Alternating flow resistance increases and decreases for propagating pressure pulses in a subterranean well
AssigneeHalliburton Energy Services, Inc.
InventorsMichael L. Fripp, Jason D. Dykstra
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method of propagating pressure pulses in a well can include flowing a fluid composition through a variable flow resistance system which includes a vortex chamber having at least one inlet and an outlet, a vortex being created when the fluid composition spirals about the outlet, and a resistance to flow of the fluid composition alternately increasing and decreasing. The vortex can be alternately created and dissipated in response to flowing the fluid composition through the system. A well system can include a variable flow resistance system which propagates pressure pulses into a formation in response to flow of a fluid composition from the formation.
Claims15
A method of propagating pressure pulses in a subterranean well, the method comprising:
- flowing a fluid composition through at least one variable flow resistance system which includes an inlet, a vortex chamber, and an outlet, a vortex being created when the fluid composition flows spirally about the outlet;
- and
- the vortex being alternately created and dissipated in response to a variation in backpressure being transmitted from the vortex chamber to the inlet,
- wherein the inlet supplies the fluid composition to first and second flow passages, and
- wherein the variable flow resistance system further comprises a control passage which receives a portion of the fluid composition from the vortex chamber, thereby influencing more of the fluid composition to flow into the chamber via the second flow passage, when the fluid composition spirals about the outlet in the chamber due to flow of the fluid composition into the chamber via the first flow passage.
A method of propagating pressure pulses in a subterranean well, the method comprising:
- flowing a fluid composition through at least one variable flow resistance system which includes an inlet, a vortex chamber, and an outlet, a vortex being created when the fluid composition flows spirally about the outlet, wherein the flowing further comprises flowing multiple fluid compositions through respective multiple variable flow resistance systems;
- the vortex being alternately created and dissipated in response to a variation in backpressure being transmitted from the vortex chamber to the inlet;
- and
- detecting which of the variable flow resistance systems have vortices which are alternately created and dissipated in response to flow of the respective fluid composition.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.