Fluid Flow Investigation Patents (Class 702/12)
  • Patent number: 6842725
    Abstract: A method is disclosed for modelling fluid flows in a fractured multilayer porous medium by accounting for the real geometry of the fracture network and the local exchanges between the porous matrix and the fractures at each node of the network, thus allowing simulation of the interactions between the pressure and flow rate variations in a well running across the medium. The method essentially comprises discretizing the fractured medium by means of a mesh pattern, with fracture meshes centered on nodes at the various intersections of the fractures with each node being associated with a matrix volume, and determination of the flows between each fracture mesh and the associated matrix volume in a pseudosteady state. The method can be applied in hydrocarbon production well testing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 1999
    Date of Patent: January 11, 2005
    Assignee: Institut Francais du Petrole
    Inventor: Sylvain Sarda
  • Publication number: 20040243311
    Abstract: The present invention relates to obtaining the analytical closed form solution to mean and variance in heat flow by solving the stochastic heat conduction equation incorporating randomness in the thermal conductivity. The method of the present invention has a wide range of applications in quantifying the thermal State of the crust and in obtaining closed form expressions for subsurface heat flow structure along with its error bounds. The exact formulae used in the invention can be used to better evaluate the thermal state for related oil and natural gas applications and also in tectonic studies and in studies related to the crystallization of minerals.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2004
    Publication date: December 2, 2004
    Applicant: COUNCIL OF SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH
    Inventors: Kirti Srivastava, R.N. Singh
  • Patent number: 6826520
    Abstract: A method is provided for scaling up permeabilities associated with a fine-scale grid of cells representative of a porous medium to permeabilities associated with an unstructured coarse-scale grid of cells representative of the porous medium. An areally unstructured, Voronoi, computational grid is generated using the coarse-scale grid as the genesis of the computational grid. The computational grid is then populated with permeabilities associated with the fine-scale grid. Flow equations are developed for the computational grid, the flow equations are solved, and inter-node fluxes and pressure gradients are then computed for the computational grid. These inter-node fluxes and pressure gradients are used to calculate inter-node average fluxes and average pressure gradients associated with the coarse-scale grid. The inter-node average fluxes and average pressure gradients associated with the coarse grid are then used to calculate upscaled permeabilities associated with the coarse-scale grid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2000
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2004
    Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company
    Inventors: Sameer A. Khan, Aaron G. Dawson
  • Publication number: 20040231408
    Abstract: The present invention provides a down hole spectrometer for determination of dew point pressure to determine an associated optimal pumping rate during sampling to avoid precipitation of asphaltenes in a formation sample. A sample is captured at formation pressure in a controlled volume. The pressure in the controlled volume is reduced. Initially the formation fluid sample appears dark and allows less light energy to pass through a sample under test. The sample under test, however, becomes lighter and allows more light energy to pass through the sample as the pressure is reduced and the formation fluid sample becomes thinner or less dense under the reduced pressure. At the dew point pressure, however, the sample begins to darken and allows less light energy to pass through it as apshaltenes begin to precipitate out of the sample. Thus, the dew point is that pressure at which peak light energy passes through the sample.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 21, 2004
    Publication date: November 25, 2004
    Applicant: Baker Hughes Incorporated
    Inventor: Michael Shammai
  • Patent number: 6823297
    Abstract: A multi-scale finite-volume (MSFV) method to solve elliptic problems with a plurality of spatial scales arising from single or multi-phase flows in porous media is provided. Two sets of locally computed basis functions are employed. A first set of basis functions captures the small-scale heterogeneity of the underlying permeability field, and it is computed to construct the effective coarse-scale transmissibilities. A second set of basis functions is required to construct a conservative fine-scale velocity field. The method efficiently captures the effects of small scales on a coarse grid, is conservative, and treats tensor permeabilities correctly. The underlying idea is to construct transmissibilities that capture the local properties of a differential operator. This leads to a multi-point discretization scheme for a finite-volume solution algorithm. Transmissibilities for the MSFV method are preferably constructed only once as a preprocessing step and can be computed locally.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 6, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 23, 2004
    Assignees: Chevron U.S.A. Inc., Schlumberger Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Patrick Jenny, Seong Lee, Hamdi A. Tchelepi
  • Patent number: 6804613
    Abstract: The present invention is intended to achieve measurement of electrode impedance that is not easily affected by fluid noise, and to accurately detect adhesion and discriminate the type of fluid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 12, 2004
    Assignee: Yokogawa Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Ikuhiko Ishikawa, Hironobu Oota
  • Patent number: 6799117
    Abstract: Systems and methods for estimating properties of fluid samples pumped from a formation through a well are described. Based upon input properties, an artificial neural network (ANN) may predict a plurality of data points, and each data point may correspond to a predicted time sample of the property of the fluid sample. Properties predicted by the ANN include sample quality or pumping pressure differential.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 28, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2004
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Mark A. Proett, Jianghui Wu, James M. Fogal, Madan Mohan Manohar
  • Publication number: 20040186666
