Flow electrification sensor
AssigneeHalliburton Energy Services, Inc.
InventorsZachary Ryan Murphree, Michael Linley Fripp
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Abstract
Flow electrification sensors and methods relating thereto may be useful in characterizing fluids, especially the in situ characterization of fluids produced during oil and gas production operations. For example, a system may include a flow path; a flow electrification sensor at least partially contained within the flow path, the flow electrification sensor comprising a static charge accumulator and an insulator arranged such that the static charge accumulator interacts with a fluid in the flow path; a reference sensor; and a signal processor communicably coupled to the flow electrification sensor and the reference sensor.
Claims20
A system, comprising:
- a flow path;
- a flow electrification sensor at least partially contained within the flow path, the flow electrification sensor comprising a static charge accumulator and an insulator arranged such that the static charge accumulator interacts with a fluid in the flow path;
- a reference sensor;
- and
- a signal processor communicably coupled to the flow electrification sensor and the reference sensor.
A method, comprising:
- flowing a fluid through a flow path and over a flow electrification sensor at least partially contained within the flow path, the flow electrification sensor comprising a static charge accumulator and an insulator arranged such that the static charge accumulator interacts with the fluid;
- accumulating an electrical potential on the static charge accumulator;
- generating a sensor output signal corresponding to the electrical potential of the static charge accumulator;
- generating a reference output signal corresponding to an electrical potential of a reference;
- receiving the sensor output signal and the reference output signal with a signal processor;
- and
- comparing the sensor output signal and the reference output signal.
A method, comprising:
- flowing a fluid through a flow path and a first and a second flow electrification sensor at least partially contained within the flow path, each flow electrification sensor comprising a static charge accumulator and an insulator arranged such that the static charge accumulator interacts with the fluid,
- wherein the flow path extends into a wellbore penetrating a subterranean formation, and
- wherein the first flow electrification sensor is located along the flow path upstream of a first producing portion of the subterranean formation and downstream of a second producing portion of the subterranean formation, and
- wherein the second flow electrification sensor is located along the flow path upstream of the first producing portion of the subterranean formation and the second producing portion of the subterranean formation;
- accumulating an electrical potential on the static charge accumulator of each of the first and the second flow electrification sensors;
- generating a first and a second sensor output signal corresponding to the electrical potential of the static charge accumulator of the first and the second flow electrification sensors, respectively;
- generating a reference output signal corresponding to an electrical potential of the fluid;
- receiving the first and second sensor output signals and the reference output signal with a signal processor;
- comparing the first sensor output signal and the reference output signal, thereby producing a first fluid conductivity measurement;
- comparing the second sensor output signal and the reference output signal, thereby producing a second fluid conductivity measurement;
- and
- comparing the first fluid conductivity measurement and the second fluid conductivity measurement.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.