NUS Engineering embarks on new initiatives in offshore engineering R
New Petroleum Engineering Professorships Programme to promote research collaboration with industry; state-of-the-art research and testing facility for subsea technologies
The National University of Singapore (NUS) Faculty of Engineering is strengthening its capabilities in offshore and subsea engineering research with the establishment of a new professorships programme and a cutting-edge research facility for experimenting and testing novel subsea technologies. These new initiatives are supported by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) and the Agency for Science, Technology & Research (A*STAR).
Mr S. Iswaran, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office, Second Minister for Home Affairs and Second Minister for Trade and Industry, today officiated at the launch of the Petroleum Engineering Professorships Programme and the inauguration of the NUS Multiphase Oil-Water-Air Flow Loop Facility.
Professor Chua Kee Chaing, Dean of NUS Faculty of Engineering, said, “NUS Engineering is pleased to partner EDB and A*STAR in enhancing our research capabilities in offshore and subsea engineering. The setting up of the Multiphase Oil-Water-Air Flow Loop Facility, which is the first of its kind outside the US and Europe, on NUS campus will greatly accelerate the translation of novel research ideas into innovative solutions and technologies to address real-world challenges in the offshore engineering industry. This new Facility and the Petroleum Engineering Professorships Programme will complement programmes of the Singapore Maritime Institute as well the Maritime Institute @ NUS and the Centre for Offshore Research and Engineering to help position Singapore as a leading hub in offshore and subsea engineering research.”
Petroleum Engineering Professorships Programme
Co-funded by EDB and industry partners, the programme will appoint three faculty members who will support the development of a new Petroleum Engineering specialisation within NUS' existing Master of Science (Offshore Technology) programme. They will also actively promote R&D collaboration with companies in the upstream oil & gas equipment and service sector to groom talents for the high-value design and development activities in Singapore. They will also supervise postgraduate students as they work on real-world industry problems.
NUS Multiphase Oil-Water-Air Flow Loop Facility
Supported by EDB and A*STAR, this state-of-the-art research and testing facility is designed and customised by NUS Principal Investigator in Subsea Engineering Research, Associate Professor Loh Wai Lam, who has extensive industry experience in experimental multiphase flow research, application and novel product development.
A key focus of the facility is to address the complex flow of oil, water and gas mixture from oil and gas wells to the platform or to the shore to maximise production efficiency and recovery. It is essential for the testing of subsea production equipment, including Multiphase Pumps, Multiphase Flowmeters, Compact Separators, Wet-gas Compression and others. The integrated facility will draw upon modelling and simulation expertise from A*STAR's Institute of High Performance Computing (IHPC) to complement the physical experimentation. IHPC's research in multiphase flow analysis provides invaluable results that can be used to plan and optimise physical experimentation. Please refer to the Annex for more information on the NUS Multiphase Oil-Water-Air Flow Loop Facility.
“As Singapore gears up its marine and offshore industry to a new level, this new research facility at NUS will create new opportunities for Singapore to lead in the strategic development of novel technologies and knowledge that will be vital for the future of the global offshore oil & gas industry, leading to better efficiency and cost effectiveness,” Prof Chua added.
Mr Lim Kok Kiang, Assistant Managing Director, Singapore Economic Development Board, said, “The oil and gas equipment and services sector in Singapore continues to exhibit strong growth. The sector has a skilled labour profile of 90 per cent and offers Singaporeans good career opportunities. Singapore's investments in the Petroleum Engineering Professorships Programme and Multiphase Flow Loop reflect our strong commitment to the sector. These efforts will develop the necessary capabilities and talent to attract higher value-added activities in research and development, and support further growth of the industry.”
Dr Tan Geok Leng, Executive Director of the A*STAR Science and Engineering Research Council, said, “Creating impact is a key objective of A*STAR's research so we are delighted that the simulation and modelling capabilities of IHPC can be applied to improve the design, performance and safety of the offshore and subsea engineering cluster.”
