SapphireLab® Platform
Gather rapid insights into reservoir fluid behaviour and interactions with our suite of SapphireLab® microfluidic instruments
The SapphireLab® instrument portfolio provides rapid analysis solutions for determining the PVT properties of oil and condensate samples; determining the interactions between fluids under representative temperature, pressure, and confinement in EOR and hydraulic fracturing applications; and the ability to characterize and address production engineering challenges like scale, wax, and asphaltene accumulation.
Each instrument is tailored to address a set of analysis relevant for PVT labs, chemical companies, and academic users. The SapphireLab® instrument together with the software suite and microfluidic chips provide a platform with the throughput and flexibility needed for your lab.
# A Multi-Purpose Tool for Fluid Analysis SapphireLab® is a ready-to-use solution that can
handle most of the work done today by a PVT Cell, Core Flood, Slim Tube, Proppant Pack and other
specialty tools.
Deeper insights into fluid behaviour with a single system:
- Completion Fluid Testing
- Flow Assurance
- Phase behaviour and Fluid Characterization
- Enhanced Oil Recovery
- Formation Damage and Reservoir Impairment
- Carbon Utilization and Storage
- And Other Subsurface Energy Applications including Hydrogen and Geothermal
SapphireLab® leverages microfluidic technology to deliver critical data about how fluids behave underground. Our customers can increase production and reduce expenses by:
- Visual access
- Reduced sample requirements
- Highly controlled and customizable porous media
SapphireLab®: Next-Generation Fluid Analysis for Your Laboratory
This video introduces SapphireLab® and provides a quick overview of how it works. SapphireLab® is a turnkey microfluidic instrument for industrial fluid analysis, capable of operating at the highest pressures (up to 1,034 bar) and temperatures (up to 200°C) of any microfluidic instrument.
Why SapphireLab® Platform is the best for
Researchers
Safe, High Pressure and High Temperature Microfluidics
SapphireLab® enables your team to safely conduct high pressure (up to 1,034 bar or 15,000 psi) and high temperature (up to 200°C or 390°F) microfluidics tests. Microfluidics is inherently safer than traditional methods that require 10 to 100 times more sample volume per test, and SapphireLab® takes it further by integrating mechanical and software features, such as burst disks for pressure relief, that reduce risks to your team. We use SapphireLab® in our own laboratory, and understand the need for a safe work environment.
Researchers
Accelerate Research
With SapphireLab®, your team can concentrate on science rather than the technology. Its intuitive hardware and software platform streamlines your workflow, allowing you to spend more time generating results instead of sourcing components or troubleshooting image issues. Most tests can be completed in under a day, enabling you to achieve faster results than traditional testing platforms or DIY microfluidics setups.
Researchers
Small But Mighty
With a footprint about the same size as a typical dishwasher, SapphireLab® can fit in even the most space-constrained laboratories. Out-of-the-box, SapphireLab® is a multipurpose instrument capable of supporting many fluid property tests and interaction behavior tests, giving it one of the best capability to footprint ratios of any fluid analysis instrument. Combined with your expertise and know-how, SapphireLab® is flexible enough to support your changing research needs, and small enough to fit within the laboratory space you already have.
Chemistry Providers
Optimize Chemical Screening for Customer Projects
Because we can accurately manufacture many microfluidic chips with the same specifications, and SapphireLab® tests can typically be done in a day, you can rapidly screen chemistries to pick the best performer for a given reservoir or facility operation.
Chemistry Providers
Accelerate New Product Development
Microfluidic tests are fast and inherently repeatable due to the ability to manufacture many microfluidic chips with the same specifications. The technology is great for tuning chemical formulas—whether for surfactants used in hydraulic fracturing, or wax inhibitors used in managing flow assurance issues.
Chemistry Providers
Gain Competitive Advantage
Gain a competitive advantage by clearly demonstrating to your customers the effectiveness of your chemistries at reservoir pressure and temperature.
Chemistry Providers
Launch a New Revenue Stream
While SapphireLab® can be a value-add service provided to customers of your products, it can also support fee-for-service chemical screening. SapphireLab® customers use measured results and images taken during tests to demonstrate the effectiveness of their chemical products against a control and competing products.
Completions Engineers
Increase Production
SapphireLab®’s unique rapid chemical screening capabilities enables Completion Engineering teams in unconventional production to optimize hydraulic fracturing fluid packages for increased production. Through fine tuned control of oils, surfactants, water sources, porous media structure, and operating pressure and temperature, teams can trial different chemistries and concentrations at low cost and zero risk, to identify the best performing fluid packages. If desired, teams can then test the best performing fluid package in a core flood to validate results and measure the impact of rock-fluid interactions, before moving to the well.
Completions Engineers
Prevent Overspending on Chemistry
When it comes to surfactants and flowback aids, using more than the optimal dosage can diminish the ability of oil to flow from the producing formation. In addition to selecting the correct concentration of a flowback aid, SapphireLab® can also provide insight into the fluids package to ensure that there are no chemical-chemical or chemical-water incompatibilities by testing whole fluid systems, in addition to testing components in isolation.
Production Engineers
Reduce Down Time
Production Engineers know even small changes in incoming fluid composition can result in costly production down time. That’s why great care and effort is focused on regular monitoring of wax, emulsions, and scale in production volumes. Because microfluidic tests are highly sensitive, Production Engineering teams can integrate SapphireLab® into their monitoring program to accurately detect small fluid changes and serve as an early warning system for flow assurance issues.
