Postdoctoral Fellow – Relative Permiability in Shale Full-time

Postdoctoral Fellow – Relative Permiability in Shale

Hiring Department: Bureau of Economic Geology

Position Open To: All Applicants

Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40

FLSA Status: Exempt from FLSA

Earliest Start Date: Immediately

Position Duration: Expected to Continue Until Aug 31, 2027

Location: PICKLE RESEARCH CAMPUS

The successful candidate will join an elite, fast-moving, and tightly integrated research cohort at the Bureau of Economic Geology (BEG), Jackson School of Geosciences, UT Austin. We are a small but exceptionally strong team dedicated to pioneering innovative experimental and modeling techniques that bridge the gap between laboratory-scale physics and field-scale implementation. Our mission centers on developing next-generation solutions for energy security, efficiency, and sustainability.

This position is backed by newly secured industrial project funding. This position offers a premier opportunity for an ambitious researcher to publish high-impact science, develop highly sought-after expertise in complex subsurface fluid transport, and collaborate directly with leading industry researchers. We provide a rigorous, supportive environment designed to launch successful careers in both advanced industrial R&D and academic leadership.

Postdoctoral Fellow positions are for one year, and are renewable based upon availability of funding, work performance, and progress toward research goals.

Purpose

The primary objective of this role is to quantify multiphase flow and gas–condensate relative permeability in unconventional reservoirs and evaluate their impact on production. The position combines advanced laboratory experiments to characterize effective permeability, relative permeability, capillary pressure, and fluid saturation in nano-Darcy shale rocks and propped fractures, with analytical and numerical modeling to interpret multiphase transport and evaluate optimal drawdown strategies for improved production. In addition to the core project objectives, the researcher will have opportunities to develop new experimental approaches for challenging measurements of capillary pressure and to investigate fracture–matrix interactions in multiphase flow.

Responsibilities

• Multiphase Transport Experiments: Operate, develop, and modify advanced gas-expansion and liquid-transient flow systems to measure effective permeability, gas–liquid relative permeability, fluid saturations, and multiphase transport properties in shale samples.
• Capillary Pressure & Saturation: Develop and implement innovative experimental and analytical approaches to quantify capillary pressure and saturation relationships in extremely low-permeability shale, addressing the experimental challenges associated with nano-Darcy flow and multiphase systems.
• Fracture–Matrix Interactions: Investigate multiphase transport between propped fractures and the shale matrix, including fracture permeability, gas–liquid relative permeability, fluid exchange, and the role of fracture–matrix interactions in production.
• Data Analysis & Modeling: Develop analytical and numerical models to interpret laboratory measurements, quantify the controlling mechanisms of multiphase transport, and establish relationships among pressure, saturation, capillary pressure, and relative permeability.

Required Qualifications

PhD in Petrophysics, Geomechanics, Petroleum Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Geosciences, or a closely related geosystems discipline. Proven experimental expertise in high-pressure core experiments, petrophysical measurements (effective permeability, relative permeability, capillary pressure, porosity), or fluid transport phenomena. Deep fundamental understanding of fluid transport mechanisms in tight/unconventional formations (Darcy vs. non-Darcy flow, counter-current flow). Strong capability in data analysis, scripting, or laboratory automation (Python, MATLAB, or LabVIEW).

PhD must have been obtained within 3 years from date of hire.

Preferred Qualifications

Extensive proficiency with commercial compositional reservoir simulators (e.g., CMG GEM, ECLIPSE) and a proven track record of coupled geomechanics-fluid flow simulation. Experience or strong fundamental training in Geomechanics (stress-strain relationships, fracture conductivity, or rock mechanics). Experience utilizing digital rock physics, image analysis, or CT scanning to evaluate multi-phase flow displacement.

Salary Range

$65,000

Working Conditions

• May work around chemical fumes
• May work around standard office conditions
• May work around chemicals
• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation
• Use of manual dexterity
• Occasional weekend, overtime, and evening work to meet deadlines
• Occasional travel intrastate, interstate, international
• Occasional fieldwork as necessary

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information
• Letter of interest