Oilfield monitoring of subterranean polymer solution
US10859558B2 · kind B2 · utility
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20Claims
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Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 12, 2016 |
| Grant date | Dec 8, 2020 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 15, 2037 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG01N21/05
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
Aqueous liquid which has been in contact with a subterranean geological formation, especially a hydrocarbon reservoir, is examined in order to detect or measure viscosifying polymer therein, by flowing a sample of the liquid through a constriction thereby causing extensional flow and alignment of any polymer molecules with the flow, and examining the solution for birefringence of aligned polymer molecules. The amount of birefringence is determined from intensity of light which has passed through the solution relative to intensity of the light source.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.