Advancing Oil and Gas Resource Exploration, Extraction, and Utilization for Sustainability

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, themed “Advancing Oil and Gas Resource Exploration, Extraction, and Utilization for Sustainability”, focuses on critical challenges and opportunities for sustainable development across the entire oil and gas resource value chain. It will be centered on the following three core directions: breakthroughs in green exploration and development technologies, transformation towards efficient and clean resource utilization, and the optimization of full lifecycle environmental management.

This Special Issue aims to assemble cutting-edge international research, foster innovative exchange in oil and gas exploration and development theories and technologies, and accelerate the establishment of a modern oil and gas industrial system characterized by resource conservation, environmental friendliness, low-carbon efficiency, safety, and stability.

By promoting the application of advanced technologies, the innovation of management concepts, and the refinement of policy mechanisms, this Special Issue seeks to facilitate the oil and gas industry’s achievement of cost reduction and efficiency enhancement, green transition, and long-term sustainable development. Ultimately, it aims to provide robust support for safeguarding global energy security and realizing the “dual carbon” goals (carbon peak and carbon neutrality).

Key Themes:

1. Intelligent and Precise Oil and Gas Exploration Theories and Technologies: new geophysical exploration technologies; applications of AI and big data in reservoir prediction and target optimization; advances in unconventional, deepwater, and deep-layer resource exploration.
2. Green and Low-Carbon Oil and Gas Development Technologies and Practices: energy-saving drilling and completion technologies; digital and intelligent oilfield construction; low-environmental-impact development plan design; water resource protection and recycling; methane emission monitoring and control technologies.
3. Efficient Reservoir Development and Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) Technologies: efficient development methods for complex reservoirs (low permeability, ultra-heavy oil, high water-cut, etc.); cutting-edge EOR/IOR technologies (chemical flooding, gas flooding, microbial flooding, etc.); key technologies for in situ conversion of organic-rich shale; intelligent injection–production optimization and reservoir fine management.
4. Clean, Low-Carbon Utilization and Conversion of Oil and Gas Resources: energy conservation, emission reduction, and clean production technologies in refining and chemical processes; pathways towards low-carbon/zero-carbon refineries; green synthesis of high-value-added chemicals and materials; CCUS (carbon capture, utilization, and storage) coupling technologies with oil and gas production.
5. Oilfield Environmental Protection and Ecological Restoration Technologies: harmless treatment and resource utilization of drilling and production waste; prevention, control, and remediation of soil and groundwater pollution; biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration; safe and environmentally sound decommissioning of oil and gas fields.
6. Digitalization and Carbon Footprint Management Across the Oil and Gas Production Lifecycle: digital lifecycle management platforms from exploration to abandonment; accurate carbon emission monitoring, accounting, and reporting; carbon footprint optimization and emission reduction pathways.
7. Integrated Development Pathways for Oil and Gas and New Energy: integrated development models for oilfields incorporating wind, solar, energy storage, and hydrogen; geothermal co-development; energy hub construction; transformation of traditional oil and gas facilities into integrated energy stations.
8. Policy, Economics, and Strategic Research for Sustainable Development in the Oil and Gas Industry: the impact of green finance and ESG investment on the sector; carbon pricing mechanisms and markets; sustainable development regulatory frameworks and standards; balancing energy security and transition strategies; international cooperation opportunities and challenges.
9. Enhancing Oil and Gas Supply Chain Resilience and Circular Economy Practices: securing autonomy in critical materials and equipment; supply chain risk management; circular utilization and remanufacturing oilfield materials; waste minimization and circular economy models.

Dr. Chaofan Zhu
Dr. Sunhua Deng
Dr. Long Xu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.