PNGE Visual Explainer Skill

Generates self-contained HTML visualizations for petroleum engineering research and education. Every output is a single .html file that works offline, is shareable, and prints cleanly for inclusion in reports and presentations.

Visualization Types

1. Concept Diagrams (SVG)

Reservoir system diagrams (wellbore, formation, aquifer, cap rock)
DLE (Direct Lithium Extraction) process flow
Produced water treatment train (separation, filtration, DLE, reinjection)
Well completion schematics (casing, perforations, tubing, packer)
CO2 injection / CCS process (injection well, plume, monitoring)
Geologic cross-sections (formation layers, faults, aquifer contact)

2. Data Visualizations (Chart.js)

Time series — production decline curves, commodity price history, storage levels
Bar charts — Li concentration by formation, production by state, reserves by country
Scatter plots — porosity vs. permeability, Li vs. TDS, depth vs. concentration
Histograms — distribution of Li values across samples, well depth distributions
Stacked area — energy mix over time, production by formation
Radar/polar — multi-attribute formation comparison

3. Interactive Explanations (JS)

Animated process flows (click through DLE steps)
Tabbed views (compare Marcellus vs. Smackover vs. Bakken)
Hover tooltips with data details and unit conversions
Collapsible sections for progressive detail levels
Toggle between chart views (linear/log scale, absolute/normalized)

4. System Interaction Diagrams (SVG + CSS)

Li supply chain: brine extraction, DLE, refining, battery cathode, EV
Geopolitical mineral dependency maps
Data source relationship diagrams (which databases feed which analyses)
Well-to-market value chain for Li from produced water

Technology Stack

All visualizations use a consistent, proven stack:

Component	Source	Purpose
Chart.js 4.x	`https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/chart.js`	Data charts (line, bar, scatter, etc.)
SVG	Inline	Custom diagrams, schematics, process flows
CSS Grid/Flexbox	Inline	Responsive layout
Vanilla JS	Inline	Interactivity (tabs, tooltips, animations)
CSS Variables	Inline	Dark/light theme support
Print CSS	Inline `@media print`	Report-ready output

No build step. No npm. No server. One file, open in browser.

Color Palette — Petroleum Engineering Conventions

:root {
  /* Fluid colors (industry standard) */
  --oil: #2d5016;          /* dark green */
  --oil-light: #4a8c1c;   /* lighter green for fills */
  --gas: #c0392b;          /* red */
  --gas-light: #e74c3c;   /* lighter red */
  --water: #2980b9;        /* blue */
  --water-light: #3498db;  /* lighter blue */

  /* Geology / earth tones */
  --sandstone: #d4a574;    /* warm tan */
  --shale: #7f8c8d;        /* gray */
  --limestone: #bdc3c7;    /* light gray */
  --formation: #8b6914;    /* dark gold */
  --cap-rock: #5d4e37;     /* brown */

  /* Minerals */
  --lithium: #9b59b6;      /* purple — Li convention */
  --magnesium: #1abc9c;    /* teal — Mg */
  --sodium: #f39c12;       /* amber — Na */
  --calcium: #e67e22;      /* orange — Ca */

  /* UI chrome */
  --bg-primary: #0f1419;   /* dark background */
  --bg-secondary: #1a1f25; /* card background */
  --text-primary: #e8eaed; /* primary text */
  --text-muted: #9aa0a6;   /* secondary text */
  --accent: #c8a850;       /* gold accent — petroleum industry */
  --border: #2d333b;       /* subtle borders */

  /* Light theme overrides (toggled via JS) */
  --bg-primary-light: #ffffff;
  --bg-secondary-light: #f8f9fa;
  --text-primary-light: #1a1a2e;
  --text-muted-light: #6c757d;
  --border-light: #dee2e6;
}

Workflow

Step 1 — Understand the Request

Determine what the user wants to visualize:

User says...	Visualization type	Template
"chart", "plot", "graph", "trend"	Data chart (Chart.js)	Time series, bar, scatter
"diagram", "schematic", "draw"	Concept diagram (SVG)	Well schematic, process flow
"compare", "side by side"	Interactive comparison	Tabbed view, grouped bars
"explain", "how does X work"	Interactive explainer	Animated flow with steps
"flow", "process", "chain"	System diagram (SVG)	Process flow, supply chain
"distribution", "histogram"	Statistical chart	Histogram, box plot

