Fluid cell device and method for measuring drilling mud properties
OwnerAlexei Olegovich Bolshakov, Kristoffer Thomas Walkerinventors
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Abstract
A fluid cell device and method are described for measuring properties of drilling mud in a borehole in an earth formation. The fluid cell device includes a housing, a first chamber, a second chamber adjacent to the first chamber, and a plate located between the first chamber and the second chamber. The drilling mud from the borehole flows into the first chamber and the second chamber. A transducer transmits an acoustic signal across the first chamber toward the plate. Reflections and reverberations responsive to the acoustic signal are analyzed to determine properties of the drilling mud including mud velocity and mud impedance.
Claims20
A fluid cell device for measuring properties of a drilling mud in a borehole in an earth formation, the fluid cell device comprising:
- a housing;
- a first chamber disposed in the housing and having a first width, the first chamber configured to receive a first portion of the drilling mud;
- a second chamber disposed in the housing adjacent to the first chamber and having a second width, the second chamber configured to receive a second portion of the drilling mud;
- a plate disposed between the first chamber and the second chamber and at a distal end of the first chamber and a proximal end of the second chamber, a proximal surface of the plate facing the first chamber and a distal surface of the plate facing the second chamber;
- and
- a first transducer disposed at a proximal end of the first chamber, wherein the first transducer directs an acoustic signal toward the proximal surface of the plate.
A method for measuring properties of a drilling mud in a borehole in an earth formation, the method comprising:
- deploying a fluid cell device into drilling mud in the borehole, the fluid cell device comprising:
- a housing;
- a first chamber disposed in the housing and having a first width, the first chamber configured to receive a first portion of the drilling mud;
- a second chamber disposed in the housing adjacent to the first chamber and having a second width, the second chamber configured to receive a second portion of the drilling mud;
- a plate disposed between the first chamber and the second chamber and at a distal end of the first chamber and a proximal end of the second chamber, a proximal surface of the plate facing the first chamber and a distal surface of the plate facing the second chamber;
- and
- a first transducer disposed at a proximal end of the first chamber, wherein the first transducer directs an acoustic signal toward the proximal surface of the plate;
- and
- analyzing recorded reflections and reverberations responsive to the acoustic signal to determine a mud velocity and a mud impedance of the drilling mud.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.