US 12,339,207 B2
Device and method for detecting the flocculation threshold of a colloidal medium, in particular a medium comprising asphaltenes, by addition of aliphatic solvent
Ahmad Al Farra, Le Havre (FR); Jérôme Olivier, Le Havre (FR); Martial Lepinay, Mouen (FR); and Jean Christien, Saint Martin de Fontenay (FR)
Assigned to TotalEnergies One Tech, Courbevoie (FR)
Appl. No. 18/012,492
Filed by TotalEnergies OneTech, Courbevoie (FR)
PCT Filed Jun. 21, 2021, PCT No. PCT/EP2021/066878
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Dec. 22, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/259876, PCT Pub. Date Dec. 30, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. 20305688 (EP), filed on Jun. 23, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2023/0251177 A1, Aug. 10, 2023
Int. Cl. G01N 15/00 (2024.01)
CPC G01N 15/00 (2013.01) [G01N 2015/0092 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. Device for measuring the flocculation threshold of a colloidal medium by adding an aliphatic solvent, comprising:
at least one measuring cell operating by direct optical transmission and having a measuring chamber intended to receive the medium, and, associated with each measuring cell:
a light emitter configured to emit a light beam entering the measuring chamber along an emission direction,
a photoelectric light receiver directly receiving the light beam exiting from the measuring chamber, the receiver being able to deliver a current when it receives a luminous flux,
a control system comprising:
a light emitter control system configured to vary the luminous intensity of the light beam emitted between a minimum and a maximum value,
a system for measuring the current delivered by the light receiver comprising:
a current-to-voltage converter receiving the current delivered by the light receiver and delivering a voltage, this converter comprising a controlled switch distributing the current in a circuit selected from at least two impedance circuits having different impedances,
a variable gain amplifier receiving the voltage supplied by the current-to-voltage converter and delivering a voltage equal to or proportional to the incoming voltage,
an analogue-to-digital converter receiving the voltage output from the variable gain amplifier and delivering a digital signal representative of the amount of current supplied by the light receiver,
a management system of the control system of each measuring cell, configured to control the light emitter control system, the switch of the current-to-voltage converter and the variable gain amplifier of each control system.