Downhole sample extractors and downhole sample extraction systems
AssigneeHalliburton Energy Services, Inc.
InventorsMichael T. Pelletier, Darren Gascooke, Christopher Michael Jones
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A downhole sample extractor includes a sample container chamber that holds a sample container containing a downhole sample. The downhole sample extractor also includes a sample extraction chamber having an internal chamber that is partially filled with a carrier solution, wherein the downhole sample is mixed with the carrier solution in the internal chamber of the extraction container. The downhole sample extractor further includes a first piston that, when actuated, inserts the sample container into the internal chamber of the sample extraction chamber.
Claims20
A downhole sample extractor, comprising:
- a sample container chamber that holds a sample container containing a downhole sample;
- a sample extraction chamber;
- and
- a first piston, that when actuated, inserts the sample container into the sample extraction chamber, wherein the first piston is connected to a flowline that forms a flow path between the downhole sample extractor and an analytical instrument, and wherein the first piston comprises an internal cavity that forms an internal flow path that connects the sample extraction chamber to the flowline.
A downhole sample extraction system, comprising:
- a sample container chamber having an interior cavity for receiving a sample container that stores a downhole sample;
- a fluid pump comprising:
- an internal chamber;
- and
- a first piston;
- a first fluid flowline that provides a first fluid flow path for the downhole sample to flow from the sample container chamber, through the first fluid flowline, and into the internal chamber, and
- a second fluid flowline that provides a second flow path for the downhole sample to flow from the sample container chamber, through the second fluid flowline, and to an analytical instrument.
A method to extract a downhole sample, comprising:
- depositing a sample container that contains a downhole sample in an interior cavity of a sample container chamber, wherein a pressure of the downhole sample is above a first threshold level while the downhole sample is stored in the sample container;
- flowing the downhole sample from the sample container to an internal chamber of a fluid pump, the fluid pump further comprising a piston, wherein flowing the downhole sample comprises flowing the downhole sample through a first fluid flowline that connects the sample container chamber to the internal chamber;
- mixing the downhole sample with a carrier solution to form a mixture while maintaining a representative state of the downhole sample in the mixture;
- and
- flowing the mixture via a second fluid flowline to an analytical instrument.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.