Radar Logging Device for Extreme Down-Hole Fracture Measurement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current logging techniques lack accurate measurement of propped fracture length and geometry in oil wells due to extreme down-hole conditions, such as high temperatures and pressures, which limit the effectiveness of existing electronic equipment and data collection methods.
Innovation Solution
A radar logging system using microwave signals and a hybrid transceiver with passive components, including a photodiode and mixer, that can operate at high temperatures and pressures, allowing for accurate measurement of fracture length, height, and azimuth by converting IM laser signals into microwave signals and using the fracture as a wave guide to determine dimensions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional electronic logging equipment is used down-hole, then data collection can be performed, but the equipment cannot withstand extreme temperatures exceeding 200°C and pressures up to 10,000 psi
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional electronic sensors and circuits with a radar-based electromagnetic system. The radar transmitter sends electromagnetic signals through the wellbore fluid to the fracture, and the returning signals are processed to determine fracture geometry. This substitution eliminates the need for temperature-sensitive electronic components in the high-temperature zone, allowing operation at temperatures exceeding 200°C and pressures up to 10,000 psi.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces wellbore fluid as an intermediary medium to transmit radar signals between the surface equipment and the fracture. The fluid acts as a coupling medium that allows electromagnetic energy to pass through to the fracture face and back, enabling measurement without direct contact between electronic sensors and the extreme down-hole environment.
2Measurement precision
If radar waves are used to measure fracture length, then accurate measurement of propped fracture geometry can be achieved, but signal penetration and detection become challenging at hundreds of feet distance
Solution Approach 1:
The radar system uses periodic electromagnetic wave transmission with specific frequency modulation to enhance signal penetration and detection capability. By using pulsed or modulated radar waves, the system can distinguish between transmitted and reflected signals, improving the ability to detect fracture boundaries at hundreds of feet distance while maintaining measurement precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs parameter changes in the radar signal characteristics, such as frequency, wavelength, and pulse duration, to optimize signal propagation through the wellbore fluid and fracture. By adjusting these parameters, the system achieves both sufficient signal penetration over long distances and accurate measurement of fracture geometry through analysis of the returned signal characteristics.
3Productivity
If active electronic components are used down-hole for signal processing, then data processing capability is improved, but the components require cooling apparatus that increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the active electronic components (radar transmitter, signal processor, and control systems) from the down-hole environment and relocates them to the surface. Only passive elements remain down-hole, eliminating the need for cooling apparatus while maintaining full data processing capability through surface-based equipment. This extraction resolves the contradiction by removing the temperature sensitivity issue entirely.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables precise measurement of propped fracture geometry, overcoming the limitations of existing technologies by maintaining operational effectiveness in extreme down-hole conditions without the need for cooling apparatus and with minimal signal loss, thereby enhancing oil well production optimization.
Implementation Method 1
The radar signal source 221, which may be a photodiode or has a photodiode separately connected thereto, converts the IM laser signal into a microwave signal
Implementation Method 2
The fracture, which is generated by the application of this stimulation technique, creates a conductive path to the wellbore for the hydrocarbon
Data Source
AI summary
A logging radar system and method for measuring propped fractures and down-hole formation conditions in a subterranean formation including: a radar source; an optical source; an optical modulator for modulating an optical signal from the optical source according to a signal from the radar source; a photodiode for converting the modulated optical signal output from the optical modulator to the source radar signal; a transmitter and receiver unit; and a mixer. The transmitter and receiver unit receives the source radar signal from the photodiode, transmits the source radar signal into the formation and receives a reflected radar signal. The mixer mixes the reflected radar signal with the source radar signal to provide an output. This technology can be used to describe all fractures connected to the wellbore and differentiate between the dimensions of the two vertical wings of a propped fracture.