Halliburton Energy Services, Inc.

David Earl Ball

Li Gao

Wei Zhang

Marcus Ray Hudson

James Cernosek

Christian Reding

Christopher Michael Jones

Michael Thomas Pelletier

Mark Anton Proett

Dingding Chen

Anthony Herman Van Zuilekom

Gregory N Gilbert

Clive D Menezes

Lizheng Zhang

Jay DeVille

Gilbert N Gregory

Russell Scott Somers

Jeffrey L Grable

A method of cooling at least a portion of a downhole tool located within a drilled wellbore using a fluid pill configured to transfer heat away from a heat-generating segment of the downhole tool. The downhole tool may be a wireline logging tool. The fluid pill can comprise at least one fluid coolant and may include other additives that enable the fluid pill to transfer heat away from a heat-generating segment of the downhole tool even in the presence of one or more fluids present in the drilled wellbore. The fluid pill can be introduced into residual drilling mud in the wellbore, and the downhole tool may thereafter be operated with the heat-generating segment thereof in fluid contact with the fluid pill, whereby heat generated by the heat-generating segment is transferred away from the downhole tool and toward a wall of the wellbore by the fluid pill.

Using fluid pill for heat transfer downhole

A well interval isolation device is disclosed. The wellbore isolation device may have a plurality of expandable elements that cooperate upon expansion downhole in a wellbore to create multiple isolated well intervals. At least two pairs of expandable elements that are spaced apart on a tool string are usable to create both a primary isolated well interval and at least one isolated guard interval on each of an uphole side and a downhole side of the primary isolated well interval. The isolated guard intervals function to further isolate the primary isolated well interval from surrounding well fluid, thereby allowing a difference between the pressure within the primary isolated well interval and the hydrostatic pressure of the well fluid (i.e., the differential pressure) to safely exceed the maximum differential pressure at which any of the individual expandable elements can operate while simultaneously maintaining isolation of the well intervals.

Isolation device with multiple pressure stages to isolate well interval

A straddle packer assembly for deployment in a wellbore in which the straddle packer assembly includes a mandrel on which is mounted a first inflatable element and a second inflatable element. A first end of the first inflatable element is fixed, while a second end slides on the mandrel. Both the first and second ends of the second inflatable element are slidable on the mandrel, and the first end of the second inflatable element is coupled to the second end of the first inflatable element. The inflatable elements are inflated separately, with the first inflatable element inflated first until it seats against the wellbore wall. As the first inflatable element expands radially and contracts axially, the second inflatable element moves in axial concert with the first inflatable element so as to maintain a fixed distance between the two inflatable elements.

Inflatable element system for downhole tools

An apparatus to determine fluid viscosities downhole in real-time includes a housing and an excitation element positioned therein. Electrical circuitry provides a drive signal that excites an excitation element into rotational oscillations. A detector produces a response signal correlating to the detected oscillating movement of the excitation element. Circuitry onboard the apparatus utilizes the drive and response signals to determine the fluid viscosity.

Apparatus and method for downhole in-situ determination of fluid viscosity

Disclosed is a downhole fluid resistivity sensor that includes a ceramic cylinder having a fluid-contacting surface, and at least four metal pins that penetrate a wall of the ceramic cylinder at axially-spaced locations. The pins are bonded to the ceramic to form a pressure seal. The sensor may include a circuit that injects current into a fluid via an outer two of the pins, and measures a resulting voltage via an inner two of the pins. The circuit may also provide an indication of fluid resistivity based at least in part on the resulting voltage. At each of the axially-spaced locations, a set of multiple pins may penetrate the wall to contact the fluid at circumferentially-spaced positions. The fluid-contacting surface may be an inner surface or an outer surface of the ceramic cylinder. A downhole fluid resistivity measurement method is also described.

Downhole fluid resistivity sensor systems and methods

A multi-purpose downhole tool comprising packers for isolating an interval of a downhole formation traversed by a borehole to form a packed-off interval annulus. The tool further comprises a reversible pump and more than one interval access port located between the packers. The ports provide fluid communication with fluid in the packed-off interval annulus. The tool further comprises a fluid conduit system and valves for controlling fluid communication between the interval access ports and the reversible pump. The multi-purpose tool is capable of pumping from the packed-off interval annulus as well as pumping into or 'through' the packed-off interval annulus for determining formation pressures as well as introducing well enhancement fluids downhole.

Multi-purpose downhole tool

Methods for operating multi-probed formation testers to determine a fluid density gradient in the formation. The probes of the multi-probed formation tester are connected to a pressure gauge through a flowline that establishes a differential height between the probes. In some embodiments, a gradient of the fluid density in the flowline is determined as a function of the gradient of fluid density in the wellbore. The flowline fluid density gradient is then used to determine a formation fluid density gradient as a function of the flowline fluid density gradient.

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Meadows Place, TX, United States of America

David Earl Ball