MADE IN THE SOUTH WEST
For those about to rock - here’s a tool to suit you
William Wills, staff geoscientist at Avalon Sciences, explores how Research & Development (R&D) has ruggedized a West Country manufacturer’s technology to withstand the most hostile of Earth environments.
Chamber member Avalon Sciences Ltd (ASL), is family owned and was formed in 1987. Working out of his garage in Babcary, Somerset, founder and CEO, Gary Tubridy, designed and assembled advanced borehole seismic detectors (geophones) for the monitoring of underground acoustic energy (seismicity) associated with both high resolution geological mapping and detecting earthquakes. This technology is deployed
deep, up to several miles, within the Earth’s crust where they experience extremely hostile environments with temperatures of up to 180oC and pressures of up to 25,000 pounds per square inch. At these depths, the low background noise and high sensitivity of the sensor enable detection of the quietest of seismic signals, yielding high resolution data that would be undetectable when monitoring at the surface. The success of the geophone
detectors came to the attention of the major exploration companies operating in the upstream geophysical market. Seeing a substantial increase in volume of orders ASL had to expand in a brand new site to accommodate the increased manufacturing output.
In 2012 a new building was commissioned to accommodate advanced electronic assembly, electro/mechanical and software design offices, CNC machining shop along with high pressure/temperature testing laboratories. This building ‘The ARC’ (Avalon Research Centre) is populated by highly skilled design engineers, geoscientists and technicians, many of whom ASL took on after the closure of the Thales military R&D site in Wells. As the energy exploration sector
required surveys in more challenging locations, long term monitoring for both environmental impact and reservoir characterisation became ever more crucial. In 2014 ASL took the decision to purchase the Rosemanowes Hot Rocks Quarry site near Falmouth, Cornwall. This facility boasts some of the deepest wells in the UK (~2.5km) for helping qualify and test our products as well as delivering training to end users. This has also facilitated projects for independent companies wishing to test their product in real well environments as well as giving scope for synergy with Universities through providing discounted academic access.
Deeper, hotter, stronger
… for longer In order for borehole seismic methods to continue to be fully established as an added value option, certain key technological challenges needed to be identified and overcome. With conventional energy reserves dwindling, energy companies are looking towards alternative areas for new players. As a result the technology is being increasingly tasked to work in deeper, higher pressure, higher temperature reservoirs (hydrocarbon and geothermal zones). In order to keep pace with the rest of the industry ASL has begun to make breakthroughs to operate at ultra-high pressures (30kpsi+) and temperatures (200oC+). To do this we had to first reinforce our quality and design controls by achieving our ISO 9001 status in 2012 and maintaining the standard to date. We have tailored our technology to facilitate the highest sensitivity borehole recording systems on the market. This has proven ideal for monitoring and policing microseismicity generated from rock fracturing, which is becoming a dominant application for borehole seismic exploration. Public and environmental
scepticism of hydrocarbon extraction has meant governments are enforcing stricter regulations and demanding more stringent monitoring of reservoirs, especially in more populated areas. As a
result, a new market is growing for the provision of permanent high sensitivity instrumentation to be a key provider in enforced reservoir monitoring of induced seismicity. Manufacturers are therefore
looking at new methods to allow receivers to survive for longer in hostile downhole environments. The use of bespoke high-grade steel pressure housings with metal to metal seals, advanced cooling mechanisms and more robust components are a focus for the R&D teams based in the new deep well test site and the Avalon Research Centre. Going forward, ultra-high temperature operation is now the priority focus for product innovation. ASL is also working in cooperation with the UK Government ‘Innovate Scheme’ facilitating development and advanced testing of a new optical sensing technology. Here, we run optical fibre downhole and fire pulses of light down into the earth, we then measure the minute changes in reflected light as affected by seismic noise. ASL strongly believes this will introduce a paradigm shift in how Earth sensing technology will evolve. Earthquake detection and
seismic exploration hardware must continue its adaptability and respond to industry trends if it is to stay current and relevant. By having such a significant investment each year in research and development, companies like ours can continue to innovate to ensure our technology is market leading.
JULY/AUGUST 2019 insight 25
inside
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