Students of the first and second years at Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University became the first in Russia to complete an in-person scientific internship at Shiraz University in Iran, conducted in English. The intensive program, which included lectures on cybersecurity, practical sessions, visits to laboratories and business accelerators (startup support institutions), the Fars Science and Technology Park (FTSP), the headquarters of the World Islamic Center for Scientific Citation (ISC), industrial enterprises in the city, and local landmarks, marked another step in the collaboration between the Mining University and Shiraz University within the framework of the "Hope — Mobile Intelligence" program.
A year and a half ago, the first delegation of St. Petersburg miners visited Shiraz University with a working visit. Shiraz University, according to global rankings, is among the top three universities in Iran. The university's campus spans 3,000 hectares and is home to 17,000 students, 700 professors, 19 faculties, 76 departments, and 430 specialties — ranging from humanities and medical disciplines to nuclear physics, IT, and artificial intelligence, from nanotechnology and biotechnology to optoelectronics, cybersecurity, and veterinary medicine. The university places special emphasis on oil and gas and mining engineering.
Based on the similarity of programs at Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University and Shiraz University, ten joint scientific teams were formed, with leaders from both sides, to work on topics such as "Scientific and Methodological Justification of the Maximum Allowable Depressions in the Development of Weakly Cemented Oil Reservoirs" or "Determination of Energy and Thermodynamic Parameters of the Carbon Dioxide Injection Regime in the Reservoir Structures of Oil Fields." The production efficiency of these projects is estimated in the tens of millions of dollars.
| According to OPEC, Iran ranks third in the world in terms of proven oil reserves, with a total of more than 20 billion tons of black gold in its subsoil. Iran also holds third place in natural gas production, with 256.7 billion cubic meters. However, the oil recovery factor is only about 24% (compared to an average of 34% in the Russian Federation). |
The scientific groups, whose roadmaps were defined through regular video conferences, are engaged not only in hydrocarbons but also in ore bodies, metallurgy, ecology, electrical engineering, and economics. Based on their work, the idea for the "Hope – Mobile Intelligence" program emerged, which aims to create a talent pool of future scientists from today's students.
To complete the internship, students of Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University underwent a rigorous selection process, which included several stages: submitting an application with academic performance data — only students with a GPA of 4.25 or higher were eligible for the trip; preparing a motivational letter with a scientific justification for participating in the program; a recommendation from the academic group curator; and an interview with professors of the Mining University in English. As a result, 16 first- and second-year students successfully passed all the challenges and made it to the "oil capital" of Iran.
The trip began with visits to the university's laboratories — robotics, oil and gas, and petrochemical faculties. In the robotics lab, students assemble and program robots, actively utilizing the Internet of Things (IoT) — devices and systems connect to the network and exchange data with external services without human intervention. The students were introduced to the technology of Reinforcement Learning (RL) — an approach where robots are trained to move correctly in space and improve their movements by controlling their trajectory and avoiding collisions with obstacles. Within the framework of RL, a robot that successfully completes a task receives a "reward" — a numerical value signaling the successful execution of an action in a given situation. This reward motivates the machine to make the right decisions in the future and continuously, and most importantly, effectively improve itself.
In the oil and gas faculty laboratory, students were shown equipment for analyzing the filtration and reservoir properties (FRP) of the reservoir — installations for simulating flooding, as well as a viscometer, an areometer, and a slim-tube for determining the parameters of the mixing state of oil and gas.
«It was especially interesting to look at the slim-tube system. Experiments with the slim-tube allow us to determine the pressure and temperature values at which CO2 and oil mix with given physicochemical properties. The apparatus allows us to assess the efficiency of oil displacement by gas, determine the minimum mixing pressure, and study the interaction of oil and gas under various temperatures and pressures», — explained Pavel Pushin, a student from the Department of Development and Operation of Oil and Gas Fields.
In the petrochemical laboratory, the students were shown distillation columns and a device for synthesizing methanol.
The core of the lecture portion of the internship focused on industrial cybersecurity, an area of particular attention in Iran due to the frequent digital attacks targeting state systems and enterprises. The students studied the data and principles of operation of Distributed Control Systems (DCS), which allow continuous monitoring of equipment and production processes. For example, data from sensors, such as gas leak detectors or pressure changes, are compared with set parameters through programmable logic controllers (PLC), and the results are transmitted to the HMI interface (operator panels) for analysis by the operator. Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS) allow the detection of cyberattacks, including hidden ones, while Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems provide monitoring of facilities over large areas.
«With the help of such control systems (DCS and SCADA), continuous monitoring of equipment and production processes becomes possible. For example, in the oil and gas industry, they can be used to monitor compliance with conditions for transportation, storage, and extraction of fuel», — noted Leonid Klochkiv, a student from the Department of Geology and Mineral Exploration.
