Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) Director Brian Salerno completed a two-day trip to Pennsylvania and West Virginia last week, where he visited Department of Energy (DOE) National Labs and met with faculty and students at West Virginia University.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, Director Salerno toured the DOE National Energy Technology Laboratory in Pittsburgh, Pa., and Morgantown, W.Va., where he met with researchers to discuss current BSEE co-sponsored projects and toured the labs. Topics of interest included the behavior of aqueous methane hydrates formation, foamed cement and drilling in extreme conditions. BSEE and DOE continue to work on joint research projects, as outlined in an August 2013 Memorandum of Collaboration. A full list of BSEE technology assessment research projects is available here.
On Wednesday, Director Salerno visited West Virginia University in Morgantown, W.Va., to meet with faculty in the Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources and host a discussion with students about future careers in the offshore energy sector. While on campus, he toured the facilities and spoke with Dr. Ilkin Bilgesu of the college's Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering Department, who demonstrated the capabilities of the rig floor simulator and other drilling related technology in the Drilling Fluids Lab.
