A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING APPLICATIONS İN ENGINEERING AND TEACHER EDUCATION: A BRIEF REVIEW

Problem-based learning (PBL) is an alternative instructional method used to help students acquire scientific and technical knowledge. It has various uses in different disciplines ranging from language learning to nursing. Considering the effectiveness and common usage of problem-based learning, this study is a brief literature review that focused on the use of PBL in two different disciplines, namely, in engineering and teacher training. To this end, the researcher chose 4 articles that are among the most cited studies on Google scholar's web page. The review was conducted to identify the research areas such as scope, research questions, methodologies, common emergent features and overall implications of those studies. As for analysis, coding and categorizing the themes were done in all studies to find common aspects. The emergent themes were discussed, and implications were examined successively. The results showed that applications and utilization of PBL in engineering and teacher training were proven to be beneficial both for the educators and the students of the target area. The study also demonstrated that while analytic thinking, quick decision making, and synthesizing were the primary targets of the use of PBL in engineering, collaboration and comprehension skills are targeted by the practice of PBL in teacher training.

Collaboration and Optimization Processes Contribute to Ultra-ERD Offshore Well Success

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Judy Feder, contains highlights of paper SPE 202251, “Transforming the Mindset To Drill Ultra-ERD Wells With High Tortuosity,” by Barry Goodin, SPE, Duane Selman, and Andy Wroth, Vermilion Oil and Gas, et al., prepared for the 2020 SPE Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Conference and Exhibition, originally scheduled to be held in Perth, Australia, 20–22 October. The paper has not been peer reviewed. The complete paper describes the extensive integrated engineering collaboration and optimization process that allowed an operator to push the drilling and completion envelope to drill a pair of complex, ultra-extended-reach-drilling (ERD) wells in the mature Wandoo field in the Carnarvon Basin offshore Western Australia. The shallow reservoir depth, extreme ERD profile, and high tortuosity requirement for the wells posed significant challenges. These were overcome with extensive planning; integrated engineering designs; application of new technology; good-quality, real-time data interpretation; and strong execution support from both rig site and town. Introduction The Wandoo field, in 56 m of water off-shore Western Australia, was discovered in 1991 and subsequently developed and placed on production in 1993. The shallow unconsolidated sandstone reservoir consists of a heavily biodegraded oil column overlain by a gas cap and supported by a strong aquifer drive. Field infrastructure consists of a 15-well-slot manned production facility, Wandoo B, and a five-slot monopod, Wandoo A, which is tied back to Wandoo B by subsea in-field pipelines. In late 2018, the operator planned and executed a two-well drilling campaign consisting of two complex, ultra-ERD wells, Wandoo B15 and B16. Both wells were planned to be batch drilled for the top hole and intermediate hole sections, with the production hole sections to be drilled and completed sequentially. The primary objective for the B15 well was to recover unswept oil along the western flank of the field and track the well along the main Wandoo fault to the north to assess the structure and reserves from the northern tip of the field. The B16 well objective was to access unswept reserves through the center and down to the south of the field, essentially twinning the B11ST1 well, another ERD well drilled on an earlier campaign, to its eastern flank. To maximize recovery, both wells needed to be placed approximately 1 m below the top of the reservoir, except where overlain by the gas cap, in which case the wells were to be placed approximately 2 m below the gas/oil contact to avoid gas coning. Drilling Challenges and Solutions The first half of the complete paper presents a detailed discussion of the drilling challenges and solutions, illustrated with schematics, maps, charts, and graphs. Both Wells B15 and B16 were classified as ultra-ERD wells because the shallow true vertical depth (TVD) of the reservoir resulted in extreme stepout ratios and required highly complex well paths to access the remaining reserves. The complete paper lists various specific drilling- and systems-related challenges.