Patent ID: 8146657

Claim:
A method of inferring gas production utilizing a conduit having an outlet controlled by a valve in communication with a well space within a well through which a gas volume is being produced, comprising: taking a selected number of measurements during a selected period of time, each measurement including: closing the outlet valve to allow gas pressure within the conduit to change; sampling the gas pressure within the conduit over a sampling time period; calculating a rate of pressure change from samples taken over the sampling time period; and calculating a rate of gas production in the well space from the calculated rate of change of pressure, the gas volume, well characteristics, and gas properties, wherein calculating the rate of gas production comprises calculating the rate of production using the real gas equation multiplied by k, the ratio of specific heats determined for the gas properties, such that the gas volume within the well space is an adiabatic gas volume; and summing the calculated rates of gas production for the selected number of measurements to determine an inferred rate of gas production through the well space during the selected period of time.