Stephen Rassenfoss

JPT Emerging Technology Senior Editor Society of Petroleum Engineers

Stephen Rassenfoss is the Emerging Technology Senior Editor for JPT, whose stories cover a range of novel ideas, including those that engineers may find promising but are not sure will work. He also covers other stories including crashes to the outlook for engineers. He can be reached at srassenfoss@spe.org.

Carbon capture and storage

Many Want To Store Carbon Dioxide, but Few Have Been Permitted

A surge in permit applications for long-term carbon storage sites reflects where industrially produced carbon dioxide can be harvested, and where the necessary pipelines are.

November 30, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
Oilfield chemistry

It Is Easy To Find Lithium; Turning a Profit Is Hard

The best wells in which to find lithium are in old conventional fields where rusty pump jacks are pulling out mostly water.

Locked
November 1, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
R&D/innovation

From Plugging an Oilfield Cement Job to Patching a Runway in a War Zone

BioSqueeze is a small oilfield services looking to prove it can build much bigger things as well.

October 10, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
Unconventional/complex reservoirs

Oil Producers in Midland Are Working on the Next Permian

Permian producers are looking for new places and ways to sustain production in the giant basin.

October 5, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
Water management

Is Produced Water Really Water?

Produced water is a brew of salt, chemicals, and minerals that oil companies have always had to deal with. Landowners had no problem with that arrangement until they could see ways to make some money from it.

Locked
October 1, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
Water management

Diamondback Deal Could Signal Wave of Big Water Deals in Permian

Diamondback Energy has agreed to spin off its water operations. Now, who’s next?

September 13, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
R&D/innovation

Test Shows Fracturing Can Also Create Underground Water Heating Systems

Fervo Energy’s bet that fracturing methods can be used for geothermal power is looking like a winner.

Locked
September 1, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
R&D/innovation

Subsea Power From Waves Works in North Sea Test

Wave power plus a subsea battery can be a reliable source for subsea operations, to a point.

August 31, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
Mature fields

Shale Wells Producing More Early On, Then Declining Faster Than Ever

The challenge of sustaining shale production is growing larger.

August 16, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology
$A fracturing site where two large white units from Downing house an automated system that controls the flow of slurry from the pumps into a well during fracturing.$

Unconventional/complex reservoirs

After Years of Ever-Longer Fracturing Stages, Some Engineers Say Shorter Can Be Better

The trend in fracturing designs has been longer stages with more perforation clusters, which save time and money. But there are a couple of companies testing whether shorter is better for production.

August 1, 2023 • Stephen Rassenfoss • Journal of Petroleum Technology

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