    Abstract: Process for the location of the position of the interface (5) between two fluids (f1, f2) each contained in a zone (7-1, 7-2) of a reservoir (4) in which: a) a reference transient flow condition that produces a reference pressure difference (&Dgr;Pref (t)), is initiated in a reservoir (4) that comprises at least one pressure sensor (8) located within one of the zones (Z1), b) later an effective transient flow condition that produces a pressure wave which propagates within the reservoir (4) producing an effective pressure difference (&Dgr;Pul?(t)) is initiated, c) the pressure differences (&Dgr;Pref (t)), (&Dgr;Pul (t)) are compared, d) a point in time (&Dgr;1) that represents the instant when the pressure wave reaches the interface (5) between the two fluids (f1, f2) is determined, the distance (L1) between the interface (5) and the pressure sensor (8) is calculated. The operations b) to d) are repeated in order to monitor movement of the boundary. Application in the petroleum industry.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 22, 2003
    Publication date: September 23, 2004
    Inventor: Yves Manin
  • Patent number: 6786086
    Abstract: A method for determining the in-situ effective mobility of hydrocarbons in a formation layer, in which a formation test tool, having a fluid analyzer, induces sample fluid to flow from the formation, the sample being analyzed and discarded where it includes fluid from the invaded zone, so as to perform the pressure test on uncontaminated formation fluid.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2003
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2004
    Assignee: Shell Oil Company
    Inventor: Mohamed Naguib Hashem
  • Patent number: 6782321
    Abstract: The QuickSite™ method provides a framework for conducting accurate, timely and economical site investigations and characterizations of potentially contaminated regions. QuickSite™ organizes the investigative steps into three phases, each of which has different objectives but which share a similar iterative nature. The first phase, using any existing data if available, determines the geologic and hydrogeologic features of a site which affect contaminant distribution. The second phase, based on the framework of the first phase, determines the extent of contamination within the site under investigation and the third phase predicts the future contaminant distribution within the site and can provide analysis of different remedial or corrective scenarios if appropriate. Throughout the data collecting, analysis and interpretation steps of each phase rigorous quality control and assurance practices are implemented.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2002
    Date of Patent: August 24, 2004
    Inventor: Jacqueline C. Burton
  • Patent number: 6751556
    Abstract: A technique usable with a subterranean well includes deploying a first optical sensor downhole in the subterranean well. The technique includes observing an intensity of backscattered light from the first optical sensor to measure a distribution of a characteristic along a portion of the well. The technique includes deploying a second sensor downhole to measure the characteristic at discreet points within the portion. The second sensor is separate from this first sensor and includes at least one interferometric sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2002
    Date of Patent: June 15, 2004
    Assignee: Sensor Highway Limited
    Inventors: Robert J. Schroeder, Jeffrey Tarvin, Rogerio T. Ramos, George A. Brown
  • Publication number: 20040111216
    Abstract: There is a method of determining properties relating to an underbalanced well, comprising inducing pressure variations in a fluid within a well, measuring the pressure variations, and calculating pore pressure of at least one fluid-producing formation. The pressure variations cause a change in flow rate from formations along a length of borehole, and as such a change in the production flow rate of the well. The variations in pressure are used to calculate the pore pressure. Variations in annular bottomhole pressure are induced by altering the flow rate of drilling fluid, or the density of drilling fluid or by acoustic pulsing downhole. The pore pressure, permeability and porosity of the formations is derived as a real time profile along the length of the borehole.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 8, 2004
    Publication date: June 10, 2004
    Inventors: Wendy Kneissl, Yan Kuhn De Chizelle
  • Publication number: 20040093937
    Abstract: Determining the in situ effective mobility of a formation layer comprises selecting a location in the formation layer; lowering in the borehole traversing the formation layer a tool that comprises a central conduit having an inlet and being provided with a pressure sensor, a fluid receptacle having an inlet opening into the central conduit. a fluid analyser, and means for discharging fluid; making an exclusive fluid communication between the formation and the inlet of the central conduit; allowing formation fluid to pass through the central conduit, analysing the fluid, allowing the formation fluid to enter into the fluid receptacle when the fluid is the substantially uncontaminated formation fluid, and measuring the pressure build-up: and determining the effective mobility from the pressure build-up.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 14, 2003
    Publication date: May 20, 2004
    Inventor: Mohamed Naguib Hashem
  • Publication number: 20040098202
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method for chemical analysis of drilling-, drill-in, completion-, formation-, and production fluids, which may be employed at rig site or in a remote location, comprising:
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 20, 2003
    Publication date: May 20, 2004
    Inventors: Robert Irving McNeil, Sabine Claudia Zeilinger, James William Nicholson
  • Patent number: 6738720
    Abstract: A system for measuring density of material which can be embodied to measuring bulk density of material penetrated by a borehole. The probe component of the system comprises a source of neutron radiation and preferably two gamma ray spectrometers. The neutron source induces gamma radiation with energies up to about 10 MeV within the material being measured. Formation bulk density is determined by combining spectra of the induced gamma radiation with preferably two gamma ray spectrometers at differing axial spacings from the source. The high energy and dispersed nature of the induced gamma radiation yields greater radial depth of investigation than that obtainable with prior art backscatter density systems, which typically use gamma ray sources local to a probe and of energy about 1.3 MeV or less. The system can alternately be embodied to measure other material properties and to measure density of materials not penetrated by a borehole.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2001
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2004
    Assignee: Computalog U.S.A.
