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Announcing the Launch of the Interface Pressure Compensated Downhole Load Cell

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Interface is excited to announce the release of a new downhole solution for the energy industry, the Interface Pressure Compensated Downhole Load Cell (IPCD).

The IPCD is a Wheatstone bridge foil-gaged-based force measurement solution using proprietary compensation methods and designed to provide highly accurate force data in harsh environments, like those found in the oil and gas industry, while requiring limited maintenance compared to similar solutions on the market. This is a product line that is many years in the making, as we’ve offered it as a custom solution. In fact, it has been developed across multiple applications to meet the needs of the oil and gas industry.

Interface’s new IPCD product is best suited for tension head applications of wireline services, particularly useful in deviated or horizontal wells where topside measurements are no longer reliable. Many applications include conveyance, pump down, perforating, tractor, and high pressure high temperature deep offshore use.

The key benefit the IPCD provides over existing solutions, commonly referred to as “wet” load cells, is its method of compensation. Wet load cells have a hydraulic compensation mechanism that uses pistons and seals, requiring frequent maintenance. Hydraulic compensation is complex for smaller tool providers and performance was suboptimal. For the IPCD, Interface developed a proprietary technology that compensates for that pressure influence and allows for bridge isolation. This means that the IPCD is far more rugged, needing little to no repairs, and it can be used downhole without risk of damage, a first of its kind in the industry.

It provides accurate measurement of downhole tension conditions in both vertical and horizontal wells and the proprietary internal compensation actively measures only the portion of the load caused by axial force, ignoring the portion of the load caused by pressure. Since it is an inherently passive system with no active pressure measurement being made or using a separate transducer, it is a completely analog solution for reliability and temperature stability.

We also test the IPCD heavily before it leaves our doors. The oil and gas industry can be extremely volatile, so we understand that our load cells need to be at peak performance for every use. Each load cell is tested individually on force, creep, temperature and pressure.

Advantages of the new proprietary Interface Pressure Compensated Downhole Load Cell include:

  • IPCD is a standard product from Interface and available today
  • IPCD offers maintenance-free service with significant long-term payback by eliminating disassembly, downtime, calibration, and instrumentation configuration
  • Interface’s new product is a precision with unmatched performance
  • IPCD has minimal thermal and pressure error, combined with world class linearity and hysteresis
  • It has field proven reliability and was designed based on a decades of engineering and force measurement experience

To learn more about the IPCD, we recently published a white paper that goes deeper into how the unit works, the specifications of the solution, as well as providing additional information on our testing process. You can read more about the IPCD in our new technical overview, Interface Pressure Compensated Downhole Load Cell White Paper available online for download.

We also issued a press release announcing the launch of IPCD.

This new product launch is a collaborative effort involving many of our team members in engineering, production and sales.

 

Interface Leads Innovation in Oil and Gas Force Measurement

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The oil and gas industry is among the most dangerous and expensive industries in the world. There’s also the inherent risk of ecological harm that can be caused by faulty machinery. Because Interface is able to address these challenges, the company’s products have become the heavy favorite among oil and gas companies.

Interface is recognized by oil and gas companies for product reliability, accuracy, and innovative design.

For several years, the oil and gas industry has used “wet” load cells to monitor forces on their downhole load strings. These downhole load strings are equipped with a variety of sensors, and they travel down thousands of feet during exploratory drilling operations. These load cells provide data to the user that measures the forces on the load string to ensure it doesn’t break due to forces greater than th[user_id]e string has been designed to. When one of these strings breaks, it leaves up to a million dollars’ worth of equipment trapped underground until it can be fished out using expensive recovery techniques.

The problem with wet load cells is that they don’t hold up for extended use in wells that extend several thousand feet underground where there are extreme pressures and temperatures in a caustic environment. These wet load cells typically only last about a year or two before they are damaged beyond further use. The turnover rate of these products becomes extremely expensive and can also cause critical inconsistencies in measurements, or the complete loss of measurement feedback.

The reason these wet load cells break down after a year or two is that the sensors on this product are exposed to the harsh underground environment. To address this issue, Interface created a “dry” load cell that protects the sensitive parts with innovative design, reduces the number of sensors required in the customer’s downhole load string, and allows the load cell to last 10 years or more.

“Our dry load cell technology provides Interface’s signature accuracy in a ruggedized package that will stand up to the harsh environments of a deep oil well. These design iterations that allow for longer product lifespans are critical to our customers because of the cost savings and consistency of using a single force measurement solution.” Ken Vining, Chief Engineer at Interface

Interface initially developed this technology as a custom solution to address a customer’s challenge of constantly replacing wet load cells. Based on the positive feedback Interface received, the company has begun development on a standard version of the dry load cell. The standard load cell will be more cost-effective than wet load cells and custom design dry load cells.

For more information on the products that Interface provides for the oil and gas industry, click here.  For details on all Interface solutions, please visit www.interfaceforce.com.

Contributor:  Ken Vining, Chief Engineer at Interface