METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR REGISTERING AND MEASURING LEAKS AND FLOWS
First Claim
1. A method of quantifying, detecting and localizing one or more leaks or a flow of liquid, gasses, or particles, in an oil or gas producing well (230), wherein said method employs at least one acoustic transducer (150) deployed in operation in the well (230), characterized by that said method comprises steps of:
- (a) detecting one or more signals (210) using the at least one acoustic transducer (150), wherein said one or more signals (210) are generated by acoustic noise from one or more leaks (200) or flow of liquid, gasses, or particles in a region surrounding said at least one transducer (150);
(b) amplifying said one or more signals (210) to generate one or more corresponding amplified signals for inputting into a processing unit (170) local to the at least one transducer (150);
(c) filtering said one or more amplified signals (210) over several frequency ranges by utilizing dynamic filtering for improving signal-to-noise ratio by filtering away background noise in said one or more amplified signals (210), thereby generating corresponding filtered data; and
(d) processing said filtered data in said processing unit (170) for transmitting said filtered data to a unit including a computer (300) in a surface region remote from the at least one acoustic transducer for storage and/or viewing of said filtered data, said computer (300) being adapted to perform simultaneous resolution of said filtered data to identify occurrence of said one or more leaks or a flow of liquid, gasses, or particles, in an oil or gas producing well (230).
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Abstract
The present invention concerns a method of quantifying, detecting and localizing leaks or flows of liquid, gasses, or particles, in an oil or gas producing well (230). The method utilizes an acoustic transducer (150) arranged in the well (230). The method comprises steps of: (a) detecting signals (210) using the transducer (150), wherein the signals (210) are generated by acoustic noise from leaks (20) or flow of liquid, gasses, or particles in surroundings of the transducer (150); (b) amplifying the signals (210) to generate corresponding amplified signals for subsequent processing in a processing unit (170) disposed locally to the transducer (150); (c) filtering the amplified signals (210) over several frequency ranges using dynamic filtering for simultaneously detecting in these frequency ranges for better optimizing the signal-to-noise ratio by filtering away background noise in the amplified signals (210), and thereby generating corresponding processed data; and (d) sending the processed data from the processing unit (170) to a unit on the surface for storage and/or viewing of said data. The invention also comprises a corresponding system for implementing the method. The method and system are beneficially adapted for a continuous measurement up and/or down the oil or gas producing well. (230) in a non-stepwise manner.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method of quantifying, detecting and localizing one or more leaks or a flow of liquid, gasses, or particles, in an oil or gas producing well (230), wherein said method employs at least one acoustic transducer (150) deployed in operation in the well (230), characterized by that said method comprises steps of:
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(a) detecting one or more signals (210) using the at least one acoustic transducer (150), wherein said one or more signals (210) are generated by acoustic noise from one or more leaks (200) or flow of liquid, gasses, or particles in a region surrounding said at least one transducer (150); (b) amplifying said one or more signals (210) to generate one or more corresponding amplified signals for inputting into a processing unit (170) local to the at least one transducer (150); (c) filtering said one or more amplified signals (210) over several frequency ranges by utilizing dynamic filtering for improving signal-to-noise ratio by filtering away background noise in said one or more amplified signals (210), thereby generating corresponding filtered data; and (d) processing said filtered data in said processing unit (170) for transmitting said filtered data to a unit including a computer (300) in a surface region remote from the at least one acoustic transducer for storage and/or viewing of said filtered data, said computer (300) being adapted to perform simultaneous resolution of said filtered data to identify occurrence of said one or more leaks or a flow of liquid, gasses, or particles, in an oil or gas producing well (230). - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 29, 30)
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15. A system for implementing a method of quantifying, detecting, or localizing one or more leaks or a flow of liquid, gasses, particles in an oil or gas producing well (230), wherein said system includes at least one acoustic transducer (150) arranged in operation in the well (230), characterized by that said system comprises;
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(a) a detector operable to detect one or more signals (210) generated by said at least one acoustic transducer (150), wherein said one or more signals (210) are generated in operation by acoustic noise from one or more leaks (200) or flow of liquid, gasses, or particles in a surroundings of said at least one transducer (150); (b) an amplification device (160) arranged to amplify said one or more signals (210) to generate corresponding one or more amplified signals, said system further comprising a processing unit (170) local to the transducer (150) for processing said one or more amplified signals; (c) a filtering device associated with said processing unit (170) for dividing said one or more amplified signals (210) over several frequency ranges by applying in operation dynamic filtering, said filtering device being operable to simultaneously detect in said several frequency ranges for enhancing signal-to-noise ratio by filtering away background noise in said one or more amplified signals (210), and thereby generating corresponding processed data; and (d) a communication link operable to send the processed data from the processing unit (170) to a unit on a surface for storage and/or viewing of said processed data. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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Specification