    Inventors: Richard C. Odom, Robert D. Wilson
  • Patent number: 6718311
    Abstract: A method, apparatus and system, the method comprising receiving a request indication representing a request for an item, receiving a provided indication representing providing said item, and signalling an operator when the request indication has no corresponding provided indication. The apparatus includes a request indication receiver for receiving the request indication, a provided indication receiver for receiving the provided indication, a processing circuit for determining when the request indication has no corresponding provided indication, and a signal device in communication with the processing circuit for signalling the operator when the request indication has no corresponding provided indication.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 1998
    Date of Patent: April 6, 2004
    Assignee: Sprint Enterprises Inc.
    Inventor: Tap Suo-Anttila
  • Patent number: 6714872
    Abstract: The present invention provides method of quantifying sample clean up in real time by providing curve-fitting measurements of optical or physical properties of fluid samples in boreholes. Sample fluid is extracted from the formation surrounding the borehole. As fluid continues to be extracted the composition of the extracted sample changes, altering the values of physical properties of the sample being measured. Measurements are made of optical or physical properties of the sampled fluid, and regression analysis is performed on the acquired measured data points. In one embodiment of the invention, iterative methods enable a user to determine an asymptotic value of a physical property, i.e. absorbance, as well as the percent of the progress that the current sample has obtained toward reaching the asymptotic property value and a projected time to reach the asymptotic property value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 27, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2004
    Assignee: Baker Hughes Incorporated
    Inventors: Rocco DiFoggio, Jaedong Lee
  • Patent number: 6714871
    Abstract: A method for quantifying permeability of a vuggy reservoir includes determining a permeability modeled with matrix porosity (K0) of the reservoir, determining a vug porosity (&PHgr;vug) of the reservoir, and quantifying permeability (K) of the reservoir as follows: K=aK0·bc&PHgr;wg, where a, b, and c are constants.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2002
    Date of Patent: March 30, 2004
    Assignee: Schlumberger Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Chunming Xu, Bill M. Newberry
  • Publication number: 20040049345
    Abstract: A system(11) architecture, and method for creating, storing, managing, accessing, communicating and displaying command, control and management information, to include text documents, tables, static map data and geographically reference dynamic data for the management of incidents or events by distributed, ad-hoc groups are described herein. The static map data may include, for example, cartographic data in digital format such as terrain data or street data. The dynamic data may include text, documents, tables, icons, and other symbology that graphically represent current status information (e.g., the current location of an incident, a resource, or the status of a facility). The system (11) includes one or more client subsystems (16, 17, 18, 19) running purpose-built and/or conventional software applications that communicate with a server subsystem (11) and can independently request, receive, store, and subsequently display the static map data and/or the dynamic data in document, tabular or graphical form.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 8, 2003
    Publication date: March 11, 2004
    Inventors: James G McDonough, Robert H Torchon, Matt Savage Walton, William H Crooks
  • Publication number: 20040049346
    Abstract: The invention concerns methods and devices for determining the quality of an oil well reserve or the like delivering a given fluid derived from a productive layer, by measuring the response R of the well. The inventive method implemented by the device is characetrised in that it consists in modulating the fluid flow rate (4) in the well (1) by a sinusoidal function by means of a controllable preventer (5), and in measuring the variations in flow rate and pressure of the fluid respectively with a flow meter (7) and a pressure sensor (9), the response Rc of the well (1); if the productive layer comprises a damaged zone having a positive formation damage of non-null thickness, is obtained by the equation (1), and the response Rf the well; if the productive layer comprises a fracture having a negative formation damage, is obtained by the equation (11). The invention is applicable to oil prospecting.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 29, 2003
    Publication date: March 11, 2004
    Inventors: Damien Despax, Robert Dovis, Jean-Michel Fedele, Jean-Pierre Martin
  • Patent number: 6704696
    Abstract: A designing apparatus comprises symbol mark memory for storing fluid controllers usable in fluid control devices in terms of symbol marks representing the functions, fluid channels and contours of the controllers, and a flowchart preparing device for preparing a flowchart of a fluid control device represented by symbol marks. The flowchart preparing device successively selects controllers, such as valves and massflow controllers, from a symbol mark file in the memory, arranges the selected controllers on a screen as suitably positioned, automatically selects a suitable coupling member for interconnecting adjacent two of the controllers from a coupling member data file and automatically arranges te controllers and the coupling members thus selected to prepare a flowchart.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 15, 1999
