Yousef Baqer

Profile

I am a naturally quiet person who is extremely family oriented.  During my spare time I enjoy reading and watching documentaries.  Self-study to me is not a chore and I am a great believer in being the best version of yourself possible.  I have a real passion for science and I have watched a wide range of documentaries on the subject, as well as manufacturing documentaries and anything that can be related to the environment and the affect that our modern lifestyle is having on it.  

Growing up through the nineties meant that I was first exposed to environmental concerns upon hearing of the depletion of the ozone layer, and its likely causes and effects.  The impact of CFC’s on the atmosphere, and how the depletion was causing conditions such a malignant melanoma caused great concern and wide public interest.  I recall distinctly being interested at this stage in the environment and wondering what could be done to help. In 2009 I graduated from Kuwait University with my Bachelors Degree in Mechanical Engineering before then also completing a postgraduate degree in the same field.  For my postgraduate dissertation where students were able to pick their own research area, I chose to conduct my thesis on ‘How to Reduce CO2 Emissions in High-Rise Buildings’ because of my interest in environmental issues and saving energy.

I started working at Kuwait Oil Company as a Drilling and Work-Over Engineer in 2010 at the same time of studying my postgraduate degree, once graduated in 2012 I took up the position on a fulltime basis.  I manage the drilling and service contracts while optimizing drilling and work-over.  I have to analyse the type and depth of the wells, along with the consistency of the mud we would be drilling into and take decisions on the type of tools that will be used for the job.  Because of my vast experience, I am also in charge of training new engineers and supervising the operations necessary in the process of drilling oil and gas wells, as well as developing the plans and schedules, whilst taking into account the costs and liaising with the accounts department.  I have now reached the stage where I am involved with the initial well designs, testing, completion and abandonment along with working and maintaining close relationships with other professionals, such as geologists and petroleum engineers to monitor the drilling progress throughout.

Research interests

I am more than aware that with my working in the oil fields and using a huge amount of toxic material on a day-to-day basis, it may seem like a contradiction, but it is my dream to find the most efficient and least harmful way of providing our planet and humans what is needed.  Now we have reached this point in technological evolution and have become reliant on our modern lifestyle, nobody is going to want to go backwards.  Moving forward we need to find ways that enable the modern man (or woman) to still have the technology and convenience that they have become reliant upon, without causing such a negative impact on our environment.

The management of NORM (Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials) is a challenge faced the oil industry. Understanding radionuclides transport in complex soils/rocks system remains unclear due to the complexity of multiphase coupling.  This project will develop a new theoretical and numerical modelling to study the interactions of the radionuclides/soils/water, and provide a more realistic prediction of the radionuclides transport in onshore oil fields. Clay materials (e.g. Bentonite), which are normally used as the engineering barrier for radioactive waste management, will be selected as the key soil type for the research. The outcome of this research will significantly enhance the management of NORM.