Fatemeh Tale, a Ph.D. candidate in the Petroleum Engineering Department, has added a poster contest competition placement to her already impressive resume.
Tale placed third in the Gulf Coast Regional Society of Petroleum Engineers Ph.D. Student Paper Contest. Her advisor is Birol Dindoruk, American Association of Drilling Engineers Endowed Professor of Petroleum Engineering & Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.
“I felt proud and happy, especially because it gave me a chance to show others what we’re doing at UH and in our research group,” she said of receiving the award. “It’s exciting to see our work being recognized and to represent the university and our team on a bigger stage. It gave me even more motivation to keep pushing forward.”
Her poster presentation, “Numerical and Experimental Study of the Kinetics of Permeability Changes in CO2-Saturated Brine Injection Process for Enhanced CO2 Sequestration,” and her overall research examines how to make carbon and other gas sequestration cleaner.
“I work with energy, specifically oil and gas, and how we can make it cleaner for the planet,” she said. “Imagine the Earth is wearing a big blanket that’s getting too warm. Some of that warmth comes from gases like CO₂. I study ways to catch and store those gases safely underground so we can keep using energy, but without hurting the planet as much.”
Tale earned her B.S. and M.S. in Petroleum Engineering from Shiraz University in Iran. After internships at Halliburton and ExxonMobil, she landed at UH.
“UH was a perfect fit for me for several reasons,” she said. “It offered one of the best programs in my field, and being in Houston gave me access to a global hub of energy research and industry partnerships. But more than that, I knew I had made the right decision once I experienced how supportive my supervisor, Dr. Dindoruk, and our department chair, Dr. Dimitrios G. Hatzignatiou, were. Their guidance and encouragement have made a big difference in my journey.”
After completing her doctorate, Tale hopes to use the knowledge to secure a position in industry.
“Looking ahead, I hope to continue working on innovative energy technologies that make a real impact on the environment. I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned to real-world challenges and keep growing in the field. Long term, I’m passionate about bridging the gap between research and practical solutions in the energy sector.”