    Date of Patent: March 9, 2004
    Assignee: Fujikin Incorporated
    Inventors: Michio Kuramochi, Masayuki Hatano, Hiroshi Ogawa
  • Patent number: 6694262
    Abstract: A novel method for measuring fracture porosity in coal seams is disclosed. Knowledge of fracture porosity is critical to methane production from coal seams as fractures form the main permeable pathways for gas migration. The disclosed invention can be used to determine likely locations where commercially significant amounts of fracturing have occurred in the coals. These locations pose prime targets for methane exploration, and the disclosed invention comprises a significant new tool in methane exploration. The disclosed invention uses existing geophysical well log data, a screening process and calculations based on the characteristics of the fluid used to drill the hole. Using these data, the volume of invaded coal is determined, as well as the volume of drilling fluid available to create this invasion. The volume fraction of the invading drilling fluid divided by the volume of the invaded rock produces a measure of the fracture porosity of the coal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 27, 2001
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2004
    Inventor: Alexander T. Rozak
  • Publication number: 20040006429
    Abstract: A fibre optic sensor system provides sufficient thermal information to determine the mass flow rates of produced fluids within a well bore, using an optical fibre placed within or adjacent to the well bore without interference with production or prejudicing the integrity of the well. Mass flow rates of fluid in a conduit (20) located in a heat sink differing in temperature from the fluid are determined by obtaining a distributed temperature profile (32) of fluid flowing along a length of conduit (15) by using optical data obtained from a length of optical fibre in thermal contact therewith, obtaining a profile of the heat sink temperature external to the conduit, and deriving mass flow rates of fluids in the conduit from the said profiles and from measured thermal transfer parameters.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 17, 2003
    Publication date: January 8, 2004
    Inventor: George Albert Brown
  • Publication number: 20030225522
    Abstract: A method for evaluating well performance includes deriving a reservoir effective permeability estimate from data points in a production history, wherein the data points include dimensional flow rates and dimensional cumulative production, at least one of the data points has no sand face flowing pressure information; and deriving at least one reservoir property from the reservoir effective permeability estimate and the data points according to a well type and a boundary condition for a well that produced the production data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 29, 2003
    Publication date: December 4, 2003
    Inventor: Bobby D. Poe
  • Publication number: 20030201098
    Abstract: Systems and methods of using a computer system to simulate a process for in situ treatment of a hydrocarbon containing formation are provided. The in situ process may include providing heat from one or more heat sources to at least one portion of the formation. The in situ process may, in some embodiments, include allowing the heat to transfer from the one or more heat sources to a selected section of the formation. In some embodiments, the method may include operating the in situ process using one or more operating parameters. At least one operating parameter of the in situ process may be provided to the computer system. In certain embodiments, at least one parameter may be used with a simulation method and the computer system to provide assessed information about the in situ process.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 24, 2002
    Publication date: October 30, 2003
    Inventors: John Michael Karanikas, Ilya Emil Berchenko, Eric Pierre de Rouffignac, Jean-Charles Ginestra, Kirk Samuel Hansen, Lanny Gene Schoeling, Gordon Thomas Shahin, Meliha Deniz Sumnu-Dindoruk, Harold J. Vinegar
  • Patent number: 6640163
    Abstract: A programmable controller, for operating a machine such as one having a hydraulic system, includes a memory that stores a plurality of software function routines. A memory contains a first data file with address pointers to the function routines where the address pointers are listed in the order that the function routines may be executed. A second data file has a separate record associated with each of the address pointers and each record identifies the data variables required by the corresponding function routine. A third data file contains information about each of the variables. A code sequencer accesses the first data file and directs execution of the function routine in the order designated by the pointers. As each function routine executes, the respective record in the second data file is used to access the required variable information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2003
    Assignee: Husco International, Inc.
