SandQ® Monitor 

 

In order to measure the amount of sand being produced, we have combined two separate instruments into one. The SandQ has built in mix flow velocity measurement. The sensor is installed a few pipe diameters downstream of a bend, where the flow is turbulent.

The SandQ measures sand/particles through passive ultrasonic technology; it detects the ultrasonic signal that is generated by particles impacting on the inside of the pipe wall, just after the bend where the sensor is located.

 

Product flow is measured using an active Pulse-Doppler technique. The built-in Doppler element tracks the particles/bubbles in the flow via an extremely high updating pulse rate (8000 pings per second). The pulse rate is so rapid that at typical flow velocities of 0.3 to 20 m/sec, the distance a bubble or particle travels between pulses is much less than the beam-width of the pulse. This allows the bubbles or particles in the fluid to be «pictured» by several pulses, thus tracking the movement of the particles. ClampOn developed this technique in order to handle challenging multiphase measurements, enabling the instrument to trend the flow very accurately. The flowing media may be a single-phase liquid or a multiphase flow, and all signal processing is done internally by a DSP engine before the results are sent to a computer or control system (no Calculating Interface Unit required).

 

The SandQ is delivered fully calibrated and there is no need for individual site calibration to operate this unit, which can be simply clamped to the pipe wall.

With the ClampOn SandQ, field operators can evaluate sand and flow data in real time and make the decisions required for optimized production.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sand production in oil and gas wells is a serious issue for oil and gas producers. The challenge is not merely to avoid sand production, but also to optimize well productivity, as even small quantities of particles in the well flow can cause significant damage. An operator is interested in maximum production and profit, no matter what technology is used. Operators all over the world have made ClampOn their preferred supplier of sand monitoring systems, due to the company’s patented technology for sand monitoring and sand production management.

The ClampOn SandQ incorporates a new filtering technique combined with flow monitoring capabilities making the instrument an extremely useful tool for analyzing the true nature of sand production, helping to control it, and finally, maximizing the profit from the well.

 

The SandQ features complete digitalization, keeping the amount of analogue filters, circuits and amplifiers to a minimum. The patented technology incorporates a powerful signal processing unit, running feature-packed, modular software. The sensor operates in several ultrasonic frequency ranges simultaneously, permitting the implementation of a host of new signal-processing features.

Different types of noise-generating chokes and flow conditions are analyzed and dealt with via the advanced processing and filtering techniques of SandQ. With the SandQ’s advanced Digital Signal Processing unit (DSP) sensitivity, accuracy, repeatability and the ability to suppress unrelated noise (flow noise) are superior to all traditional and alternative systems. These important factors in quantifying sand production make SandQ a crucial tool for your daily sand management operations.

 

No other sensor comes close to what ClampOn SandQ offers in terms of production optimization and profitability!

 

Figure. 1. The signal from the sensor experienced on a high flow rate – high pressure gas well using a traditional/alternative sensor without DSP-06 filtering technology.	Figure 2. Sensor signal experienced on the same well, now with the new ClampOn DSP-06 filter. This shows how the sensor has completely removed the flow noise, allowing the operator to monitor the true nature of the sand being produced.

 

 

 

 

The ClampOn SandQ shares the same interfaces and communication protocols as the existing DSP Particle Monitor. This means that all clients who already use ClampOn instruments can integrate the new SandQ into their existing system – it is simply a quick swap. The SandQ is intrinsically safe, and carries Ex ia IIB approval.

 

All our instruments are equipped with both digital and analogue interface. Our instruments can be integrated into any control system. A computer with our software is often used in-between our instruments and the control system. It is recommended to use the digital interface for following reasons:

 

SandQ Monitor
Principle of operation	Passive/active acoustics, intelligent sensor
Minimum particle size	Minimum detectable particle size and sand rate depends on flow medium and flow velocity. Typical sizes are: Oil/water: 25 microns / 1PPM Air/gas: 15 microns / 1 PPM
Minimum sand rate	0,01 g/s
Minimum flow velocity	0,5 m/s
Uncertainty	±5% (with calibration by means of sand injections)
Repeatability	Better than 1%
Flow element	Velocity             0.5 – 20 m/s
Flow:	Accuracy            ±15%
Flow:	Min. pressure    Liquid >0.5 Bar                          Multiphase/Gas 30 Bar
Method of installation	Clamped to pipe surface, non-intrusive
Sensor electronics	Intelligent DSP electronics with signal processing
Interface options	All sensors can be supplied with: Digital RS485 (ASCII, binary, ModBus RTU), 4-20mA (active/passive)
Two-way communication	Yes
Software upgrading	Yes
Pipe Surface Temperature	-40 to 225°C (-40 to 437°F)
High temperature fixture	Contact Manufacturer for more details
Flow regimes	Oil, gas, water, multiphase
Diagnostic features	Intelligent health-test of electronic hardware

 

COMPUTER
Minimum hardware	Pentium III (or equivalent) with 512 MB RAM
Software requirements (for Clampon Software)	Windows™ XP/Vista/2000-2008
Input	Serial, Modbus, Ethernet, OPC
Signal output	Serial, Modbus, Ethernet, 4-20mA, Relay, Client Server

 

ClampOn has since the beginning in 1994 grown to be the largest supplier of passive ultrasonic systems for sand/particle monitoring to the international oil and gas sector.

 

All products supplied by ClampOn, particle monitor, PIG detector, corrosion-erosion monitor, vibration monitor and leak monitor are based on the same, well proven technology platform. Both the topside and the subsea instruments incorporate Digital Signal Processing (DSP), complete digitalization eliminating analogue filters, circuits and amplifiers.

The ClampOn Ultrasonic Intelligent Sensor processes all data in the sensor itself (patented principle), thus enabling the instrument to discriminate between sand-generated and flow-generated noise. This is of importance to the user since changes in flow rates and the gas/oil ratio will not affect the performance of the system.

A good signal to noise (s/n) ratio is vital for quality measurements of this sort, and ClampOn’s sensors are the very best in this respect. With the new version, the external noise has been completely eliminated.
The sensors has memory capacity for storing up to 60 days of data, and can even be reprogrammed between being a sand monitor, a PIG detector or a leak monitor.

 

ClampOn Ultrasonic Intelligent Sensor

• Non-invasive
• Digital Signal Processing (DSP)
• Complete digitalisation
• No analogue filters, circuits or amplifiers
• Two-way communication
• Real-time measurement
• Easy to relocate
• Contains no moving parts
• Can be mounted in hostile environments
• Incorporates sensitive, intelligent, intrinsically safe sensors
• Can be upgraded by software download
• Can store up to 60 days of  measurement data within the sensor itself
• Self-testing capabilities
• Built-in temperature sensor and  accelerometer (optional)
• User-friendly software for Windows™ XP/Vista/2000-2008
• Versatile - one and the same sensor can perform particle detection, PIG detection, spectrum analysis and more, all available in the software package of your choice.