Step 2 — Gather Data or Define Content

If the user provides data (CSV, table, inline values): parse and embed directly
If referencing a PNGE data source: fetch via the appropriate skill first, then visualize
If explaining a concept: define the components, relationships, and flow steps
If comparing items: structure as parallel datasets with shared axes

Step 3 — Select and Populate Template

Choose from the templates in references/templates.md. Key decisions:

Chart type — match data shape to chart type (see table above)
Color mapping — apply PNGE conventions (oil=green, gas=red, water=blue, Li=purple)
Axis labels and units — always include units (mg/L, bbl/d, $/ton, ft, psi)
Data density — if more than 50 data points, consider aggregation or zoom controls
Annotations — mark significant events (regulation changes, price spikes, discoveries)

Step 4 — Generate Self-Contained HTML

Build a single HTML file following this structure:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en" data-theme="dark">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>[Descriptive Title]</title>
  <script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/chart.js"></script>  <!-- only if charts used -->
  <style>
    /* CSS variables, layout, theme, print styles */
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <header>Title + subtitle + theme toggle</header>
  <main>Visualization content</main>
  <footer>Attribution + data source + generation date</footer>
  <script>
    /* Chart initialization, interactivity, theme toggle */
  </script>
</body>
</html>

Step 5 — Save and Report

Save the HTML file to the user's working directory:

# Default location: current directory
OUTFILE="./pnge-viz-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S).html"

# Or user-specified name
OUTFILE="./li-concentration-by-formation.html"

Report to the user:

File path saved
How to open: open $OUTFILE (macOS) or xdg-open $OUTFILE (Linux)
Brief description of what the visualization shows
Data source attribution

Output Format

Every generated HTML file includes:

Header Section

Title describing the visualization
Subtitle with date range or scope
Theme toggle button (dark/light)
Print button

Main Content

The visualization itself (chart, diagram, or interactive)
Legend with PNGE color conventions
Axis labels with units
Hover tooltips with precise values

Footer

"Generated by PNGE Visual Explainer"
Data source attribution (e.g., "Data: USGS National Produced Waters DB v3.0")
Generation timestamp
Caveats or data quality notes if applicable

Print Stylesheet

@media print {
  body { background: white; color: black; }
  .no-print { display: none; }    /* hides theme toggle, buttons */
  .chart-container { break-inside: avoid; }
  footer { font-size: 0.8em; }
}

Error Handling

Situation	Action
No data provided and no source specified	Ask user: "What data should I visualize? Provide inline data, a CSV path, or tell me which PNGE data skill to query."
Data has fewer than 2 points	Warn that a chart may not be meaningful; suggest a table or single-value callout instead
CDN unreachable (Chart.js)	Fall back to an inline SVG bar chart or table rendering
File write fails	Report the error; offer to output the HTML to stdout instead
Data contains mixed units	Normalize to a single unit and note the conversion in the footer
Extremely large dataset (1000+ points)	Downsample or aggregate; add note about sampling method

Template Reference

See references/templates.md for complete HTML templates covering:

Time Series Chart — production curves, price history, storage trends
Bar Chart Comparison — formation Li concentrations, state production rankings
Process Flow Diagram — DLE process, treatment train, well lifecycle
Well Schematic — completion diagram with casing, perforations, zones
Interactive Tabbed View — formation comparison, scenario analysis
Concept Explainer — step-by-step animated explanation with callouts

Python Example

See references/python_example.py for a standalone Python (stdlib-only) script that generates example HTML visualizations demonstrating Chart.js time series, bar charts, and scatter plots with the PNGE color palette.

Caveats

CDN dependency: Chart.js loads from jsdelivr CDN. If the user is offline, provide a note that charts will not render without the library. SVG diagrams work fully offline.
Browser compatibility: Tested patterns work in Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge (all modern versions). IE11 is not supported.
Data accuracy: The skill visualizes data as provided. It does not validate scientific accuracy of the data itself. Always attribute the data source.
File size: Most visualizations produce files under 50 KB. Extremely large inline datasets (10,000+ points) may produce files over 1 MB — consider linking to external data in that case.
Accessibility: Charts include aria-label attributes and alt text. Color choices maintain WCAG AA contrast ratios against their backgrounds.

pnge-visual-explainer