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US 2012/0234599 A1Published application
Measuring Gas Losses at a Rig Surface Circulation System
AssigneeWeatherford/Lamb, Inc.
InventorAurel Brumboiu
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A technique for improving the capability of measuring gas losses at the rig surface area uses a predetermined quantity of a preselected gas injected into the drilling fluid used in the drilling rig, which is then detected and compared to measure the gas loss. Various embodiments may use special-purpose gases. Other embodiments may use air or components of air, such as nitrogen or oxygen, as the gas to be detected and measured.
Claims25
A method of measuring gas losses at a drilling rig surface, comprising:
- adding a predetermined quantity of a preselected gas into a drilling fluid at the drilling rig surface;
- detecting the preselected gas in the drilling fluid;
- measuring a second quantity of the preselected gas in the drilling fluid without modification of a bell nipple or output mud lines connected to the bell nipple;
- and
- comparing the predetermined quantity of the preselected gas with the second quantity of the preselected gas.
2 more elements
A system for measuring gas loss at a possum belly associated with a drilling rig, comprising:
- a gas measuring system, comprising:
- a probe configured to extract a first quantity of preselected marker gas;
- a gas analyzer to measure a first quantity of preselected marker gas extracted by the probe;
- and
- software to calculate gas loss as a comparison of the first quantity with a second quantity of the marker gas injected into a drilling fluid used by the drilling rig,
- wherein the second quantity of the marker gas is injected into the drilling fluid without modifying a bell nipple used by the drilling rig.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.