Seeing through Crude Oil – Results from Prototypes

Offshore Technology Conference 2-5 September 2003, Aberdeen

ABSTRACT

Proneta has identified, and patented, a way to see through crude oil, which will have a range of different applications in oil & gas industry. Its ability to see through crude oil without first flushing or cleaning brings substantial cost savings. This paper gives the results from the prototypes constructed in the operator-sponsored Joint Industry Project.

Application

Conventional video camera inspection is already used routinely, to good effect, inspecting oil tanks and FPSOs for corrosion or cracking, or diagnosing problems in drilling or completion or workovers, but it can only be used if all the oil is flushed out first. The cost of that flushing is high (including the costs of chemicals), and the delays are substantial.

The new imaging technology can deliver optical quality real-time images of problems, from inside spaces filled with crude oil, to the surface without requiring any preparation, saving time and cost.

Our discussions with oil operators, service companies and tool manufacturers indicate a wide range of applications in wells, flowlines, pipelines, refineries, and FPSOs

Forthcoming derivatives of this technology will be applicable to:

•  In-situ visualisation of production flow in horizontal wells;

•  Vision for robotic tractors / 'before & after' evidence of remedial actions

•  Multiphase flow measurement.

Results, Observations and Conclusions

We have built a demonstrator using real targets (common downhole hardware) in a full-size rig using a range of current crude oil types provided by the project sponsors. The prototypes have produced remarkable pictures through the crude oil. The paper will show the images we have captured, demonstrating the high quality. The paper will also present the future plans and indicate how other companies in the industry could collaborate with the further development of this technology for a wide range of applications.

Significance

•  Produces images (video or still) in an oil-filled well, pipe or tank;