Case study by SPH Engineering · Bathymetry · Oil and gas
Measuring frac pond volume with a drone, not a boat
Patriot Environmental surveyed a frac pond in the Permian Basin, West Texas, for an oil and gas operator. A DJI M300 carrying an ECT400S echo sounder, with SkyHub and UgCS, produced a volume strap chart, a depth map and a 3D model for frac water planning.
The background
Frac ponds hold the water used in hydraulic fracturing, close to the well site. Before a frac job, operators need to know how much water is available and whether more must be brought in. The key output is a volumetric strap chart, which links the water level to the stored volume in barrels.
The challenge
The traditional method used a boat with sonar fitted underneath. It worked, but many frac ponds hold produced water that may contain chemicals, oil or other contaminants. For Patriot Environmental the main drawbacks were:
- crews working near the pond edge and on the water surface;
- manual boat navigation, which made evenly spaced survey lines harder to keep;
- more physical handling, with equipment carried over the berm and launched by hand.
The solution
Patriot Environmental replaced boat-based sonar with a drone-mounted echo sounder. A DJI M300 carried an ECT400S single-frequency echo sounder, the mission was planned in UgCS, and SkyHub linked the payload to the planned data collection.
The data was processed into a report with:
- aerial imagery of the pond;
- a colour depth map with depth values;
- a 3D colour model of the pond floor and side slopes;
- a level and volume chart.
The result
At the time of the scan the pond measured 22 ft to the sump depth and held 790,603 barrels of water. The model showed the pit sloping gradually towards a sump in the south-east corner.
The strap chart answers the operator's planning question directly: how much water is on hand for the next frac job, and whether more needs to be moved in first. SPH Engineering describes the approach as a safer, more repeatable way to measure frac pond capacity.
Where this applies in India
Level-to-volume charts from a drone survey are useful for any pond where boat work is unsafe:
- produced-water and effluent ponds at oil and gas fields;
- raw-water and process-water ponds at refineries and industrial plants;
- ash ponds and industrial lagoons that need regular volume checks;
- water storage ponds at mines and construction sites.
SPH Engineering's bathymetry training is also available through HobiTech.
The equipment, available from HobiTech
| Echo sounder | EchoLogger ECT 400S |
| Onboard computer | SkyHub by SPH Engineering with the SkyHub echo sounder software |
| Flight planning | UgCS - Drone Flight Planning Software |
| Drone | DJI M300 was used in this project. Ask us for current compatible drones. |
Case study by SPH Engineering, published June 2026. This page summarises it in our own words; the survey was carried out by Patriot Environmental, not by HobiTech. Read the original case study on SPH Engineering ↗
Need pond volumes without a boat?
Send us the pond size, depth range and how often you survey. We will specify the drone, echo sounder, SkyHub and UgCS setup, quoted in rupees with a GST invoice.