Petroleum Foundations

Where oil and gas come from. The petroleum system and value chain, oil and gas units, and the rocks, minerals and geological structures that form traps.

• Introduction to Petroleum Engineering — From source rock to fuel tank. Learn how oil and gas form (source, migration, reservoir, seal, trap), the upstream–midstream–downstream value chain, exploration (seismic, logging), the lifecycle of a field, oil and gas units (barrels, API gravity, scf, boe), the roles of drilling, reservoir and production engineers, offshore vs onshore development, and the energy-transition context (CCS, geothermal, hydrogen storage) — with Python for API gravity and unit conversions.
• Rocks & Minerals — Minerals are naturally occurring crystalline compounds; rocks are aggregates of minerals. Learn the rock cycle and three rock types, how minerals are identified (hardness, specific gravity, lustre), the key ore minerals, and how to calculate metal grade from mineral content and bulk density of mixtures.
• Geological Structures — Faults, folds, joints and veins control where ore is found and how rock behaves. Learn strike and dip, apparent dip, true thickness from drill intersections, types of faults and folds, stereonets, and why structures matter for grade continuity and slope/tunnel stability.