The Photonics Laboratory is developing reliable, cost-effective optical fiber sensors for monitoring of pressure, temperature, oil flow, and acoustic waves in downhole oil wells. Such information is crucial to oil companies, which use the data to regulate oil recovery to make recovery as efficient as possible. The complete extraction of oil reserves in existing reservoirs has been hampered by the limited capabilities of sensors to withstand the harsh conditions of the downhole environment, the sensors limited life spans, and their expense. The Photonics Laboratory is implementing fiber optic technology to build sensor units that are cheaper to produce and operate, and provide more accurate measurements. Use of fiber optic sensors could lead to higher recovery rates and lower production and operating costs.
Plans are underway to make the technologies commercially available.
The Photonics Laboratory at Virginia Tech has performed pioneering research on the development of various types of sapphire fiber optic sensors and related technologies. Optical Fiber Sensor-Based Detection of Partial Discharges in Power Transformers Catastrophic failures of power transformers can occur without warning, resulting in serious oil spills, fires, extensive damage to adjacent equipment, and major disruption of service. It is important to study and monitor the partial discharge activity to detect incipient insulation problems, to prevent catastrophic failures, and to prevent extensive costs. The Photonics Laboratory at Virginia Tech recently developed a fiber optic acoustic sensor system for on-line monitoring and allocating the partial discharge activities inside power transformers. The fiber sensor system uses a thin silica diaphragm and a single mode optical fiber encapsulated in a silica glass tube to form a sensing element.