    Inventors: Joseph L. Pfaff, Robert J. Willard
  • Publication number: 20030182092
    Abstract: A macroscopic physical model simulates and analyzes ink ejection from a piezoelectric print head. The model handles the slipping contact line problem and introduces a mass-conservative finite difference implementation using the level set method. First, the critical angle approach is adopted. The triple point is allowed to move if the critical angle is exceeded. Second, the no-slip boundary condition in the neighborhood of the triple point is relaxed and substituted by the free-slip boundary condition. Third, to allow the triple point to quickly accelerate when the critical angle is exceeded, an extra surface tension is added as a body force term in the governing equation. Fourth, the level set method is adopted to implement the slipping contact line model. Finally the above idea is incorporated in a fluid solver based on the higher-order projection method.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 22, 2002
    Publication date: September 25, 2003
    Inventors: Jiun-Der Yu, Shinri Sakai
  • Publication number: 20030182061
    Abstract: A method and apparatus for converting downhole wireline logging measurements of pressure gradient, formation pressure and temperature into estimates of petroleum fluid PVT properties unaffected by oil-based drilling mud, without the need for retrieving actual petroleum samples from the borehole for laboratory analysis at the surface. The statistical accuracy of the PVT properties of reservoir fluids are enhanced with geochemical information of the fluids expected from a given reservoir.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 19, 2002
    Publication date: September 25, 2003
    Inventors: Kevin A. Ferworn, John E. Zumberge, John D. Ford
  • Patent number: 6618685
    Abstract: A system and method is provided for non-invasive testing of smart cards. In a preferred embodiment, a host computer is connected to a controller, which is then connected, through a switch, to at least one computing device and at least one testing device. The testing device further includes a card terminal and a probe. Each probe includes a motor that is coupled to a cylindrical tube. The motor-tube configuration is used to actuate a card detect sensor in the card terminal. In response to a command provided by the host computer, the controller initiates a particular test. In one test, for example, the motor-tube configuration is used to simulate repeated insertions and removals of smart cards.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2000
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2003
    Assignee: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
    Inventors: Michael S. Bender, Shivaputtrappa Vibhuti, Paul Klissner
  • Patent number: 6618676
    Abstract: A fast, efficient and accurate pseudo 2-D inversion scheme for resistivity determination of an anisotropic formation uses data from a tool (3DEX) comprising three transmitters and three corresponding receivers sampling the formation in a plurality of spatial directions. An initial model of the formation including invasion zones is obtained using a conventional multifrequency and/or multispacing logging tool. A pseudo 2-D inversion scheme combines an accurate full 2-D forward solution of the synthetic responses of the earth model with a 1-D approximation of the sensitivity matrix of the horizontally layered anisotropic background model. The timesaving compared to a regular 2-D inversion scheme can be tremendous. The applicability of this scheme is important in cases when borehole and near-zone effects do not allow an interpretation based on 1-D inversion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 29, 2002
    Date of Patent: September 9, 2003
    Assignee: Baker Hughes Incorporated
    Inventors: Berthold Kriegshauser, Steve McWilliams, Otto Fanini, Liming Yu
  • Patent number: 6611778
    Abstract: Apparatus and method for monitoring a system in which a fluid flows and which is characterized by a change in the system with time in space. A preselected place in the system is monitored to collect data at two or more time points correlated to a system event. The data is indicative of a system parameter that varies with time as a function of at least two variables related to system wash-in and wash-out behavior. A calibration map is made on a calculated basis with each pixel or voxel representative of a color hue indicative of wash-out behavior and a color intensity indicative of wash-in behavior. When a sastisfactory map is obtained, the collected data is processed on the basis of the map to obtain an image of the preselected place with each spatial unit thereof correlated with a color hue and a color intensity. Software and a data processing system are provided to develop the calibration map. The calibration map and image of the preselected place are also novel implementations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 16, 2001
    Date of Patent: August 26, 2003
    Assignee: Yeda Research and Development Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Hadassa Degani
  • Patent number: 6519531
    Abstract: System and methods for creating a visual interpretation of the amount of flow between injection and production wells in a hydrocarbon field at any instant in time. Using conventional reservoir simulation input, streamlines are first generated using a streamline-based flow simulator. The streamlines are then used to determine well pairs and the volumetric flow rate associated with each well in the pair. The fraction of the flow rates in the well pair to the total flow rates of each well are then calculated. These fractions are also known as well allocation factors. After placing the well locations on a multi-dimensional map, the well allocation factors are represented by a multi-dimensional, multi-color stick map connecting each well pair.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 27, 2000
    Date of Patent: February 11, 2003
    Inventors: Rod P. Batycky, Marco R. Thiele
  • Publication number: 20020173915
    Abstract: The invention concerns a method comprising experimentally determining the variation curve of capillary pressure in pores on the basis of saturation with respect to liquid phases, modelling the pores of the porous environment by capillary distribution with fractal distribution while taking into account in the case of a three-phase water (wetting fluid)-oil-gas mixture for example stratification of the constituents inside the pores, with water in contact with the walls, gas in the centre and oil forming an intervening layer, determining, on the basis of said capillary pressure curve, values of fractal dimension corresponding to a series of given values of saturation relative to the liquid phase, modelling hysteresis effects modifying the mobile saturation levels of fluids actually displaced in the sample which vary in the course of drainage and imbibition cycles, modelling relative permeability levels directly in the form of analytical expressions depending on the different values of fractal dimension obtained
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2002
    Publication date: November 21, 2002
    Inventors: Patrick Egermann, Olga Vizika-Kavvadias, Laurent Dallet, Francois Kalaydjian, Christophe Requin
