Automated monitoring and diagnostics for hydrocarbon well operations
A system for automatically monitoring and performing diagnostic procedures on a conduit of a hydrocarbon well operation is disclosed. System examples can use a combination of sensors, data acquisition devices, and computing devices to provide fully automated conduit monitoring and diagnostic procedures that can be based on a variety of different triggering conditions. At least one sensor can be located in fluid communication with the interior of a conduit. A pressure wave traveling through the conduit as a result of deliberate action or a natural occurrence is reflected by abnormal conditions in the conduit. The sensor can receive signals comprising the pressure wave reflections. Pressure data generated by the sensor in response to receiving the signals may be automatically collected and subsequently provided to a computing device that can analyze the pressure data and determine the existence and nature of one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit.
1 . A hydrocarbon well conduit monitoring and diagnostic system, comprising:
a first sensor permanently installable at a first location in fluid communication with the conduit and operable to detect signals comprising reflections of a pressure wave traveling through the conduit and to generate data in response thereto;
a second sensor permanently installable at a second location in fluid communication with the conduit and operable to detect a change in pressure or a change in another characteristic of a fluid traveling through the conduit and to generate triggering signals in response thereto;
a data acquisition device communicatively coupled to the first sensor and operable to receive and collect the data generated by the first sensor, the data acquisition device operable to collect the data generated by the first sensor at a sampling rate greater than 4 kHz;
a computing device; and
a controller communicatively coupled to the second sensor, the data acquisition device, and the computing device, the controller including a processor and memory communicatively coupled to the processor, the memory including instructions that are executable by the processor to cause the controller to:
cause a pressure wave generator to introduce a pressure wave into the conduit in response to receipt of a triggering signal from the second sensor,
in response to causing the pressure wave to be introduced into the conduit, initiate data collection by the data acquisition device,
receive, from the data acquisition device, data that is generated by the first sensor in response to detecting the reflections of the pressure wave and collected by the data acquisition device, and
automatically transmit the data received from the data acquisition device to the computing device;
wherein the computing device is programmed to determine one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit by analyzing the data received from the controller within a frequency range of 0 Hz to 70 Hz.
2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the conduit is selected from the group consisting of a wellbore casing, a flowline, and a pipeline.
3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the pressure wave generator is configured to generate a pressure wave within a timing window of 0.5 seconds to 2 seconds.
4 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the pressure wave generator is an acoustic pulse emitter responsive to commands from the controller, or an electronic valve that is temporarily closable in response to a command from the controller to produce a pressure wave by interrupting a flow of pressurized fluid into the conduit.
5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein:
the conduit is a wellbore casing, the first location of the first sensor is an existing port of a wellhead that is fluidly coupled to the wellbore casing, and the second location of the second sensor is associated with a flowline of the wellhead;
the conduit is a flowline of a wellhead that is fluidly coupled to a wellbore, and the first location of the first sensor and the second location of the second sensor are different locations along the flowline; or
the conduit is a pipeline in fluid communication with and arranged downstream of a wellbore, and the first location of the first sensor and the second location of the second sensor are different locations along the pipeline.
6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit are selected from the group consisting of a deposition inside the conduit, a blockage inside the conduit, and a leak in the conduit.
7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the computing device is located remotely from the conduit and the controller is communicatively coupled to the computing device over a network.
8 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the controller is a part of the data acquisition device.
9 . A method comprising:
installing a first sensor at a first location in fluid communication with a conduit of a hydrocarbon well to detect signals comprising reflections of a pressure wave traveling through the conduit and to generate data in response thereto;
installing a second sensor at a second location in fluid communication with the conduit to detect a change in pressure or a change in another characteristic of a fluid traveling through the conduit and to generate triggering signals in response thereto;
causing, by a controller communicatively coupled to the second sensor, in response to receipt of a triggering signal from the second sensor, a pressure wave generator to introduce a pressure wave into the conduit;
in response to causing the pressure wave to be introduced into the conduit, initiating, by the controller, data collection by a data acquisition device communicatively coupled to the first sensor;
detecting, by the first sensor, reflections of the pressure wave traveling through the conduit;
collecting, by the data acquisition device, at a sampling rate greater than 4 kHz, data generated by the first sensor in response to detecting the reflections of the pressure wave;
receiving, by the controller, the data collected by the data acquisition device;
automatically transmitting the data, by the controller, to a computing device;
determining, by the computing device, by analyzing the data received from the controller within a frequency range of 0 Hz to 70 Hz, one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit; and
reporting, by the computing device, the one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit.
10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the conduit is selected from the group consisting of a wellbore casing, a flowline, and a pipeline.
11 . The method of claim 9 , wherein
pressure wave generator introduces the pressure wave into the conduit within a timing window of 0.5 seconds to 2 seconds.
12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the pressure wave generator is an acoustic pulse emitter responsive to commands from the controller, or an electronic valve that is temporarily closable in response to a command from the controller to produce a pressure wave by interrupting a flow of pressurized fluid into the conduit.
13 . The method of claim 9 , wherein:
the conduit is a wellbore casing, the first location of the first sensor is an existing port of a wellhead that is fluidly coupled to the wellbore casing, and the second location of the second sensor is associated with a flowline of the wellhead;
the conduit is a flowline of a wellhead that is fluidly coupled to a wellbore, and the first location of the first sensor and the second location of the second sensor are different locations along the flowline; or
the conduit is a pipeline in fluid communication with and arranged downstream of a wellbore, and the first location of the first sensor and the second location of the second sensor are different locations along the pipeline.
14 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit are selected from the group consisting of a deposition inside the conduit, a blockage inside the conduit, and a leak in the conduit.
15 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the computing device is located remotely from the conduit and the controller transmits the data to the computing device over a network.
16 . A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions that are executable by a processing device of a controller of a hydrocarbon well conduit monitoring and diagnostic system for causing the controller to perform operations comprising:
causing a pressure wave generator to introduce a pressure wave into the conduit in response to a triggering signal from a second sensor that is communicatively coupled to the controller and installed in fluid communication with the conduit of the hydrocarbon well to detect a change in pressure or a change in another characteristic of a fluid traveling through the conduit and to generate triggering signals in response thereto;
in response to causing the pressure wave to be introduced into the conduit, initiating data collection at a sampling rate greater than 4 kHz by a data acquisition device communicatively coupled to a first sensor that is installed at a first location in fluid communication with the conduit of the hydrocarbon well to detect signals comprising reflections of the pressure wave traveling through the conduit and to generate data in response thereto;
receiving data collected by the data acquisition device from the first sensor; and
automatically transmitting the data to a computing device programmed to determine one or more abnormal conditions of the conduit by analyzing the data received from the controller within a frequency range of 0 Hz to 70 Hz.
17 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the conduit is selected from the group consisting of a wellbore casing, a flowline, and a pipeline.
18 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the pressure wave generator is operable to introduce the pressure wave into the conduit within a timing window of 0.5 seconds to 2 seconds.
19 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 18 , wherein the pressure wave generator is an acoustic pulse emitter responsive to commands from the controller, or an electronic valve that is temporarily closable in response to a command from the controller to produce a pressure wave by interrupting a flow of pressurized fluid into the conduit.
20 . The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16 , wherein the computing device is located remotely from the conduit and the controller transmits the data to the computing device over a network.