Multiphase Flow Analysis Using Piezoelectric Leaf-Cell Sensor Array

The composition of the multiphase flow rates from hydrocarbon reservoirs has direct impact on the programs to optimize hydrocarbon production and for the identification of problems with production. However, the accurate measurement of the flow rates of oil, brine, and gas in three-phase regimes remains an intractable problem for current state-of-the-art sensor technologies. Here, we describe a piezoelectric acoustic leaf-cell sensor array providing an in situ real-time measurement of the distribution in three-phase flow fluid density over the wellbore cross section. The sensor array measurements are evaluated from experimental three-phase flow loop test data under a range of flow regimes comprised of 0–95% gas volume fraction and water/liquid volume ratio between 0 and 100%. The experimental data include three-phase flow transitions well into the nonlinear subsonic gas velocity region predicted by the Wood equation and show an average absolute error in three-phase fluid density prediction less than 0.05 g/cc over the entire test regimen.