Conventional sponge coring methods do not always accurately determine fluid types or quantify residual oil volumes because the sponge can be easily damaged, allowing oil seepage during core extraction. The SOr system, which includes a 3½-in. ID sponge liner, modified pilot shoe, proprietary pressure-compensating piston design, LaserCut™ aluminum inner-barrel liner system, and custom-designed coring bit, reduces the risk of drilling fluid invasion and captures all of the expelled oil as the core is brought to the surface.

The system’s application-specific bit minimizes eccentricity and helps ensure that a precisely sized core is cut for entry into the sponge liner. The molded, oil-absorptive sponge liner with protective mesh ensures a close fit between the core and the sponge so that expelled oil is absorbed rather than lost in the formation or wellbore. This tight fit also provides additional core integrity and protects it during acquisition, recovery, surface handling, and transportation to the laboratory for analysis and short-term storage.

The SOr system and core acquisition process allows operators to secure a larger volume of unaltered core for oil saturation analysis, effectively reducing total data acquisition costs and minimizing nonproductive time. The system works well in conventional and unconventional oil formations, including shale plays and mature, secondary, and tertiary fields.

Baker Hughes is a leading supplier of oilfield services, products, technology and systems to the worldwide oil and natural gas industry. The company’s 58,000-plus employees today work in more than 80 countries helping customers find, evaluate, drill, produce, transport and process hydrocarbon resources.