Iranian professors introduced the Mining University students to methods of malware infection, cybersecurity standards (ISA, IEC, NIST), and the Defense in Depth strategy, which includes six layers of protection with a focus on firewalls and physical security. They also covered global antivirus tools (Virustotal, Hybrid analysis), hashing (HashCalc, Hash Tool, WinMD5), and archiving tools (RGD Tool).
«Iran is one of the key targets for cyberattacks, which requires highly skilled specialists and quick adaptation. The solutions presented demonstrate the expertise of the professionals and their readiness to respond to challenges in the field of information security», — said Alisa Pavlova, a student of Informatics and Computer Engineering at the Mining University.
Students were given the opportunity to immediately apply the knowledge they gained in practice — by checking files on their computers for malicious software using various programs and tools. Following eight lectures, the guests from St. Petersburg took a written exam — all successfully passed the test and received certificates from Shiraz University.
An important part of the educational program was the visit to the Fars Science and Technology Park (FSTP). The research and innovation center was founded in 2002 and operates under the auspices of the Iranian Ministry of Science, Research, and Technology. FSTP business incubators help graduates and researchers commercialize scientific developments and create new jobs.
The space emerged as a response to Western sanctions: it develops national industry and import substitution while supporting Iranian startups. Currently, FSTP hosts 400 companies employing 4,500 people. Shiraz University students are actively involved — they can propose their ideas or join an existing project of a company and sign a contract with it. The startup enters the incubation program, where the project is provided with office space and laboratories at reduced rates or free of charge, as well as access to critical infrastructure, equipment, and services. Additionally, young innovators benefit from business mentorship from scientists and legal support, such as assistance with registration, licenses, and tax issues. The park's sales volume in the domestic market is 17 trillion rials (approximately 2.1 billion rubles).
At FSTP, students were shown Iranian-manufactured endoscopes. The cost of such a device when purchased abroad is $40,000, while the product made at the park costs $25,000. Other examples of successful import substitution include vibration monitoring systems (VMS), programmable logic controllers (PLC), ignition systems, and cruise control modules.
Similar goals are set by the business accelerators of Shiraz University, Quantum+ and HUB Shiraz, which also welcomed the students from St. Petersburg. These organizations help Iranian students develop their own projects — they can receive funding and mentorship to bring their ideas to life. About every seventh company eventually transitions to the FSTP.
The students were shown the opportunities for developing scientific literature databases under the conditions of Western sanctions at the Iranian Scientific Citation Center (ISC). This organization is the Islamic equivalent of Scopus, Web of Science, and Russia's RINC. It focuses on indexing scientific journals and forming university rankings. ISC promotes the science of Muslim countries by processing articles in non-European languages and creating separate rankings for universities in the Muslim world. Since last year, following a series of mutual visits by scientists from Iran and Russia, the Journal of Mining Institute has also been included in the ISC database, and research from both countries is now mutually promoted and cited. The Mining University is also included in the rankings of universities in the Islamic world.
The students also visited several enterprises located in the industrial area of Shiraz — those producing auto parts, medical equipment, and security systems, where they were shown the features of technological processes and successes in production automation.
«One of the most interesting enterprises we visited was an auto parts production facility. The local company manufactures parts for Peugeot independently, as official cooperation with the French automaker ceased 20 years ago due to sanctions. There are many cars of this brand in Shiraz, and the company was able to develop the parameters for these parts on its own and establish production, which directly impacts the quality of life for the city's residents», — noted Kristina Tolstikhina, a student from the Faculty of Economics, studying systems analysis and management.
During their free time from scientific and applied activities, students from the Mining University participated in cultural and educational excursions. They observed the full moon at the local observatory, visited the Nasir al-Mulk Mosque, also known as the Pink Mosque, the Narenjestan Qavam palace garden-museum, the garden with the tomb of Hazifa, the Jahan Nama garden, and Persepolis.
Just under a year ago, the Mining University hosted students from Shiraz University. At that time, professors from the Islamic university were working at the Sablino training ground.
The recent internship of St. Petersburg students at Shiraz University has become an important step in the development of international scientific cooperation. The "Hope — Mobile Intelligence" program demonstrates its effectiveness as a unique format for training the new generation of researchers, bringing together young Russian and Iranian scientists in joint projects aimed at solving current technological challenges. On the horizon of opportunities and already in the preliminary discussion stage is the creation of an online platform for exchanging case studies between universities, holding joint conferences on industrial technologies, and organizing workshops with industry representatives.
The scientific aspects of the visit will be covered in the next article.