Downhole segregation for wireline formation fluid sampling
AssigneeSchlumberger Technology Corporation
InventorsGerman Garcia, Hadrien Dumont, Vinay Kumar Mishra
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The disclosure provides for a method for sampling fluid from a subterranean formation that is intersected by a wellbore. The method includes performing an initial draw-down at a target interval in the wellbore to pump fluid from the subterranean formation with a 3D radial probe. The method includes isolating the target interval of the wellbore with a packer and providing a residence time within a dead volume of the packer to allow fluid therein to separate into hydrocarbon and water phases. The method includes pumping a sample of the hydrocarbon into a sample chamber while pumping a remainder of the fluid into the wellbore, and testing the sample to determine a hydrocarbon content of the sample.
Claims19
A method for sampling fluid from a subterranean formation that is intersected by a wellbore, the method comprising:
- isolating a section of the wellbore with a fluid tester, the fluid tester including an inlet, wherein isolating the section of the wellbore with the fluid tester includes providing a space between the inlet of the fluid tester and the subterranean formation;
- pumping a fluid mixture from the subterranean formation into the wellbore and into the inlet of the fluid tester, wherein during the pumping the fluid mixture enters the space and at least partially separates within the space into at least two phases, the at least two phases including a hydrocarbon-based phase and a water-based phase;
- while the hydrocarbon-based phase and the water-based phase enter the inlet of the fluid tester, pumping a sample of at least a portion of the hydrocarbon-based phase with a first pump from the fluid tester inlet to a sample chamber and using a second pump to pump a remainder of fluid from the fluid tester inlet into the wellbore, wherein the second pump exhibits a higher pump rate than a pump rate of the first pump;
- testing a hydrocarbon content of the sample;
- and
- running the first pump at a different rate than the second pump, wherein the pump rate of the second pump is at least two times greater than the pump rate of the first pump, and thereby removing the hydrocarbon-based phase.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.