  • Publication number: 20020165671
    Abstract: A method for enhancing allocation of fluid flow rates among a plurality of wellbores coupled to surface facilities is disclosed. The method includes modeling fluid flow characteristics of the wellbores and reservoirs penetrated by the wellbores. The method includes modeling fluid flow characteristics of the surface facilities. An optimizer adapted to determine an enhanced value of an objective function corresponding to the modeled fluid flow characteristics of the wellbores and the surface facilities is then operated. The objective function relates to at least one production system performance parameter. Fluid flow rates are then allocated according to the optimization.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 2002
    Publication date: November 7, 2002
    Applicant: EXXONMOBIL UPSTREAM RESEARCH COMPANY
    Inventor: Usuf Middya
  • Patent number: 6470274
    Abstract: The total porosity of said formation, a fractional volume of the shale, and a resistivity of the shale are determined in a laminated reservoir including sands that may have dispersed shales therein. A tensor petrophysical model determines the laminar shale volume and laminar sand conductivity from vertical and horizontal conductivities derived from multi-component induction log data. NMR data are used to obtain measurements of the total clay-bound water in the formation and the clay bound water in shales in the formation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2000
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2002
    Assignee: Baker Hughes Incorporated
    Inventors: Richard A. Mollison, Otto N. Fanini, Berthold Kriegshauser, Milomir Pavlovic
  • Patent number: 6446014
    Abstract: In a coal seam gas well, variable speed submersible pumps are used to remove the water from the well bore in order to release the methane gas absorbed in the coal bed and in the water. To optimize gas production, the liquid must be removed at an optimum rate, while still maintaining a certain minimum fluid level within the bore. To achieve this optimum control of the pump, analytical data of liquid flow rate, liquid level trend within the bore, and operating data of the submersible pump is used to control the liquid pump speed and the on-off timing of the liquid pump. High-resolution trending and event-log data provide artificial intelligence control to improve recovery of liquids from a coal seam gas well reservoir, and to reduce the operating cost.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 1999
    Date of Patent: September 3, 2002
    Inventor: Cham Ocondi
  • Patent number: 6442489
    Abstract: A method for detection and monitoring of hydrocarbon deposits by measuring infrasonic spectral characteristics of microseismic noise of the earth. The method is used onshore and offshore for detection of hydrocarbon deposits and for monitoring of producing oil and gas fields and subsurface storage of natural gas. In one method of the invention, at least one receiver of seismic vibrations capable of recording vibrations in the infrasonic range is placed over an area being surveyed. The spectral characteristics of the microseismic noise of the earth recorded within a 2 to 5 Hz frequency range are used as a “passive” information signal. A hydrocarbon deposit is determined by the presence of a spectral anomaly on a spectrum of the passive information signal relative to a spectrum of an information signal from the area known not to contain hydrocarbons.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 2, 1999
    Date of Patent: August 27, 2002
    Inventors: Edward Gendelman, Boris M. Grafov, Oleg L. Kuznetsov, Haim Sokolin, Sergei L. Aroutyunov, Sergei M. Karnaukhov, Yuri V. Sirotinsky
  • Publication number: 20020099505
    Abstract: A method of real time field wide reservoir management comprising the steps of processing collected field wide reservoir data in accordance with one or more predetermined algorithms to obtain a resultant desired field wide production/injection forecast, generating a signal to one or more individual well control devices instructing the device to increase or decrease flow through the well control device, transmitting the signal to the individual well control device, opening or closing the well control device in response to the signal to increase or decrease the production for one or more selected wells on a real time basis. The system for field wide reservoir management comprising a CPU for processing collected field wide reservoir data, generating a resultant desired field wide production/injection forecast and calculating a target production rate for one or more wells and one or more down hole production/injection control devices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 12, 2001
    Publication date: July 25, 2002
    Inventors: Jacob Thomas, Craig William Godfrey, William Launey Vidrine, Jerry Wayne Wauters, Douglas Donald Seiler
  • Patent number: 6408249
    Abstract: A method is disclosed of estimating a property of a hydrocarbon-bearing formation penetrated by at least one injection well through which fluid is injected into the formation and penetrated by at least one production well through which fluid is produced from the formation. The injection rates of fluid through the injection wells are periodically varied and measured at substantially regular time intervals and measurements are also made of the production rate of fluid produced through the production well. A series of production well response delays, &tgr;, are selected. A set of correlation coefficients between the injection rate for each injection well and the production rate as a function of &tgr; are determined. From each set of correlation coefficients, a time lag, &tgr;max, corresponding to the maximum correlation coefficient is determined. The &tgr;max is then used to characterize a formation property, such as channel volume, permeability, or transmissibility.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 30, 2000
    Date of Patent: June 18, 2002
    Assignee: ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company
    Inventor: Gary F. Teletzke
  • Patent number: 6356844
    Abstract: A method of real time field wide reservoir management comprising the steps of processing collected field wide reservoir data in accordance with one or more predetermined algorithms to obtain a resultant desired field wide production/injection forecast, generating a signal to one or more individual well control devices instructing the device to increase or decrease flow through the well control device, transmitting the signal to the individual well control device, opening or closing the well control device in response to the signal to increase or decrease the production for one or more selected wells on a real time basis. The system for field wide reservoir management comprising a CPU for processing collected field wide reservoir data, generating a resultant desired field wide production/injection forecast and calculating a target production rate for one or more wells and one or more down hole production/injection control devices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2001
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2002
    Assignee: Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.
