Ultrasonic Measurements of the Bubble Nucleation Rate During Depletion Experiments in a Rock Sample

Abstract

ABSTRACT By means of an ultrasonic technique, the nucleation rate J in depletion experiments has been measured. An array of 8 ultrasonic transducers, fixed along a rock sample, continuously scans the sound velocity and the attenuation in the sample. Due to the great difference in sound velocity between the gas and the liquid, bubbles are easily detected and located by transducers. The sample is also set up with capillary tube at one end for the observation of production by the displacement of a meniscus. The main advantage of ultrasonic technique is the capacity to work at high pressure and temperature. An improvement in the accuracy over the standard techniques is observed.