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PhD/DPhil - Doctor of Philosophy
Edinburgh campus
Full Time
Sep 2026
3 Year
The Centre for Enhanced Oil Recovery and CO2 Solutions (formerly the Hydrocarbon Recovery Mechanisms project) investigates various hydrocarbon recovery mechanisms to improve the current understanding of the pertinent reservoir processes and to produce information required for efficient planning and management of field production.
The Centre uses unique laboratory techniques to investigate, experimentally, reservoir fluid flow at various scales. High pressure flow visualisation at the pore level is performed in three high pressure micromodel rigs, resulting in more understanding of the reservoir processes as well as quantitative information. Four core test facilities operating at simulated reservoir conditions, including X-ray local saturation measurement capabilities, are used to produce field specific and generic data. Mechanistic and numerical modelling of flow through porous media, based on in-house experimental observation and measurements, are conducted to generalise research results.
The research areas include flow of gas-condensate near the wellbore, well deliverability improvement, trapping of hydrocarbon by water and its subsequent remobilisation by depressurisation, water alternating gas (WAG) injection, miscible WAG and simultaneous injection of water and gas (SWAG) and recovery from naturally fractured reservoirs.
Heriot-Watt University has a 200-year history, and over that time has cultivated an outstanding reputation for its quali...
