A Customized RFID-Based Sensor System for Intelligent Oilwell

A customized radio frequency identification (RFID)-based sensor system is proposed to achieve reliable data collection and transmission between downhole and ground for the intelligent oilwell. In this paper, the overall system architecture is introduced first, and then, the corresponding hardware systems are designed in detail. The fatal effects of the extreme downhole environments are studied, which can change the RFID antenna inductance and result in the communication failure of the RFID system. To compensate for the changed inductance due to the metal tube and the inductance disturbance coming from the liquid, an optimal design for the RFID antenna and reader is presented to improve the system’s robustness and decrease the sensitivity in volatile application conditions. The system is tested both in laboratory and on the site of the oilfield, and the results show that the system can achieve reliable data collection and transmission in the extreme oilwell production environment.