19 October 2022. Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/210628-ms
2021
Conference Publication
Case Study and Sensitivity Analysis of Borehole Breakout in the Cooper Basin, Australia
Zhong, Ruizhi, Azman, Aideel, Johnson, Ray, You, Zhenjiang and Nguyen, Lan (2021). Case Study and Sensitivity Analysis of Borehole Breakout in the Cooper Basin, Australia. SPE/AAPG/SEG Asia Pacific Unconventional Resources Technology Conference, Online, 16-18 November 2021. Tulsa, OK United States: Unconventional Resources Technology Conference. doi: 10.15530/ap-urtec-2021-208373
2021
Conference Publication
Modelling and Economic Analyses of Graded Particle Injections in Conjunction with Hydraulically Fracturing of Coal Seam Gas Reservoirs
Santiago, Vanessa, Ribeiro, Ayrton, Johnson, Raymond, Hurter, Suzanne and You, Zhenjiang (2021). Modelling and Economic Analyses of Graded Particle Injections in Conjunction with Hydraulically Fracturing of Coal Seam Gas Reservoirs. SPE/AAPG/SEG Asia Pacific Unconventional Resources Technology Conference, Online, 16–18 November 2021. Tulsa, OK United States: Unconventional Resources Technology Conference. doi: 10.15530/AP-URTEC-2021-208404
2021
Conference Publication
A novel methodology for predicting micro-proppant screenout in hydraulic fracturing treatments
Di Vaira, Nathan J., Łaniewski-Wołłk, Łukasz, Johnson Jr., Raymond L., Aminossadati, Saiied M. and Leonardi, Christopher R. (2021). A novel methodology for predicting micro-proppant screenout in hydraulic fracturing treatments. Asia Pacific Unconventional Resources Technology Conference, Virtual, 16–18 November 2021. Tulsa, OK, United States: Society of Exploration Geophysicists. doi: 10.15530/ap-urtec-2021-208342
2021
Conference Publication
Analytical and numerical assessment of the influence of bulk coal strength on drilling operations in unconventional coal seam gas wells
Leonardi, C. R., Zhong, R., Mitchell, T. R., Chen, Z., Johnson, R. L., O'Hagan, D. and Flottmann, T. (2021). Analytical and numerical assessment of the influence of bulk coal strength on drilling operations in unconventional coal seam gas wells. 55th US Rock Mechanics/Geomechanics Symposium, Houston, TX USA, 20-23 June 2021. Alexandria, VA USA: American Rock Mechanics Association.
2021
Journal Article
Numerical investigation of the effects of proppant embedment on fracture permeability and well production in Queensland coal seam gas reservoirs
Wang, Duo, You, Zhenjiang, Johnson, Raymond L., Wu, Lei, Bedrikovetsky, Pavel, Aminossadati, Saiied M. and Leonardi, Christopher R. (2021). Numerical investigation of the effects of proppant embedment on fracture permeability and well production in Queensland coal seam gas reservoirs. International Journal of Coal Geology, 242 103689, 103689. doi: 10.1016/j.coal.2021.103689
2021
Journal Article
Characterising the application of horizontal wells and indirect hydraulic fracturing for improved coal seam gas drainage
Johnson, Raymond L., Cheong, Sharon and Farley, Andrew (2021). Characterising the application of horizontal wells and indirect hydraulic fracturing for improved coal seam gas drainage. The APPEA Journal, 61 (1), 89-105. doi: 10.1071/aj20122
Funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor Ray Johnson is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Available projects
-
Rock properties from drilling data using machine learning algorithms
-
Advanced modelling for completions and stimulation for low permeability coals
Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
Using Machine Learning to Improve Well Integrity, Drilling Efficiencies and Safety Compliance in Queensland CSG Drilling Data
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Improving Gas Recovery in Low-Permeability Coals by Deployment of Multi-stage Indirect Hydraulic Fractures
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Zhongwei Chen, Dr Christopher Leonardi
-
Doctor Philosophy
Regulating well integrity in Australian unconventional oil and gas operations: a comparison between Queensland, Wyoming and Alberta
Principal Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Optimisation of Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage in an ultra-shallow heavy oil reservoir
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Honorary Professor Suzanne Hurter
-
Doctor Philosophy
Incorporating Machine Learning and Data Analysis to Predict Long Term Production from Coal Seam Gas Fields Based on Early Field Data
Associate Advisor
-
Doctor Philosophy
Rock mass preconditioning methodology for block caving based on Petroleum state of the art methods
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Zhongwei Chen, Professor Peter Knights
-
Master Philosophy
Rate of Production Prediction for Coal Seam Gas Drilling
Associate Advisor
Completed supervision
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Investigating the transport of proppant and micro-proppant in fracture networks via direct numerical simulation of particle-laden flows
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Saiied Aminossadati, Dr Christopher Leonardi
Media
Enquiries
Contact Professor Ray Johnson directly for media enquiries about:
- Coal seam gas
- Hydraulic Fracturing
- Shale gas
- Unconventional resources
Need help?
For help with finding experts, story ideas and media enquiries, contact our Media team: