Drilling for a Living: Innovations in Drill Technology Coming from Exxon Mobil

by | Sep 2, 2016

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Brooke ChaplanExxonMobil has been in business for over a century and one aspect that has worked favorably for the company is its dedication to new and innovative projects. With the use of newer technologies, the company has managed to meet some of the needs of today’s consumers with things like affordability and better availability of petroleum products. Looking at drilling and the methods in which fossil fuels are extracted has shown that more sustainable processes need to be used in order to continue. Exxon and other companies have made this initiative part of their innovation process and are working on new ways of drilling that do less harm to the environment. Here are some current innovations from the oil and gas company and what green initiatives they have taken on with their drilling and extraction.

Drilling is one area of oil and gas exploration that calls for creative innovations to reduce environmental impact. ExxonMobil has a physics-based process called Fast Drill Technology that focuses on improving the efficiency of the drilling procedure. Professionals with a master in civil engineering work with scientists and mechanics to create better drills and parts for this process. It involves the digital analysis of fuel consumption of a drilling system in real-time. This job also looks at the composition on the earth and rock where drilling will take place and what tools and technologies will be best utilized to break through without causing lasting damage to the environment.
There is also the extended reach technology that makes offshore drilling of inaccessible resources less complicated. By using the process, disturbances of marine life is reduced or eliminated because the well is drilled on land to get to oil and gas resources that are under water. With extended reach technology, Exxon has been able to drill 26 of the world’s largest 30 longest-reach well and are able to extract oil while reducing their impact on the environment around them. The company keeps discovering new technologies of drilling and completion that make these two processes more efficient.

As energy demands for gas and energy continue to rise with the increase in population, companies such as ExxonMobil have the responsibilities to create new technologies, which is why the industry provides a lot of opportunities for employees and customers alike. In addition to finding better ways to drill and extract oil with less environmental impacts, the company continues to research alternative and natural gas options and refines their fuels to provide better energy with less footprint.

Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most her time hiking, biking and gardening. For more information contact Brooke via Twitter @BrookeChaplan.

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