SPE Study Guide 2026
Everything you need to pass the SPE exam in one place: the exam format, every topic to study, real practice questions with explanations, flashcards, and full-length practice tests. Free, no sign-up needed.
📋 SPE Exam Format at a Glance
📚 SPE Topics to Study (63)
✍️ Sample SPE Questions & Answers
1. Under OSHA's Process Safety Management (PSM) standard 29 CFR 1910.119, what is the threshold quantity for flammable liquids and gases that triggers PSM applicability?
OSHA PSM triggers for flammable liquids/gases at or above 10,000 lbs when stored above their flashpoint.
2. What is 'lost circulation' in drilling and what material is commonly used to combat it?
Lost circulation occurs when drilling fluid flows into highly permeable, fractured, or vugular formations; LCMs plug the loss zones to restore returns.
3. What is the significance of the 'Dykstra-Parsons coefficient' (VDP) in reservoir characterization?
VDP ranges from 0 (homogeneous) to 1 (infinitely heterogeneous) and is derived from the log-normal permeability distribution of core plug data.
4. In a three-phase separator, what force is primarily responsible for separating water from oil?
Water separates from oil in a three-phase separator mainly by gravity as the denser water phase settles to the bottom.
5. A production platform detects a H2S concentration of 10 ppm in the work area. According to OSHA guidelines, what action is required at this concentration?
OSHA's ceiling limit for H2S is 20 ppm (with a 50 ppm peak for 10 minutes), and 10 ppm is the NIOSH recommended exposure limit requiring monitoring and warning.
6. What does 'swabbing' refer to in well operations and what hazard does it create?
Swabbing occurs when upward pipe movement creates a piston effect that temporarily reduces hydrostatic pressure, potentially pulling formation fluids into the wellbore.
🎯 Free SPE Practice Tests
📖 SPE Guides & Articles
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