[downhole tools with a stirling cooler system]

Abstract

A cooling system for a downhole tool includes an insulating chamber disposed in the tool, wherein the chamber is adapted to house an object to be cooled; a Stirling cooler is disposed in the tool, the cooler has a cold end configured to remove heat from the chamber and a hot end configured to dissipate heat; and an energy source to power the Stirling cooler. A downhole tool includes: a tool body, and a cooling system with an insulating chamber; wherein the chamber is adapted to house an object to be cooled; a Stirling cooler is disposed in the tool, the cooler has a cold end configured to remove heat from the chamber and a hot end configured to dissipate heat; and an energy source to power the Stirling cooler.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims priority, under 35 U.S.C. §119, to Provisional Application Ser. No. 60 / 517,782, filed on Nov. 6, 2003, incorporated by reference in its entirety.BACKGROUND OF INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] This invention relates generally to techniques for maintaining downhole tools and their components within a desired temperature range in high-temp environments, and, more specifically, to a Stirling-Cycle cooling system for use with downhole tools. [0004] 2. Background Art [0005] Various well logging and monitoring techniques are known in the field of hydrocarbon and water exploration and production. These techniques employ downhole tools or instruments equipped with sources adapted to emit energy through a borehole traversing the subsurface formation. The emitted energy passes through the borehole fluid (“mud”) and into the surrounding formations to produce signals that are detected and measured by one or m...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0017] Other aspects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and the appended claims.

Problems solved by technology

The trend among manufacturers of electronic components is to address the high-volume commercial market, making it difficult to find components for downhole tools that function effectively at these elevated temperatures.

Redesigning silicon chips to operate at high temperatures (e.g., above 150° C.) is costly and has a significant impact on the development time and thus the time to market.

This technique protects the tool only for a certain amount of time, and the nature of the flasks makes them intrinsically fragile.

However, this approach requires very careful sealing and lubrication due to high pressure in the condenser part.

This approach is promising, but the components used are relatively bulky, and the performance of a miniature thermoacoustic refrigerator is uncertain.

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