Production Engineers
Reduce Chemical Costs
Through fast and repeatable chemical screening with SapphireLab®, Production Engineering teams can better optimize chemical dosing levels, potentially reducing the cost of flow assurance programs for wax, scale, asphaltene and emulsion problems. SapphireLab® provides more data, like particle size distribution,to better differentiate products on the market and understand the “why” behind chemical performance.
Reservoir Engineers
Increase Production
SapphireLab®’s unique rapid chemical screening capabilities enables Reservoir Engineering teams to identify and optimize enhanced oil recovery processes such as chemical injection, gas injection, and thermal processes. Through fine tuned control of oils, gases, water, porous media structure, and operating pressure and temperature, teams can trial different chemistries and concentrations at low cost and zero risk, to find the best performer. If desired, teams can then test the best performing fluid package in a core flood to validate results and measure the impact of rock-fluid interactions, before moving to the well.
Reservoir Engineers
Reduce Formation Damage Risk
Just as SapphireLab® can be used to rapidly screen chemistries for optimizing oil production, it can also be used to reduce the potential for formation damage resulting from incompatible fluids in a reservoir. Common examples include incompatible surfactants, waters and oils in hydraulic fracturing and enhanced oil recovery, and identification of flow assurance issues due to wax, asphaltenes, scale and emulsions. With SapphireLab® you can both measure and observe the interaction of fluids at pore scale, making it easier to quickly understand what is happening and to identify a solution.
Service Laboratories
Accelerate Project Delivery
With most SapphireLab® fluid tests being completed in about a day, there is significant potential to accelerate timelines for routine tests like core floods and slim-tube tests, or longer-term research and development fluid projects. While SapphireLab® can be used as a pre-core flood chemical screening tool, making better use of valuable core and fluid samples.
Service Laboratories
Add New Capabilities
SapphireLab® is a multi-purpose tool, supporting a range of fluid applications from chemical screening to phase behaviour studies. SapphireLab® helps Service teams manage a variety of requests by supplementing existing capabilities or adding completely new revenue opportunities, without the need for dedicated equipment. SapphireLab® can be easily configured to new capabilities in the future as client priorities change, without needing to purchase new equipment.
SapphireLab® Family
 SapphireLab® Pro/Pro+ |  SapphireLab® Storage |  SapphireLab® Flowback |
|---|---|---|
| Description Our flagship, high-performance solution for Pressure, Volume, Temperature (PVT) and Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) analysis in the Oil and Gas industry. | Description A versatile microfluidic platform for the analysis of flow through porous media. | Description A purpose built system for determining the relative performance of hydraulic fracturing packages. |
| Application Area PVT Testing:
EOR:
| Application Area Future Energy:
EOR:
| Application Area Hydraulic fracturing chemical performance analysis under nano-confinement and relevant temperature and pressure |
| Maximum Operating Conditions SapphireLab® Pro: 12,900 psi (890 bar) SapphireLab® Pro+: 15,000 psi (1000 bar) Maximum chip temperature (Pro and Pro+): 390°F (200°C) Maximum heat trace temperature (Pro and Pro+): 300°F (150°C) *Chip can be cooled to -5°C with optional cooling jacket | Maximum Operating Conditions 2,200 psi (150 bar) Maximum chip temperature: 390°F (200°C) Maximum heat trace temperature: 300°F (150°C) | Maximum Operating Conditions 2,200 psi (150 bar) Maximum chip temperature: 390°F (200°C) |
| Safety Features
| Safety Features
| Safety Features
|
| Compatible Fluids
| Compatible Fluids
| Compatible Fluids
|
| Compatible Software Portal Autobench Autoanalysis | Compatible Software Portal Autobench Autoanalysis | Compatible Software Portal Autobench Autoanalysis |
SapphireLab® Pro/Pro+
PVT Testing:
- Constant composition expansion
- Swelling factor
- Minimum miscibility pressure
- Density
- Viscosity
EOR:
- Gas and liquid EOR under constant pressure injection mode
- Temperature over-limit shutoffs on sample cylinders and chip holder (not connected to software)
- Burst disks
- Secondary containment on syringes
- Controlled system shutdown on overpressure via software
- Available acrylic enclosure for sour service
- Live oil and gas samples (sample bottle include mixing rings for reconditioning)
- Water/Brine (except density/viscosity sensor)
- Most non-acidic EOR chemistry
- Sour fluids (if sour package is selected)
- Acids (if sour package is selected)
SapphireLab® Storage
Future Energy:
- Carbon sequestration
- Hydrogen storage
- Lithium brine compatibility
EOR:
- Gas and liquid EOR under constant pressure injection mode
- Temperature over-limit shutoffs on sample cylinders and chip holder (not connected to software)
- Burst disks
- Secondary containment on syringes
- Controlled system shutdown on overpressure via software
- Live oil and gas samples (sample bottle include mixing rings for reconditioning)
- Water/Brine
- Most non-acidic EOR chemistry
- Sour fluids (if sour package is selected)
- Hydrogen (if hydrogen package is selected)
SapphireLab® Flowback
- Burst disks
- Secondary containment on syringes
- Crude oil
- Water/Brine
- Most non-acidic EOR chemistry