Dr. Toyin Olabisi Odutola
University of Port Harcourt
Spring 2020
Dr. Toyin Olabisi Odutola is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Petroleum and Gas Engineering at the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) and the Assistant Director of the Emerald Energy Institute. A Spring 2020 MIT ETT Fellow, she is a leading authority on Flow Assurance and Gas Hydrate Management who is recognized for pioneering home grown solutions to pipeline blockages in the Niger Delta. Her research is centered on preventing the formation of Gas Hydrates which are ice like crystals that can block oil and gas pipelines and cause catastrophic shutdowns. She made history by designing and fabricating the first Hydrate Flow Loop in Nigeria. This specialized experimental rig allows researchers to simulate pipeline conditions and test inhibitors locally rather than sending samples abroad. This invention was featured by the BBC and has become a cornerstone for flow assurance research in West Africa. Dr. Odutola holds a Ph.D. in Petroleum Engineering from UNIPORT (2017) and an M.Sc. from the African University of Science and Technology (AUST) in Abuja. She is a champion of Green Chemistry and investigates the use of agricultural waste such as extracts from Red Onion Skins and Pineapple Crowns as eco friendly alternatives to toxic chemical inhibitors for preventing pipeline corrosion and hydrate formation. Following her fellowship at MIT, she integrated Active Learning into her petroleum engineering classes by using her flow loop to teach students practical fluid dynamics. She is the recipient of the 2024 SPE Africa Regional Distinguished Achievement Award for Petroleum Engineering Faculty and authored the monograph Hydrate Prediction and Management in Offshore Environment. She also mentors young girls in STEM through her virtual platform Teens Hangout.
