Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering
Jon Olson, PI
Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering
Jon Olson, Profile page, PGE
The Fracture Research & Application Consortium is the centerpiece for fundamental and applied research on fractures at The University of Texas at Austin, particularly as this research applies to petroleum reservoirs
Jon Olson and Steve Laubach coordinate the FRAC research and mentoring effort within the Department of Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering. Courses on fractured reservoirs, reservoir geomechanics, brittle structure, and structural diagenesis are taught in the Department of Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering and Department of Geological Sciences.
FRAC Research Well in West Texas. Click on photo to view larger.
If you are a prospective engineering student seeking information on sponsored senior thesis, M.S. thesis and dissertation projects, contact Jon Olson. You should also consult the main PGE web site for application procedures.
We are currently seeking strong graduate students for research on a wide range of funded projects.
Contact Jon Olson about admission to the Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering program at UT
Current Research Topics
Attributes of naturally fractured reservoirs
Quantitative fracture growth modeling
Geomechanical modeling
Rock property testing
Field-based fracture studies
Flow simulation, fractured reservoirs
Stress measurement
Hydraulic fracturing in fractured reservoirs
Tech transfer modules (login required)
Subcritical index and sample processing
Software: JOINTS and Perm calc
Recent Publications of Note:
Olson, J. E, Laubach, S. E., and Lander, R. H., 2009, Natural fracture characterization in tight gas sandstones: Integrating mechanics and diagenesis. AAPG Bulletin, v. 93, no. 11, p. 1535-1549.
Olson, J. E., 2007, Fracture aperture, length and pattern geometry development under biaxial loading: a numerical study with applications to natural, cross-jointed systems. In Couples, G & Lewis, H., eds., Fracture-Like Damage and Localization, Geological Society of London, Special Publication. 289, 123-142.
Philip, Z. G., Jennings, J. W. Jr., Olson, J. E., Laubach, S. E., and Holder, J., 2005, Modeling coupled fracture-matrix fluid flow in geomechanically simulated fracture networks : SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering, v. 8, no. 4 (August 2005), 300-309.
Mailing address:
The University of Texas at Austin
Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering
1 University Station C0300
Austin, TX 78712-0228
PGE Department Phone:
(512) 471-3161
Fax: (512) 471-9605