    Inventors: Jacob Thomas, Craig William Godfrey, William Launey Vidrine, Jerry Wayne Wauters, Douglas Donald Seiler
  • Patent number: 6353803
    Abstract: Apparatus and method for monitoring a system in which a fluid flows and which is characterized by a change in the system with time in space. A preselected place in the system is monitored to collect data at two or more time points correlated to a system event. The data is indicative of a system parameter that varies with time as a function of at least two variables related to system wash-in and wash-out behavior. A calibration map is made on a calculated basis with each pixel or voxel representative of a color hue indicative of wash-out behavior and a color intensity indicative of wash-in behavior. When a satisfactory map is obtained, the collected data is processed on the basis of the map to obtain an image of the preselected place with each spatial unit thereof correlated with a color hue and a color intensity. Software and a data processing system are provided to develop the calibration map. The calibration map and image of the preselected place are also novel implementations.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 16, 1998
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2002
    Assignee: Yeda Research and Development Co., Ltd. at the Welzmann Institute of Science
    Inventor: Hadassa Degani
  • Patent number: 6343507
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method for improving the quality of a formation fluid sample by taking the sample at a time when the formation fluid composition contains the most favorable portion of hydrocarbons. This task is accomplished by determining in real-time, the composition of the fluid flowing into a downhole tool from the formation. This method determines the optical density of the fluid as the fluid flows through the tool. An optical density spectrum is generated from the optical density measurement. The optical density spectrum is compared to a composite optical density spectrum generated from a database of known fluid samples. As a result of the comparisons, there is a determination of the derivations between corresponding features of the two spectra. Adjustments are made to the components of the composite spectrum until the deviations between the two spectra are at an acceptable minimum.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 1999
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2002
    Assignee: Schlumberger Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Michelle M. Felling, Charles W. Morris, Robert J. Butsch
  • Patent number: 6317696
    Abstract: The present invention discloses an apparatus for detecting one or more fluids, the apparatus comprising a sensor means having electrical properties dependent upon one or more of the presence and the concentration of one or more fluids, an electrical excitation means for applying one or more electrical excitation pulses to the sensor means, a detector means for detecting the electrical behavior of the sensor means in response to the electrical excitation means, and a transformation means for transforming an output of the detector means from the time domain to the frequency domain to determine the electrical properties of the sensor means as a function of frequency over a pre-determined frequency range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 1999
    Date of Patent: November 13, 2001
    Assignee: Bloodhound Sensors Limited
    Inventors: Jonathan Clements, Robert Chandler
  • Patent number: 6305216
    Abstract: An improved apparatus and improved method for determining the characteristics of a multi-phase fluid along a well hole having a predefined geometric profile are presented. Various state properties of the fluid, including the temperature, pressure and specific gravity are taken at the wellhead and used as starting values for calculating estimated state properties at various segments along the well hole. Once the state properties are calculated, an estimated mass flow and velocity rate for the fluid and its constituents can be calculated at specific points along the well hole by implementing computer-based programs and algorithms to extrapolate and/or iterate the known parameters and measurements in a progressively incremented manner from the locations of such given starting points at an initial segment up to other further points corresponding to a set of further sequential segments used in the geometric profile mathematical model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 1999
    Date of Patent: October 23, 2001
    Assignee: Production Testing Services
    Inventor: Brian H. Samaroo
  • Patent number: 6302221
    Abstract: A method is provided for predicting a value of a designated rock or fluid property in a subterranean geologic volume. An experimentally determined seismic value of acoustic impedance is assigned to a model volume correlated to the subterranean geologic volume. A first predicted value of the designated rock or fluid property is also assigned to the model volume. A first predicted value of acoustic impedance for the model volume is calculated from a response model using the first predicted value of the designated rock or fluid property, wherein the response model is responsive to changes in predicted values of the designated rock or fluid property. The first predicted value of acoustic impedance is compared to the seismic value of acoustic impedance to determine a difference between the predicted and seismic values of acoustic impedance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2000
