The first phase of the Petroleum Services and Safety Technology Program’s labs, the AADE Memorial Johnson ‘Bubba’ Hale, Jr. Drilling Fluids Laboratory, is complete, and the other two phases are still in progress.
The three phases of the labs are the completed Drilling Fluids Laboratory, Reservoir Fluids Laboratory and the Environmental Laboratory.
In May of 2012 the program secured $376,894 for the different labs. $184,894 of the funds came from a grant from the Louisiana Board of Regents, and a $153,000 donation from a local petroleum company and American Association of Drilling Engineers. The University also donated $39,000.
Phase one, which cost a total of $153,000, is completed and students have started using the lab.  Phases two and three have to be done by June 30, 2013, Michael Gautreaux, assistant professor of applied sciences, said.
The drilling fluids lab is used for class PSET 371.
“It will be used to present an example of the activities and condition of drilling a well,” Gautreaux said.  “The lab is here to help students obtain the knowledge they need to prevent catastrophic events from happening.”
“The drilling lab contains six kits used to measure the characteristics of mud in a drilling setting,” Henry Foust Jr., professor of applied science, said.
There will also be a camera and two televisions in the lab.  These items will be used for the students that work offshore. The professor will do the lab and record it on the video, and when the student comes in from off shore they can access the video and practice the lab.
Also part of phase one is a computer lab. The computer lab is connected to the fluids lab for students to record the results of the experiments they just completed, Gautreaux said.
The drilling fluids lab was dedicated on Sept. 7, 2012, in honor of the late Bubba Hale whose portrait hangs in the lab.   According to a press release from the University, Hale was a Nicholls alumnus and vice president of Flowchem Technologies.
Phase two is a reservoir fluids lab, which PSET 131 will also use. This lab will contain six experiment benches with nine tests on each.
“The purpose of this lab is for students to run nine tests to test the gas laws and see the principle at work,” Gautreaux said.  Phase two should be completed and ready for use in spring, 2013.
Phase three of the lab is an environmental lab, which will be used for testing air and water qualities.  It should be ready for use in fall, 2013
“For example, in south Louisiana, when sugar cane is burned or the trucks go up and down the roads with the product, it releases particles into the air,” Gautreaux said.  “These items can be found while testing the air.”
The lab also ties into the petroleum industry because of the water around the drilling wells, Gautreaux said.
“In this lab, samples of the water in the drinking supply can be tested to ensure that none of the particles from drilling have entered into it,” Gautreaux said.
The labs are located in Peltier 226, Peltier 229 and Peltier 225. Phases two and three class rooms are in the process of being cleaned out and prepared for the new incoming equipment.