Evaluating solid particle separation in wellbore fluids

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10151678-B2
Application number	US-201414899027-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 25, 2014
Priority date	Nov 25, 2014
Publication date	Dec 11, 2018
Grant date	Dec 11, 2018

Abstract

Turbidity measurement systems and methods of using the same are described. A turbidity measurement system comprises a vessel configured to hold a wellbore fluid, wherein a porous media is positioned in the vessel; a light source positioned to direct light at the vessel; a light detector positioned to measure light intensity of light emitted by the light source and passing through the vessel; a backscatter detector configured to measure the light intensity of reflected light emitted from the light source; and a computer system communicatively coupled to at least one of the light source, light detector, or light detector.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. A turbidity measurement system comprising:
a vessel configured to hold the wellbore fluid, wherein the vessel comprises an injection port coupled to a wellbore fluid stream from an upstream process, wherein the vessel comprises a flow path for the wellbore fluid stream, and wherein a porous media is positioned in the vessel;
a light source positioned to direct light at the vessel;
a light detector positioned to measure light intensity of light emitted by the light source and passing through the vessel;
a backscatter detector configured to measure the light intensity of reflected light emitted from the light source; and
a computer system communicatively coupled to at least one of the light source, light detector, or light detector, wherein the computer system is configured to analyze signal data obtained from at least one of the light detector or the backscatter detector, and wherein the computer system is configured to adjust one or more parameters of the upstream process in response to the analyzed signal data.

2. A system according to claim 1 , wherein the light source, light detector, and backscatter detector are capable of scanning the entirety of the length and/or width of the vessel.

3. A system according to any of claim 1 , wherein the light source, light detector, and backscatter detector are not connected together as a single unit.

4. A system according to claim 1 , wherein the upstream process comprises a separation process.

5. A system according to claim 1 , wherein the porous media comprises at least one porous media selected from the group consisting of a filter, a subterranean formation sample, and combinations thereof.

6. A system according to claim 1 , wherein the vessel further comprises a filtrate port.

7. A system according to claim 6 , wherein the filtrate port is coupled to a downstream process.

8. A method for process control comprising:
receiving a wellbore fluid stream from an upstream process;
injecting a volume of the wellbore fluid into the interior of a vessel, wherein a porous media is positioned in the vessel;
passing the wellbore fluid through the porous media;
measuring the turbidity of the wellbore fluid with a turbidity measurement apparatus, wherein the turbidity measurement apparatus comprises a light source, a light detector, and a backscatter detector, wherein the turbidity measurement apparatus measures a first turbidity of the wellbore fluid before the porous media and a second turbidity of the wellbore fluid after the porous media; and
adjusting one or more parameters of the upstream process in response to the first turbidity measurement and the second turbidity measurement.

9. A method according to claim 8 , wherein the light source, light detector, and backscatter detector are capable of scanning the entirety of the length and/or width of the vessel.

10. A method according to claim 8 , wherein the light source, light detector, and backscatter detector are not connected together as a single unit.

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• Shen Rui
• Harvey Timothy N
• Jamison Dale E
• Mcdaniel Cato Russell

Classifications

• G01N15/0631 Primary

  Separation of liquids, e.g. by absorption, wicking · CPC title

• G01N21/51

  inside a container, e.g. in an ampoule (G01N21/53 takes precedence) · CPC title

• G01N2015/084

  Testing filters · CPC title

• G01N15/06 Primary

  Investigating concentration of particle suspensions (by weighing G01N5/00; investigating sedimentation of particle suspensions G01N15/04; investigating individual particles G01N15/10) · CPC title

• G01N2201/061

  Sources · CPC title