An FBG magnetic sensor for oil flow monitoring in sandstone core

Monitoring the oil movement using a non-contact optical fiber probe during enhanced oil recovery is a novel technique to increase the efficiency of the process by distinguishing the oil position in the reservoir. A partially unclad fiber Bragg grating (FBG) coated with Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles as a magnetic field sensor is experimentally demonstrated. A series of six FBGs reflecting different wavelengths are fixed on the surface of sandstone. Nanofluids containing magnetite nanoparticles and alkaline-surfactant-polymer are injected continuously in two separate steps into the sandstone, which is saturated with 20% oil and 80% brine. The chamber is equipped with a solenoid that acts as a magnetic field generator. The changes in the magnetic field strength depended on the FBG-solenoid distance and the density of localized injected nanoparticles near the FBGs leads to a shift of the reflected wavelength of each single FBG accordingly. The shift is caused by the interference of different propagating modes reflected from the core-cladding and cladding-magnetite layer interfaces. The intensity of the FBG spectra decreases by injecting the nanofluid and vice versa for surfactant injection. The sensor response time of ∼21 s confirms the high reliability and repeatability of the sensing scheme. Movement of oil along the sandstone alters the wavelength shift in the FBG spectra.