Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering 30 Ž2001.
257–265
Book reviews
Comprehensive Dictionary of Earth Science. En-
glish–French, French–English
Editions Technip, Institut Français du Petrole Publi-
cations; ISBN 2-7108-0749-1; M. Moureau and G.
Brace, 2000, 1152 pp. ŽUS$160, 147.88,970FF..
Following the success of Editions Technip’s
AComprehensive Dictionary of Petroleum Science
and TechnologyB, the same team of Magdelaine
Moureau and Gerald Brace have put together a bi-
lingual dictionary of over 37000 items covering all
fields of Earth Science. The purpose of this
English–French, French–English dictionary was ac-
cording to the authors to Aenable each user to gain
access to all information required to understand a
term or expression without having to consult other
sourcesB. Consequently, the coverage of the book
ranges widely from archaeology to volcanology and
includes cartography, crystallography, environment,
geochemistry, geochronology, geodesy, geology, ge-
omorphology, geophysics, gitology Žstudy of ore
deposits., hydrogeology, hydrology, mineralogy,
oceanography, palaeontology, palynology, pedology,
petrology, photogeology, remote sensing, sedimen-
tology, stratigraphy, taxonomy, tectonics and topog-
raphy and a few topics that extend the application of
the dictionary to the periphery of the normal defini-
tion of Earth Science to involve astronomy, biochem-
istry, biology, climatology and meteorology. How-
ever, not all the fields are treated equally; some are
widely covered with thousands of terms while others
are only represented by a small number. Terms were
selected on the basis of their frequency of use in
each of the languages, while noting that the scope of
the Earth Sciences is becoming more multi-disci-
plinary with time.
All terms are translated into both languages and
are defined with occasional examples of use. Abbre-
viations are fully explained and given in the other
language where appropriate. Greek and Latin roots
are provided along with important place names and
persons.
0920-4105r01r$ - see front matter q 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
www.elsevier.comrlocaterjpetscieng
There are also 11 annexes including such diverse
and apparently unconnected topics as rules for writ-
ing large numbers, geological time scale, classifica-
tion of Homo sapiens and the Greek alphabet. The
dictionary is clear and well laid out with the En-
glish–French section divided from the French–En-
glish by the appendices that are printed in green to
aid the separation.
This excellent and substantial dictionary is in-
tended for students, academicians, librarians and pro-
fessionals who may have difficulties with documents
in French or English. It will greatly assist with the
understanding of texts published in each language.
There should therefore be at least one copy of this
type of reference volume in every company or organ-
isation actively involved with the Earth Sciences.
However, at a price of US$160, it is unlikely to
find a position on the shelves of every geoscientists
in the oil industry. For the practicing oil industry
professional, there may be better value in buying the
more directly relevant AComprehensive Dictionary
of Petroleum Science and TechnologyB, ADictionary
of Seismic ProspectingB or ADictionary of Drilling
and BoreholesB also produced by Editions Technip.
John Cubitt
ES Information and Consultancy Ltd.,
Church Street, Holt,
Wrexham LL13 9JP, Wales, UK
E-mail address:
john-cubitt@es-information.demon.co.uk
PII: S 0 9 2 0 - 4 1 0 5 Ž 0 1 . 0 0 1 1 3 - 9
Well completion and servicing
Editions Technip, Institut Français du Petrole Publi-
cations; ISBN 2-7108-0765-3; D. Perrin, 2000, 352
pp. Ž$85, 71.65, 470FF.
The book, which consists of five chapters, was
written in collaboration with Michel Caron and
Georges Gaillot and has been translated from French.
258 Book reÕiews
It forms part of a series of four books under the
headings: reservoir engineering, drilling, well com-
pletion and servicing and surface production.
Well completion and servicing covers, in broad
terms, the area between drilling and production. This
is an area where even large exploration and produc-
tion companies with strong drilling and production
departments often have shortcomings. Therefore, this
is a useful book as there are few published texts on
well servicing and completions.
Chap. 1 is an introduction to completions and
covers much of the basic requirements and consider-
ations of theoretical completions design. It is easily
understood and well illustrated with numerous
schematics.
Chap. 2 provides some informative discussion on
formation damage and completion brines. There is
also coverage of cement evaluation and remedial
cementing Perforation, gravel packing, stimulation
and fracturing are also discussed. Horizontal wells
are also explored as a special case.
Chap. 3 discusses the equipment of naturally
flowing wells, production well-head equipment, tub-
ing strings and packers. Other downhole equipment
such as circulating devices, landing nipples and sub-
surface safety valves are also considered. Comple-
tion running procedures are dealt with extremely
well on a generic basis and show the authors under-
standing of the practical aspects of running comple-
tions.
Chap. 4 explains the various artificial lift methods
in quite some detail. Gas lift principals and equip-
ment is particularly well covered and the many
schematics aid significantly in the understanding of
this lift method.
Chap. 5 provides coverage of slickline equipment,
coil tubing equipment, and snubbing equipment. The
information provided on snubbing equipment is par-
ticularly interesting, as it is seldom covered in text-
books.
The book is written as a basic to intermediate
level text and provides a good coverage at that level.
Topics such a well testing planning and execution,
tubing stress analysis, and deep-water operations are
beyond the scope of the book. However, the book
provides a valuable contribution to the understanding
of well completion and servicing and would be a
good addition to the library of many engineers.
Stuart A. McAleese
Esprit Petroleum Technology Ltd.,
Finbracken, 28 Moorfield Road,
Gourock, PA19 1DD,
Scotland, UK
PII: S 0 9 2 0 - 4 1 0 5 Ž 0 1 . 0 0 1 1 4 - 0
Surfactants. Fundamentals and Applications in
the Petroleum Industry
Cambridge University Press; ISBN No.: 0 521 64067
9; Edited by L.L. Schramm, 2000, 621 pp.
The aim of this book is to complement the editor’s
previous compilations on the fundamentals and ap-
plications of emulsions, foams, and suspensions in
the petroleum industry. Not unexpectedly, with sur-
factants being the focus of this latest book, anyone
working in this field might anticipate some natural
overlap with the previous volumes, but the editor has
avoided obvious duplication. This has been achieved
through the inclusion of up-to-date reviews of activi-
ties in surfactant-related areas of the petroleum in-
dustry, as well as including hitherto unpublished
material from recent experimental studies.
Fourteen chapters are arranged in four main sec-
tions that are largely application-orientated. The final
chapter provides a glossary of surfactant- and petro-
leum-related terms. The more fundamental and theo-
retical aspects of surfactant science are dealt with in
each chapter in as much detail as is required to assist
in understanding the application. However, the editor
has used the first chapter in the first section entitled
Surfactant Fundamentals to set the scene in terms of
describing the basic aspects of surfactant chemistry
and physics. On the other hand, Chapter 2 deals with
the characterisation of demulsification chemicals, but
principally from their effect in the named applica-
tion. In this reviewer’s opinion, this chapter would
have benefited from more fundamental insights into
the demulsification process itself, as far as it was
possible. Chapter 3, co-authored by the editor, pro-
vides a short, but nevertheless comprehensive review
of the application of emulsions and foams in the
petroleum industry, highlighting the roles of surfac-
tants.
The following four chapters deal with surfactant
applications under the heading Surfactants in Porous
Media. Chapters 4 and 5 discuss, respectively, the
adsorption and wettability effects of surfactants, the