Patent ID: 9057254
Filing Date: 2015-06-16
Classification: E21B

Abstract:
1. A method for detecting fluid ingress in a wellbore and obtaining an indication of where along said wellbore said fluid ingress is occurring, the method comprising: (a) placing acoustic sensing means along at least a portion of said wellbore, said acoustic sensing means adapted to sense individual acoustic signals from a plurality of known proximate locations along said wellbore; (b) receiving at least three acoustic signals from said acoustic sensing means over a selected time interval, each of said received acoustic signals having associated therewith one of said proximate locations; (c) identifying at least a common acoustic component in said received acoustic signals by analyzing each of said received acoustic signals received over said selected time interval, wherein said identifying comprises identifying as said common acoustic component an acoustic component that exhibits a uniform time delay in said received acoustic signals; and (d) identifying, as a lead acoustic signal, one of said acoustic signals that possesses said common acoustic component, wherein said common acoustic component is at an earlier point in time compared to said common acoustic component in said rest of acoustic signals received from said proximate locations above and below said location that receives said lead acoustic signal, wherein said proximate location that receives said lead acoustic signal is indicative of where along said wellbore said fluid ingress is occurring.