Hydrocarbon Gas Detection Device

• US 20160047240A1
• Filed: 10/28/2015
• Published: 02/18/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Iball Instruments LLC
• Original Assignee: Iball Instruments LLC
• Inventors: Bright, Carl
• Granted Patent: US 9,903,846 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: E21B 49/08 Obtaining fluid samples or testing fluids, in boreholes or wells
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/0006 Calibrating gas analysers
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/2841 gas in oil, e.g. hydrogen in insulating oil

Abstract

A device and associated method can detect hydrocarbon gas with at least a control module having a plurality of different gas detection means housed in a mobile enclosure, the control module configured to activate at least two different gas detection means to provide amounts and types of gases present in a fluid.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

providing a control module having a plurality of different gas detection means housed in a mobile enclosure;

activating at least two different gas detection means concurrently with the control module to provide amounts and types of gases present in a mixture of different gasses; and

re-calibrating at least one gas detection means in response to a threshold accuracy not being met.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold accuracy comprises the presence of Methane above 1%.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the mobile enclosure is temperature stabilized by the control module.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one gas detection means is re-calibrated in response to drifting environmental conditions.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the control module regulates a temperature of at least one gas detection means.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein a reading from at least one gas detection means is ignored by the control module in response to the threshold accuracy not being met.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the threshold accuracy is determined by a thermally reactive detector.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the mixture of different gasses is present in a gas sample and the amounts and types of gases are detected by the at least two gas detection means within five minutes of exiting a wellbore.

9. A method comprising:

providing a control module having a plurality of different gas detection means housed in a mobile enclosure;

activating different first and second gas detection means concurrently with the control module to provide amounts and types of gases present in a mixture of different gasses;

re-calibrating at least one gas detection means in response to a threshold accuracy not being met; and

deactivating the first gas detection means.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the second gas detection means remains active while the first gas detection means is deactivated.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein a third gas detection means is activated and operates concurrently with the second gas detection means in response to the first gas detection means being deactivated.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the second and third gas detection means are different and sense different types of hydrocarbons in a gas sample

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the first gas detection means is deactivated in response to a sensor detecting the first gas detection means is damaged.

14. The method of claim 9, wherein the first gas detection means is deactivated to proactively prevent damage to the first gas detection means.

15. A method comprising:

providing a control module having a plurality of different gas detection means housed in a mobile enclosure;

activating an oxygen, infrared, thermal coefficient, and pellistor sensors concurrently with the control module to provide amounts and types of gases present in a mixture of different gasses; and

re-calibrating at least one sensor in response to a threshold accuracy not being met.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the control module applies one or more algorithms to determine the amounts and types of gases based on readings from the oxygen, infrared, thermal coefficient, and pellistor sensors.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the oxygen sensor is ignored until being re-calibrated and certified as accurate by the control module.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein measurements from each sensor are averaged to determined the amounts and types of gases.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the at least one sensor is re-calibrated to detect volatile organic drilling fluid fumes.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the threshold accuracy is not met due to the mixture of different gases comprising air at atmospheric pressure.