Management of Implementation of Nanotechnology in Upstream Oil Industry: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Analysis

Nanotechnology has had revolutionary effects in various fields of industry such as electronics, pharmaceuticals, and biomaterials. However, upstream oil industry has been noticeably slow in adopting the emerging technologies. This is mainly due to the exceptionally large investments needed to implement novel technologies in this industry. However, the projections for the increasing global energy demand require that oil and gas industry inevitably move toward adopting the emerging technologies. The high risk associated with enormous investments required for this aim necessitates measured and well-researched energy policies, with regard to the implementation of nanotechnology in the oil and gas industry. This paper presents a concise summary of the research reported in the literature on the potential benefits of nanotechnology in upstream oil industry. These applications were categorized into ten groups, and presented to a pool of experts, who judged on their relative importance with respect to various decision-making criteria. All this information was then compiled into a single matrix, which indicates the priority of each investment alternative with respect to every criterion in the form of a raw number. Finally, using a decision-making software package, a dynamic analytic hierarchical process (AHP) analysis was performed, providing a route to customized investment policies.