About:
Zuleima Karpyn is associate dean for Graduate Education and Research, and Donohue Family Professor of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering. Dr. Karpyn specializes in multiphase flow and transport in porous media, and digital rock physics. Areas of application include reservoir characterization and engineering, carbon sequestration, subsurface energy storage, and environmental remediation. She holds a B.S. in chemical engineering from Universidad Central de Venezuela, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in petroleum and natural gas engineering from Penn State.
Karpyn is a recipient of the 2008 Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award granted by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the 2010 Wilson Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2016 and 2024 Fulbright U.S. Scholar, 2018-2019 Big10 (BTAA) Academic Leadership Fellow, and Energi Simulation Chair in Fluid Behavior and Rock Interactions (2014-2020). She has also served as associate editor of the Society of Petroleum Engineers Journal (2009-2014), assistant editor-in-chief of the Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering (2014-2017), associate editor of Transport in Porous Media (2018-present), and deputy editor of GeoEnergy (2022-present).
Research Projects
- Evaluation of potential technology pathway to image rock properties and geologic storage of CO2
- Deep-learning image analysis techniques for porous medium property estimation
- Experimental Investigation of gas storage and transport behavior in nanoporous shales
- Pore-scale analysis of wettability alteration in carbonate rocks via chemically tuned waterflooding
- Modeling the Impact of wetting conditions on capillary trapping using pore-network modeling
Publications
- Purswani, P., Johns, R., and Karpyn, Z., 2023, Relationship between Residual Saturations and Wettability using Pore-Network Modeling, SPE J. 1-10, December, https://doi.org/10.2118/206379-PA
- Zhang, T., Payne, K., Zhang, J., Purswani, P., Karpyn, Z., and Wang, M. 2023. “Hybrid Ion Exchange and Biological Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment: A Comprehensive Review of Process Applications and Mathematical Modeling,” Reviews in Environmental Science and Bio/Technology, RESB-D-23-00403R1.
- Tawfik, M.S.; Karpyn, Z.T.; Johns, R.T. 2022. Effect of Oil Chemistry on the Performance of Low-Salinity Waterflooding in Carbonates: An Integrated Experimental Approach, Fuel 329 (5) 10.1016/j.fuel.2022.125436
- Lou, X., Chakraborty, N., and Karpyn, Z., 2022, “Experimental Investigation of Shale Rock Properties Altering in-situ Gas Density and Storage Capacity,” Frontiers in Earth, April. https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2022.877551
- Tawfik, M., Subbakrishna, A., Hsi, Y., Purswani, P., Johns, R., Shokouhi, P., Huang, X., and Karpyn, Z., 2022, Comparative Study of Traditional and Deep-Learning Denoising Approaches for Image-based Petrophysical Characterization of Porous Media, Frontiers in Water, Vol 3, January. https://doi.org/10.3389/frwa.2021.800369
- Chakraborty, N., Lou, X., Enab, K., and Karpyn, Z., 2022, “Measurement of In-situ Fluid Density in Shales with Sub-Resolution Porosity using X-Ray Microtomography.” Transport in Porous Media. 141, 607–627. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11242-021-01738-4
- Magzymov, D., Johns, R. T., Karpyn, Z., & Purswani, P., 2021, Modeling the Effect of Reaction Kinetics and Dispersion during Low-Salinity Waterflooding. SPE Journal. 26(5), 3075-3093, DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/193909-PA
- Purswani, P., Johns, R., Karpyn, Z., and Blunt, M. 2021, “Predictive Modeling of Relative Permeability using a Generalized Equation-of-State,” SPE Journal, 26(01), 191-205, DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/200410-PA
- Zhang, M., Chakraborty, N., Karpyn, Z.T., and Emami-Meybodi, H. and Ayala. L., 2021, “Experimental and Numerical Study of Gas Diffusion and Sorption Kinetics in Ultratight Rocks,” Fuel. 286, 1-12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2020.119300
- Zhou, S., Liu, D., Karpyn, Z., Cai, Y., & Yao, Y., 2021, “Dual Compressibility Characteristics of Lignite, Subbituminous, and High-Volatile Bituminous Coals: A New Insight into Permeability,” Transport in Porous Media, 136(1), 295-317. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11242-020-01512-y
- Lou, X., Chakraborty, N., Karpyn, Z., Ayala, L., Nagarajan, N., and Wijaya, Z. 2021, “Experimental Study of Gas/Liquid Diffusion in Porous Rocks and Bulk Fluids to Investigate the Effect of Rock Matrix Hindrance,” SPE Journal, 26(3), 1174-1188. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2118/195941-PA
- Purswani, P., Karpyn, Z.T., Enab, K., Xue, Y. and Huang, S. 2020, “Evaluation of Image Segmentation Techniques for Image-Based Rock Property Estimation,” Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering. 15(December), 166-172. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.petrol.2020.107890
- Chakraborty, N., Karpyn, Z., Liu, S., Yoon, H., and Dewers, T., 2020, “Experimental evidence of gas densification and enhanced storage in nanoporous shales.” Journal of Natural Gas Science & Engineering. 76 (103120), DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jngse.2019.103120
- Xiong, B., Purswani, P., Pawlik, T., Samineni, L., Karpyn, Z.T., Zydney, A., & Kumar, M., 2020, “Mechanical Degradation of Polyacrylamide at Ultra High Shear Rates during Hydraulic Fracturing.” Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology, 1(6), 166-172. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/C9EW00530G
- Purswani, P., Tawfik, M., Karpyn, Z.T., & Johns, R. T., 2020, “On the Development of a Relative Permeability Equation of State”. Computational Geosciences, 24, 807-818. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10596-019-9824-2.
- Liu, S., Zhang, R., Karpyn, Z.T., Yoon, H., & Dewers, T., 2019, “Investigation of Accessible Pore Structure Evolution under Pressurization and Adsorption for Coal and Shale Using Small-Angle Neutron Scattering”. Energy & Fuels, 33(2), 837-847. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.energyfuels.8b03672.
- Purswani, P., and Karpyn, Z.T., 2019 “Laboratory Investigation of Chemical Mechanisms Driving Oil Recovery from Oil-Wet Carbonate Rocks”. Fuel, Volume 235, 406-415. DOI: 10.1016/j.fuel.2018.07.078.
Awards
- Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award, The United States Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 2024.
- SPE Regional Reservoir Description and Dynamics Award, Society of Petroleum Engineers Eastern North America Region, 2023.
- Donohue Family Professorship in Petroleum Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, 2021.
- Big Ten Academic Leadership Fellow, Big Ten Academic Alliance, 2018-2019.
- Administrative Fellow, Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, The Pennsylvania State University, 2018-2019.
- Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award, Fulbright – Colciencias Innovation and Technology, The United States Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 2016.
- Energí Simulation (formerly Foundation CMG) Chair in Fluid Behavior and Rock Interactions, 2014-2020.
- Quentin E. and Louise L. Wood Endowed Faculty Fellow in Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, 2010.
- Wilson Award for Excellence in Teaching, The Pennsylvania State University, 2010.
- Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award, National Science Foundation, 2008.