    Date of Patent: October 16, 2001
    Assignee: Marathon Oil Company
    Inventors: Jeffry G. Hamman, Donald H. Caldwell, Stephen D. Wilson
  • Patent number: 6236941
    Abstract: A piezocone for measuring the soil's resistance to penetration and pore water pressure while being advanced into the ground by a twenty ton hydraulic cone penetrometer rig. The low pressure piezocone includes a friction sleeve and a conical tip attached to the lower end of friction sleeve. The conical tip develops the cone resistance. The friction sleeve is an isolated cylindrical sleeve which measures the resistance of the soil as the sleeve passes through the soil. The pore water pressure is measured by a porous element mounted in the conical tip of the piezocone and a pressure transducer mounted in the cylindrical friction sleeve of the piezocone. The measurements including pore water pressure, cone resistance and the soil resistance are supplied to a computer which includes a Piezocone Dissipation Analysis program for processing the piezocone measurements to generate dissipation curves for each depth at which the piezocone provides hydrogeologic site characterization data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 1998
    Date of Patent: May 22, 2001
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Mark L. Kram, Auldin James Massey
  • Patent number: 6208940
    Abstract: A piezocone for measuring the soil's resistance to penetration and pore water pressure while being advanced into the ground by a rig. The piezocone includes a friction sleeve and a conical tip attached to the lower end of the sleeve. The conical tip develops the cone resistance. The friction sleeve is an isolated cylindrical sleeve which measures the resistance of the soil as the sleeve passes through the soil. The pore water pressure is measured by a porous element mounted in the conical tip of the piezocone and a pressure transducer mounted in the cylindrical friction sleeve of the piezocone. The measurements including pore water pressure, cone resistance and soil resistance are supplied to a computer which includes a Piezocone Dissipation Analysis program for processing data from the measurements to generate dissipation curves for each depth at which the piezocone provides hydrogeologic site characterization data. Soil classification is also provided from a data file stored within the computer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 1998
    Date of Patent: March 27, 2001
    Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Navy
    Inventors: Mark L. Kram, James A. Massey
  • Patent number: 6157893
    Abstract: An apparatus and method for obtaining samples of pristine formation or formation fluid, using a work string designed for performing other downhole work such as drilling, workover operations, or re-entry operations. An extendable element extends against the formation wall to obtain the pristine formation or fluid sample. While the test tool is in a standby condition, the extendable element is withdrawn within the work string, protected by other structure from damage during operation of the work string. The test apparatus is mounted on a sliding, non-rotating, sleeve on the work string.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 30, 1999
    Date of Patent: December 5, 2000
    Assignee: Baker Hughes Incorporated
    Inventors: Per Erik Berger, Don Thornton Macune
  • Patent number: 6140816
    Abstract: A permeability estimator is constructed from the lambda parameter, .LAMBDA., which is the size of dynamically connected pores. For simple pore geometries at high permeabilities, .LAMBDA. should theoretically be proportional to the pore volume-to-surface area ratio. Further, at high permeabilities, the permeability is proportional to .LAMBDA..sup.2 /F where F is the formation factor. Core data are used to establish the proportionality constant. At permeabilities less than about 100 md, the estimated permeability is seen to overestimate the actual permeability by a factor related to the estimate. Thus, a corrected second estimate can be readily made and is shown to match measured permeabilities on a diverse set of sands and shaly sands with a correlation coefficient of 0.89 for log k. The estimate can also be made using NMR relaxation time data with a correlation coefficient of 0.92 for the same data set.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 1997
    Date of Patent: October 31, 2000
    Assignee: Schlumberger Technology Corporation
    Inventor: Michael M. Herron
  • Patent number: H2052
    Abstract: The distal end of a basic tube element including a stopper device with an expandable plug is positioned in a pre-drilled hole in a rock face. Rotating a force control wheel threaded on the tube element exerts force on a sleeve that in turn causes the plug component of the stopper means to expand and seal the distal end of the tube in the hole. Gas under known pressure is introduced through the tube element. A thin capillary tube positioned in the tube element connects the distal end of the tube element to means to detect and display pressure changes and data that allow the permeability of the rock to be determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 3, 2002
    Assignee: Clemson University
    Inventors: Fred J. Molz, III, Lawrence C. Murdoch, Cynthia L. Dinwiddie, James W. Castle