Patent ID: 8704159
Filing Date: 2014-04-22
Classification: E21B,G01N

Abstract:
1. An apparatus for estimating a property of a downhole fluid, the apparatus comprising: a carrier that is conveyable in a borehole; a test cell carried by the carrier for capturing the downhole fluid; a fluid channel immersed in the downhole fluid, the fluid channel having a first wall and a second wall, wherein the first wall faces the second wall; a quantity of charged particle sources placed at locations along the first wall of the fluid channel; a quantity of charged particle detectors placed at locations along the second wall of the fluid channel, wherein each of the charged particle detectors is positioned to be in particle communication with at least one of the charged particle sources; and a positioner device in physical communication with at least one of the first wall and the second; and a processor configured to actuate the positioner device to change a distance between the first wall and the second wall to estimate density of the fluid in the fluid channel based on the quantity of charged particles detected passing through the downhole fluid in the fluid channel at the distance between the first wall and second wall.