Large Capacity Data Microchip Transmission System and its Opportunities

Abstract

Downhole data transfer has been limited by slow downhole communication bandwidths for decades. The current data-transferring technologies have reached bottlenecks for acquiring logging data and ever-demanding high-frequency drilling dynamics measurements. There is an urgent need to significantly improve the downhole data communication speed for drilling optimization, real-time geosteering, and reservoir description. Current downhole communication systems with data rates between 20bit/s – 60kbit/s are not sufficient for the above-mentioned applications, let alone their limited robustness in structural integrity against inherent environmental noises and low cost-effectiveness make them less efficient. Therefore, a new downhole communication system using data microchips is proposed in this paper. The paper presents the improvements made to the first version of the data micro-storage-balls MSBs (Li et al., 2022) to adapt the system to 1) more complex drilling projects and 2) the acquisition of high-resolution and large datasets in a quasi-real-time for better well management decisions. The presented technology can transfer large amounts of data without needing a specific drill pipe connection or structure and employs the basic concept of a "flash drive" (downloading and exchanging data among systems). The equipment achieves time-devised data transmission using microchips stored in a sealed chamber which are released using a standard BHA sub. The upgrades to the first-generation MSB (larger memory capacity, robust packaging material, and added sensors) will improve multiple aspects of the technology. 1) The capability of deploying them in long horizontal sections and the recovery rate due to efficient housing density management (≤ 1.5 g/cm3) using high-performance hollow glass beads. 2) The increase in storage capacity (up to 32Gbit) with the use of state-of-the-art circuit boards that also support higher temperatures and pressures, improving the storage capacity, transmission rates, and overall tool performance in deep reservoir locations. Therefore, the newest additions and modifications made to the first generation of MSBs can create remarkable performance improvements.