ACOUSTIC METHODS FOR MEASURING THE THICKNESS OF DEPOSITS ON THE INNER WALL OF PIPELINES

Abstract

Wax deposits on the inner walls of pipelines and technological equipment are a serious problem in the petroleum industry. This is not a new problem and it appeared at the dawn of oil production, but it still remains relevant, especially today, when most of petroleum fields are moving to a late stage of their development. Wax deposits lead to complications in the transportation of petroleum products, which leads to economic losses, and deposits can also cause equipment failure.For timely planning and implementation of treatment activities, information on the current thickness of wax deposits is required. However, there is currently no simple and effective method for measuring thickness of deposits.The paper considers the existing acoustic methods for measuring the thickness of deposits: through-transmission method, echo-method andmethod based on attenuation of acoustic signal. Experimental studies were carried out to determine the applicability of the proposed methods. An analysis of the literature was carried out and we proposed a new method for measuring the thickness of wax deposits, based on the analysis parameters of frequency of natural vibrations of the pipeline wall.An experimental study and computer modeling have been carried out, confirming the existence of a relationship between the resonant frequency of the pipeline wall oscillations and the thickness of the deposits. This dependence can be used as the basis for a new device for measuring the thickness of wax deposits.