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:
- Not available for supervision
- Media expert
Fields of research
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
Research interests
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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
1995
Conference Publication
Fracture treatment modifications and bottomhole treating pressure analysis in the pictured cliffs formation, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
Johnson, Raymond L. (1995). Fracture treatment modifications and bottomhole treating pressure analysis in the pictured cliffs formation, Rio Arriba County, New Mexico. SPE Production Operations Symposium, Oklahoma City, OK, United States, 2-4 April 1995. Richardson, TX, United States: Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/29448-MS
1993
Conference Publication
Large-volume, high-rate stimulation treatments in horizontal wells in the Niobrara Formation, Silo Field, Laramie County, Wyoming
Johnson, R. L. and Brown, T. D. (1993). Large-volume, high-rate stimulation treatments in horizontal wells in the Niobrara Formation, Silo Field, Laramie County, Wyoming. SPE Rocky Mountain Regional/Low Permeability Reservoirs Symposium, Denver, CO, United States, 12-14 April 1993. Richardson, TX, United States: Society of Petroleum Engineers. doi: 10.2118/25926-MS
Funding
Supervision
Availability
- Professor Ray Johnson is:
- Not available for supervision
Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
Regulating well integrity in Australian unconventional oil and gas operations: a comparison between Queensland, Wyoming and Alberta
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Optimisation of Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage in an ultra-shallow heavy oil reservoir
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Honorary Professor Suzanne Hurter
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Doctor Philosophy
Using Machine Learning to Improve Well Integrity, Drilling Efficiencies and Safety Compliance in Queensland CSG Drilling Data
Principal Advisor
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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
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Master Philosophy
Rate of Production Prediction for Coal Seam Gas Drilling
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Associate Professor Zhongwei Chen
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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
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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
Completed supervision
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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
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