Texaco Inc.

Other

Irwin R Supernaw

Jackie C Sims

Thomas M Williams

Dan M Arnold

Kerry D Savage

Hans J Paap

Harold E Peelman

Obie M Langford

James Craig Pauley

Dipak C Kothari

Arthur Jurgen Link

Radioactive contamination on tubing is detected as the tubing is withdrawn from a wellbore. The tubing is moved past a detector located on the wellhead, preferably through an annular shaped detector, and means responsive to the detected level of radiation exceeding predetermined limits activate both an alarm to gain the operator's attention and means to apply indicia to the contaminated tubing.

Naturally occurring radioactive material contamination detection means

A device and method for determining the flow of steam in a production well has a sonde with a pair of gamma ray detectors and a source of gaseous radioactive material therein. The sonde is lowered into the well and measured amounts of the gas are released and detected by the gamma detectors to thereby determine the volume and velocity of steam flowing in the production well as well as its depth of entry.

Produced steam survey device and method

A subterranean hydrocarbon-bearing formation is preheated by application of RF energy to the formation so that subsequent steam flooding will more effectively sweep the hydrocarbons from the formation without steam override occurring.

RF in situ heating of heavy oil in combination with steam flooding

Brines in earth formations in the vicinity of a well borehole are bombarded with neutrons. The neutrons are slowed to thermal energy and captured by sodium atoms in the brine according to the nuclear reaction .sup.23 Na (n, .gamma.) .sup.24 Na. Spaced arrays of gamma ray detectors in a sonde in the borehole obtain gamma ray measurements following activation to obtain measurements of horizontal brine flow past the borehole. The detector arrays are vertically spaced from each other along the axis of the sonde. Changes in the count ratios of the detector arrays indicates a vertical flow of the brine.

Radioactive well logging to determine vertical brine flow

The invention is a method of evaluating a sample of an underground formation such as drill cuttings to determine the producibility of any hydrocarbons present in the formation by solvating a sample in a polar solvent which will solvate asphaltenes, solvating the sample in an aliphatic solvent which will solvate most crude fractions without solvating asphaltenes, quantitatively measuring the emission fluorescence at a wavelength below 400 nm of both solvated samples at an excitation wavelength at which most petroleum compounds fluoresce, and determining the producibility of any hydrocarbon present in the sample by comparing the emission fluorescence of the two samples to previous correlations made between fluorescence and known producibility.

Method for determining the producibility of a hydrocarbon formation

A sonde in a well logging system of the present invention includes caliper means providing a diameter signal corresponding to the diameter of a borehole traversing an earth formation. First and second transducers which, when so controlled, transmit an ultrasonic acoustical pulse into fluid flowing in the borehole or provides an electrical pulse in accordance with a received acoustical pulse from the fluid. A control network controls both transducers so that during one part of a measurement the first transducer transmits an acoustical pulse into the fluid while the second transducer receives an acoustical pulse after it has passed through the fluid. During another part of the measurement the second transducer is controlled to transmit an acoustical pulse into the fluid while the first transducer is controlled to receive the acoustical pulse after it has passed through the fluid and provides a signal in accordance with the received acoustical pulse. A signal circuit connected to both transducers provides a travel time signal corresponding to the travel times of the acoustical pulses for both parts of the measurement. A conventional well logging cable carries control signals from the surface to the control network and the travel time signal and the diameter signal to surface electronics. The surface electronics includes processing apparatus which provides the control signal to the cable and which derives the flow rate of the fluid flowing in the borehole in accordance with the travel time signal and the diameter signal.

Downhole ultrasonic transit-time flowmetering means and method

The invention is a method of evaluating a sample of an underground formation to determine the hydrocarbon content of any hydrocarbons present in the formation. It involves the steps of solvating a known volume of a sample in a known volume of a solvent which will solvate hydrocarbons, quantitatively measuring with a fluorometer the emission fluorescence below about 400 nanometers of the solvated sample at an excitation wavelength at which most petroleum compounds fluorescence, and determining the hydrocarbon content of any hydrocarbon present in the sample by comparing the emission fluorescence of said solvated sample to previous correlations. The previous correlations are drawn between known hydrocarbon contents of samples and the emission fluorescence of the known samples in said solvent.

Method for determining oil content of an underground formation

Formation fluid is received in and passed through a sonde supported by an armored well logging cable at a depth of interest in a well bore. Periodically, samples of the formation fluid are taken. Higher density portions of the fluid, which represent formation fluid and/or mud filtrate, are separated. The separated fluid is a sample from which the resistivity is measured. As sampling continues, the sample fluid becomes substantially formation fluid and an apparent R.sub.2 measurement is made. An electrical signal indicating the R.sub.2 at the depth of interest is sent to the surface for recording and further processing. R.sub.2 measurements can be taken at any desired number of depths of interest in the well bore.

Sampling resistivity of formation fluids in a well bore

The present invention is a density meter which includes a well logging sonde that is inserted into a borehole traversing an earthen formation. The sonde includes within it a source which emits gamma rays into the borehole fluid and a detector assembly which detects gamma rays from the borehole fluid and provides a count signal corresponding to a count of the detected gamma rays. A caliper is also located in the sonde and it continually measures the diameter of the borehole as the sonde moves through the borehole and provides a caliper signal corresponding to the diameter measurement. A cable connected to the detector assembly and to the caliper conveys the count signal and a caliper signal to the surface where surface electronics includes apparatus which processes the count signal and the caliper signal to provide a signal corresponding to the density of the fluid in the borehole.

Borehole fluid density well logging means and method

A well logging system which monitors the flow rate of a fluid flowing in a borehole traversing an earth formation includes a sonde. A transmitter located in the sonde transmits acoustical waves into the fluid at a predetermined frequency. A receiver also located in the sonde receives reflected acoustical waves. The receiver also provides a signal corresponding to the received reflected acoustical waves. The provided signal is processed for being sent uphole by way of a cable. Electronics at the surface include circuitry which derives the velocity of the fluid in accordance with the frequency of the processed signal and the predetermined frequency. The circuitry provides an output signal corresponding to the derived velocity of the fluid flowing the borehole.

Downhole doppler flowmeter

Fluid in a pipeline or container at a refinery or at any of various petroleum producing operations is bombarded with neutrons, and high energy gamma rays resulting from capture of thermal neutrons are detected. The spectra of the detected gamma rays are then analyzed to determine the concentration of the element chlorine, which gives an indication of the presence and concentration of salt water in the fluid. The concentration of sulfur and the percentage gas in the fluid may be determined simultaneously with the concentration of chlorine.

Detection of impurities in fluid flowing in refinery pipeline or oil

A technique for the in situ evaluation of the organic carbon content of earth formations penetrated by a well borehole is disclosed. The energy spectrum of natural gamma radiation occurring in earth formations penetrated by a well borehole is observed in energy regions corresponding to uranium, potassium and thorium. Quantitative evaluations of the relative abundances of these elements are made by comparing the observed spectra with standard gamma ray spectra. The relative abundances of these elements may then be interpreted in terms of the organic carbon content of earth formations by comparison with predetermined relationships found to exist therebetween.

Growing community of inventors

Houston, TX, United States of America

Irwin R Supernaw