Streamer cables are used in a variety of applications, for example, remote sensing in aquatic environments, such as freshwater or saltwater environments. The cables may be used for seismic exploration surveys to gather information about subsurface geology, including oil and gas reserves. The cables may also be used in other applications, such as, for example, underwater mapping or surveillance. The streamer cables usually contain one or more sensors for receiving signals present in the water. Individual streamer cables are often made up of a series of sections, with each section being up to one mile in length. In deployment, streamer cables, or arrays of several streamer cables, may be towed behind a vessel or deposited in a fixed location, such as, for example, in ocean floor deployments.
For towed applications, maintaining proper orientation of the streamer cable and/or streamer cable array can be difficult. For example, the streamer cables must maintain a parallel orientation to the sea floor for seismic exploration. Streamer cables may be filled with a material to cause the streamer cable to be neutrally buoyant in an aquatic environment. For example, in some embodiments, the streamer cables may be filled with a hydrocarbon-based fluid and/or solid to cause the steamer cable to be neutrally buoyant. Hydrocarbons may diffuse from traditional single-layer jackets, causing the streamer cable to lose neutral buoyancy.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds