PETROLEUM FORMATION EVALUATION

Dr. Neetish Kumar Maurya

Department of Petroleum Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad
Lecture 08: Sonic (Acoustic) Porosity log
Module 01: Wave Propagation in Acoustic Logging
 Concept Covered

❑ Types of sound waves

❑ Wave propagation at interfaces
 Wave Propagation: Elastic Waves
❑ The velocities of sound waves in the acoustic well logging in the formation depends upon the
elastic properties and density of the material it is travelling through

❑ Elastic energy propagates through the

earth in different ways and at different
speeds. The main wave types are
• Body waves (P and S waves)
✓ Body waves travel through a
medium
• Surface waves (Rayleigh and Love
waves)
✓ Surface waves travel along
surfaces and interfaces.

courtesy: https://web.ics.purdue.edu/
 Wave Propagation: Compression and Shear Wave

Compressional waves or
longitudinal waves are those
waves where the particle motion is
in the direction of the wave
propagation

Shear waves or transverse waves

are those waves where the
particle motion is perpendicular to
the direction of wave propagation.

courtesy: Bateman 2012

 Wave Propagation: Body Waves

Body Waves ❑ Body waves are seismic waves that travel

• Pressure waves (“P-waves”) through the body of the earth.
• Shear-waves (“S-waves”) ❑ Body waves are reflected and transmitted at
interfaces where seismic velocity and/or
density change, and they obey Snell's law.
 Wave Propagation: P-Waves

❑ P-waves (Longitudinal, Primary,) are

Pressure waves (“P-waves”)
compressional waves
❑ The P-wave velocity is related to the elastic
properties of the medium by the following
expression:
4
𝐾+ 𝐺
𝑉𝑝 = 3
𝜌
where
K is the bulk modulus,
G is the shear modulus and
𝜌 is the density.

courtesy: https://web.ics.purdue.edu/
 Wave Propagation: S-Waves

Shear waves (“S-waves”) ❑ S-Waves (Secondary, Transverse) propagate by a pure

shear strain perpendicular to the wave propagation.
Hence the particle motion is in a direction
perpendicular to the wave propagation.
❑ The S-wave velocity is related to the elastic properties
of the medium by the following expression:

𝐺
𝑉𝑠 =
𝜌

where
If G =0 then 𝑉𝑠 = 0 G is the shear modulus and
𝜌 is the density.

courtesy: https://web.ics.purdue.edu/
 Wave Propagation: P & S-Waves

4 𝐸(1 − 𝜇)
𝐾+ 𝐺
𝑉𝑝 = 3 𝑉𝑝 =
𝜌 𝜌(1 − 2𝜇)(1 + 𝜇)
𝑉𝑝 1−𝜇
=
𝑉𝑠 1/2 − 𝜇
𝐺 𝐸
𝑉𝑠 = 𝑉𝑠 =
𝜌 2𝜌(1 + 𝜇)

• Bulk modulus (K) and the Shear modulus (G) are always positive 𝑉𝑝 > 𝑉𝑠
• Poisson's ratio (𝜇) is less than or equal to 0.5
• Thus velocity of P-waves is always be greater than S-waves
 Wave Propagation: Surface waves

Surface Waves ❑ Surface waves are seismic waves that are guided along
• Rayleigh waves the surface of the earth and the layers near the surface.
• Love waves ❑ These waves do not penetrate the deep interior of the
earth,
❑ Surface waves are larger in amplitude and longer in
duration than body waves.
❑ These waves generally have velocities less than that of
P- and S-waves
 Sonic (Acoustic) log

Rayleigh waves Rayleigh waves(ground roll)

• Rayleigh waves propagate along a free
surface or on the boundary between two
materials
• The particle motion of this wave is confined
to a vertical plane containing the direction of
propagation and retrogrades elliptically.
• The particle displacements are greatest at the
surface and decrease exponentially
downward.

courtesy: https://web.ics.purdue.edu/
 Sonic (Acoustic) log

Love waves Love waves

• The waves are trapped in the upper layer and
the particle motion is parallel to the free
surface and perpendicular to the direction of
propagation.
• Love waves exist in a surface layer when the
shear wave velocity of the upper layer is less
than the shear wave velocity of the lower
layer.
• Love waves occur when there is a general
increase of S- wave velocity with depth.

courtesy: https://web.ics.purdue.edu/
Waves at Interfaces:
Reflection and Refraction of Elastic Waves
Waves at Interfaces

Acoustic waves undergo a number of changes if they

encounter a boundary separating the two medium with
different elastic properties inside well bore.
Waves at Interfaces

𝑽𝟏 𝑽𝟑 ❑ Reflection and Refraction occur when a wave

encounters a boundary separating two media with
different elastic properties.
𝜶𝟏 𝜶𝟑
❑ Part of the energy of the incident wave is reflected
and part is retracted.

❑ Mode Conversion: The incident wave may be

converted into other types of vibrations upon
𝛼2 reflection or refraction..
𝑽𝟐
Waves at Interfaces

𝑉1 𝑉3 According to Snell’s law,

sin 𝛼1 sin 𝛼2 sin 𝛼3
= =
𝛼1 𝛼3 𝑉1 𝑉2 𝑉3

If reflected wave if of same type as the incident wave then

𝑉1 = 𝑉3
So
𝛼1 = 𝛼3
𝛼2
𝑉2 For the refracted wave

𝑉2
sin 𝛼2 = sin 𝛼1
𝑉1
 Waves at Interfaces

Critical angle of Refraction 𝑉2

sin 𝛼2 = sin 𝛼1
𝑉1

𝛼2 = 90°

𝑉1 𝐕𝟏
sin 𝛼1 = 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐜 =
𝑉2 𝐕𝟐

❑ The refracted wave does not penetrate the second medium but travels
along the interface at velocity 𝑉2 .
❑ Head Wave: This critical refracted wave, called the head wave, propagates
energy back into the first medium as it travels along the boundary.

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Compression and Shear Head Wave

A compressional wave traveling in Medium 1 at a velocity

𝑉𝑝1 will generate a compressional head wave in Medium 2
if its angle of incidence is critical (𝛼𝑝𝑐 ).

Also the compressional wave traveling will generate a

shear head wave if its angle of incidence is critical (𝛼𝑠𝑐 ).

𝑉𝑝1 𝑉𝑝1
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐩𝐜 = and 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐬𝐜 =
𝑉𝑝2 𝑉𝑠2

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Compression and Shear Head Wave

𝑉𝑝1 𝑉𝑝1
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐩𝐜 = and 𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐬𝐜 =
𝑉𝑝2 𝑉𝑠2

So
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐬𝐜 𝑉𝑝2
=
𝐬𝐢𝐧 𝛂𝐩𝐜 𝑉𝑠2

Since
𝑉𝑝2 > 𝑉𝑠2

So 𝛂𝐬𝐜 > 𝛂𝐩𝐜

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
Wave Reflection and Refraction in Borehole
 PETROLEUM FORMATION EVALUATION

Dr. Neetish Kumar Maurya

Department of Petroleum Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad
Lecture 08: Sonic (Acoustic) Porosity log
Module 02: Acoustic Wave propagation Well bore
Concept Covered

❑ Acoustic Wave propagation in Well bore

❑ Acoustic Logging tool
 Wave propagation Well bore
❑ The source (transmitter, T) is a pressure transducer that generates
compressional waves in the borehole fluid.
❑ The receiver, R, is another pressure transducer used to detect
acoustic waves.

❑ The main components of the sonic waveform are, in

order of their arrival at the receiver
• The Compressional head wave
• The Shear head wave
• The Pseudo-Rayleigh or conical waves
• Stoneley or tube waves.

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Wave propagation Well bore

Compressional Head Wave

• The first arrival at the receiver is the compressional head wave,
which is critically refracted at the borehole wall
• Sound wave emitted from the source encounters the borehole
wall at an angle 𝛂𝐩𝐜 and is critically refracted into the formation
as a compressional head wave.
• The head wave travels along the borehole wall with the
formation compressional velocity 𝐕𝐩 .
• The head wave continuously radiated sound energy back into the
borehole as compressional vibrations in the bore- hole fluid.
• These vibrations, also propagating at a critical angle 𝛂𝐩𝐜 are
sensed by the receiver cantered in the borehole.

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Wave propagation Well bore

Shear Head Wave

• Sound wave emitted from the source encounters the
wall at the critical refraction angle, 𝛂𝐬𝐜 , and thus
refracts into the formation as a shear wave
• The shear head wave travels along the borehole wall
at a velocity 𝐕𝐬
• It also sheds compressional waves into the borehole
fluid at the critical angle 𝛂𝐬𝐜

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Wave propagation Well bore

Leaky Wave
• Under certain geometry and Velocity conditions, leaky wave,
is observed between the compressional and shear-wave
arrivals.
• The leaky mode arises from compressional waves incident at
the borehole wall with angles between 𝛂𝐩𝐜 and 𝛂𝐬𝐜 .
• The reflected wave propagates in the borehole fluid as a
conical wave.
• The amplitude of this mode decreases with distance from the
transmitter a energy is leaked to the formation at each
reflection.
• Tool design may be optimized such that this wave is not
detectable

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Wave propagation Well bore

Pseudo-Rayleigh waves

• Pseudo-Rayleigh waves arise from the portion of the wave

incident on the borehole wall at angles greater than the
critical angle of refraction of shear wave, 𝛂𝐬𝐜 .
• This wave undergoes total reflection and propagates within
the borehole as a conical wave.
• This wave type is also referred to as trapped mode, guided
wave, and normal mode.
• Be- cause no energy is lost to refraction outside the cylindrical
surface, the pseudo-Rayleigh waves exhibit relatively large
amplitudes.

courtesy: Bassiouni,1994
 Wave propagation Well bore

Stoneley waves
• It is a surface wave at the fluid/formation interface.
• The Stoneley waves generated in a borehole are also called tube waves and
guided waves.
• The velocity is always less than the borehole fluid velocity.
• Their amplitude decays exponentially, in both the mud and the formation, away
from the borehole boundary.
Summary of types of Acoustic Energy in the well bore
❑ When the sound emanated from the transmitter impinges on the borehole wall the following types
of waves are generated
• Compressional and shear waves within the formation
• Surface waves along the borehole wall
• Guided waves within the fluid column

❑ Wave refraction, reflection and conversion leads to presence of many acoustic waves in borehole.
• Therefore a number of acoustic energy arrivals are seen by the receivers
• For porosity measurement we are interested in the first arrival of compressional wave.
• Other measurements (such as amplitude, Complete waveform may not be needed for porosity
calculation)
 Full Acoustic Wave Signal
❑ The first arrival is the compressional or
longitudinal or pressure wave (P-wave).
❑ Compressional is the fastest wave, and has
a small amplitude.
❑ The next wave, usually, to arrive is the
transverse or shear wave . It is usually has a
higher amplitude.
❑ The waves are detected through an
Amplitude Cut off The first arrival signal is required for porosity calculation
and it is the compressional wave arrival.

courtesy: Bateman 2012

 Sonic (Acoustic) log
❑ The sonic log measures the interval transit time(Δt) of a
compressional sound wave travelling through the formation along
the axis of the borehole
❑ By measuring the time taken by an acoustic signal to pass through a
unit distance inside the formation ( transit time), a number of
properties including porosity can be calculated.
❑ Interval transit time (Δt) is reported in microsecond per foot
(µsec/ft) and it is function of formation lithology, porosity and
formation fluid type.

Travel time for near to far receiver 𝑻𝟏 − 𝑻𝟐 = ∆𝒕

We are interested in travel time inside the formation
courtesy: Bateman 2012
 Sonic Logging Tool
❑Transmitter emits sound waves
❑Receivers pick up and record the various
waves
❑A sonic porosity tool measure and reports
the first arrival of the compressional
wave.

❑t = (t2 - t1)/Ls
❑ Amplitude cut off

courtesy: Schlumberger
 Waveform in a Eight Receiver array

courtesy: Schlumberger
 Sonic Log Example
GR DT
0 API 200 140 USFT 40

6
CALIX
IN 16 30
SPHI
% 10 ❑ Sonic Travel Time (DT)
4100 ❑ Calculated sonic porosity(SPHI)
Sonic travel time ❑ Transit Time
❑ Sonic Porosity
❑ Most formation gives travel times
between 40 µsec/ft to 140 µsec/ft
Sonic
porosity

4200

courtesy: Bateman 2012

 Sonic Log Example

courtesy: Bjørlykke et al.,205

Common Tool Names
 PETROLEUM FORMATION EVALUATION

Dr. Neetish Kumar Maurya

Department of Petroleum Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad
Lecture 08: Sonic (Acoustic) Porosity log
Module 03: Tool Principle & Application Porosity Computation
Concept Covered

❑ Types of Tool

❑ Working Principle and Measurement

❑ DOI and Vertical Resolution

❑ Factor affecting Tool performance

❑ Introduction to Porosity Calculation

Acoustic Logging tools

❑ Borehole compensated sonic tool (BHC)

❑ Long spaced sonic tool

❑ Array Sonic tool

 Single Transmitter Single Receiver Tool
❑ Obsolete

courtesy: Glover 2012

 Single Transmitter Dual Receiver Tool

𝑣 = 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦

𝑣𝑚 = 𝑚𝑢𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑐𝑖𝑡𝑦

𝑖𝑓 𝑡1 𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑡2 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑣𝑎𝑙 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑡 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛

𝐴 𝐵 𝐶 𝐴 𝐵 𝐷 𝐸
𝑡1 = + + 𝑡2 = + + +
𝑣𝑚 𝑣 𝑣𝑚 𝑣𝑚 𝑣 𝑣 𝑣𝑚

𝐴𝑠𝑠𝑢𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑙𝑙 𝑏𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑧𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑙 𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟

𝐴=𝐶=𝐸
𝐷 = 𝐿𝑠 (spacing)

𝐷 𝐿𝑠
𝑡2 − 𝑡1 = =
𝑣 𝑣
𝑡2 − 𝑡1
∆𝒕 = (Interval transit time, slowness)
𝐿𝑠
courtesy: Glover 2012
 Borehole Compensated Sonic tool (BHC)
❑ Automatically compensates for borehole effects and
sonde tilt.
❑ System of upper and lower transmitters bounding two
sets of receivers.
❑ The transmitters are pulsed alternatively and the transit
time are recorded on alternate pair of receivers
❑ Generally 3 ft spacing between each transmitter and
near receiver
❑ And, 2 ft spacing between 2 receivers

courtesy: Schlumberger
 Bore Hole Compensated (BHC) Sonic Logging tool

Courtesy: Edmundson et al.,2009

 BHC Sonic tool

Depth of investigation
• Since the refracted waves travel along the
borehole wall, thus DOI is generally very small
• DOI depends upon the wavelength ( λ = V/f)
• Generally it is around ≈ 3λ
• It is also related the spacing between
Transmitter and Receiver

❑ For a 20 kHz frequency

• λ varies from 0.25 to 1.25 ft
• DOI 0.75 (soft formation) to 3.75ft (Hard formation)
 BHC Sonic tool

Transmitter and Receiver Spacing

❑ Should be short enough for pulse to be detected.
❑ Far transmitter spacing is limited by transmitter
capacity and noise level
❑ Spacing between the transmitter and the first
receiver should be long enough to allow 1st arrival
to be compressional wave and not mud wave.
❑ Specially in slow formation Ls will be further
affected

Courtesy: Bassiouni, 1994

 BHC Sonic tool
Transmitter and Receiver Spacing

The critical spacing

𝑉 + 𝑉𝑚
𝐿𝑠 𝑐 = 2(𝑆𝑜𝑓𝑓 )
𝑉 − 𝑉𝑚

𝑆𝑜𝑓𝑓 = (𝐷 − 𝑑)/2

Maximum formation Δt that can

be recorded by the tool is

𝑆𝑜𝑓𝑓 is the tool stand off, D is the hole diameter, d is the sonde diameter

Courtesy: Bassiouni, 1994

BHC Sonic tool

Vertical Resolution and Tool Span

❑ Tool Span
• Span of the tool is the distance between the two receivers
• It defines the vertical resolution of the tool
• Vertical resolution ~ Tool Span
• Affect the log quality and detection of thin beds
 Altered Zone/Drilling effect on Acoustic Properties

The travel time for elastic waves can changes due to change in
formation properties

courtesy: Timur
 Depth of Investigation: Short spacing vs long spacing
Altered Zone/Drilling effect on Acoustic Properties
• The travel time for elastic waves can changes.
• In large boreholes, mud arrival may reach first
• If receivers are far enough then the first arrival may not be the
refracted wave travelling along side the bore hole wall.

❑ A sonic logging tool with large spacing can provide

• First arrival by a wave travelling far inside the
formation in un-disturbed zone.
• Travel time in the undisturbed formation

courtesy: Schlumberger
 Long spaced sonic tool
❑ Provide better result in large well bore
❑ Typically, an LSS tool will have a
transmitter/receiver spacing of 8, 10, or 12 ft.
❑ Provide a correct measurement of the velocity
in un-invaded zone
❑ Gives porosity value free from effect of
formation alteration ( due to drilling)

courtesy: Schlumberger
 Long spaced Sonic Tool: Depth Derived Compensation

❑ Borehole size compensation is computed in a different

way than the BHC tool
❑ Two transmitters spaced 2 ft apart are located 8 ft below
a pair of receivers that are also 2 ft apart
❑ The first ∆t reading is taken and stored
❑ Second ∆t reading is measured and stored after the sonde
has been pulled the appropriate distance further along
the borehole
❑ Compensation is achieved by combining these two
reading

First ∆t reading 𝑇1 → 𝑅1 & 𝑅2

Second ∆t reading 𝑇1 , 𝑇2 → 𝑅2

courtesy: Schlumberger
 Long spaced Sonic Tool: Depth Derived Compensation

First ∆t reading 𝑇1 → 𝑅1 & 𝑅2 𝑡1 & 𝑡2

Second ∆t reading 𝑇1 , 𝑇2 → 𝑅2 𝑡3 & 𝑡4

Borehole Compensated ∆𝒕

𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 + 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑢𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡

∆𝑡 =
2 × 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑛

𝑡1 − 𝑡2 + (𝑡4 − 𝑡3 )
∆𝑡 =
2 × 𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑛

𝑡1 − 𝑡2 + (𝑡4 − 𝑡3 )
∆𝑡 =
4

courtesy: Schlumberger
 BHC vs LSS Example
❑ Red-BHC curve
❑ Blue-LSS Curve

courtesy: Schlumberger
 BHC vs LSS Example
❑ In BHC, if the first compressional arrival is travelling in
the along the near well bore formation in the altered
zone, it may give erroneous information.
❑ Only disadvantage of LSS in such situation could be
that arrivals are weaker and are prone to cycle skipping
and noise peaks

courtesy: Glover 2012

 Cycle Skipping

Cycle Skipping is the presence of spike or sudden change in

the log record depicting a high interval transit time

❑ Cycle skipping leads to recording of a travel time which is

too large and appears on the log as excursion or very long
peaks
❑ This happens when the signal is strongly attenuated by
unconsolidated formation, fractures, gas saturation, aerated
muds or enlarged boreholes.
❑ Can be used as indicator of gas bearing and fractured
formation

courtesy: Engler, 2012

 Cycle Skipping

❑ Can be identified by anomalous slow travel times not

expected against a formation.
❑ Records may be compared with adjacent sand or
other porosity log data

Sonic log showing cycle skipping caused by slow gas formation

courtesy: Glover 2012
 Array sonic tool

❑ It has an array of 8 wideband receivers

❑ Along with the compressional wave component, it records the
complete waveform
❑ It provide a number of other acoustic information required in
different application

courtesy: Schlumberger
 PETROLEUM FORMATION EVALUATION

Dr. Neetish Kumar Maurya

Department of Petroleum Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad
Lecture 08: Sonic (Acoustic) Porosity log
Module 04: Porosity Calculation
Concept Covered

❑ Porosity Calculation
❑ Factor Affecting Sonic Log Response
• Compacted Formation
• Uncompacted Formation
• Formation Fluid
• Shale
Porosity Calculation

❑ The sonic log can be used to calculate the porosity of formations, however the
values from the FDC and CNL logs are considered superior by many petrophysicist.

• Can be used as a quality check on the density and neutron log porosity values.
• As a robust method in boreholes of variable size (since the sonic log is relatively
insensitive to caving and wash-outs etc.)
• To calculate secondary porosity in carbonates.
• To calculate fracture porosity.
 Porosity Calculation
Wyllie Time Average Equation in compacted formation
• For clean and consolidated formation
• Uniformly distributed and small pores
• Based on difference of sound velocity in solid and liquid

Total travel time between two receiver =

Sound travel time through pore fluid + Sound travel time through matrix
1 𝜙 1−𝜙
= +
𝑉𝐿 𝑉𝑓 𝑉𝑚𝑎
Idealized model for time
Or average equation
∆𝑡𝐿 = ∆𝑡𝑓 +(1- ) ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎

∆𝑡𝐿 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 ∆𝑡 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎

s = s =
∆𝑡𝑓 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 ∆𝑡𝑓 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎
 Porosity Calculation
Wyllie Time Average Equation in compacted formation ∆𝒕𝒎𝒂 & tf

∆𝑡 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎
s =
∆𝑡𝑓 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎

s = Porosity calculated from sonic log reading

tL = Travel time reading from log, 𝜇𝑠𝑒𝑐ൗ𝑓𝑡 • Empirically determined
tma = Travel time in matrix,𝜇𝑠𝑒𝑐ൗ𝑓𝑡 • for clean and consolidated sandstones
• Compacted formation
tf = Travel time in fluid,𝜇𝑠𝑒𝑐ൗ𝑓𝑡 • Unsuitable for carbonates and un-compacted formations

• The fluid in the zone of investigation can be assumed to be mud filtrate

• (about 620 microsecond/m or 189 𝜇𝑠𝑒𝑐ൗ𝑓𝑡 for freshwater mud systems)
• (about 607 microsecond/m or 185 𝜇𝑠𝑒𝑐ൗ𝑓𝑡 for salt water mud systems)
 Typical Transit Time

Courtesy: Schlumberger
 Porosity Calculation

Time Average Equation in Uncompacted formation

❑ When the formations are not sufficiently compacted, the observed ∆t values are greater than those
that correspond to the porosity according to the time-average formula.
❑ Thus Wyllie time average equation gives porosities that are overestimated in Uncompacted
formations
❑ In these cases, an empirical correction factor, 𝐶𝑝 , is applied to give a corrected porosity,

∆𝑡𝐿 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 𝟏
𝐶𝑜𝑟𝑟 = ×
∆𝑡𝑓 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 𝑪𝒑
 Porosity Calculation

Time Average Equation in Ucompacted formation

∆𝑡𝐿 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 1
𝐶𝑜𝑟𝑟 = ×
∆𝑡𝑓 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 𝐶𝑝

A good working rule is to estimate Cp from the transit time in shales adjacent to the formation of interest as:

∆𝑡𝑠ℎ • ∆𝑡𝑠ℎ = specific acoustic transit time in adjacent shales

𝐶𝑝 = (μsec/ft),
100 • 100 = acoustic transit time in compacted shales (μsec/ft)

• Cp can also be estimated by comparing

with other logs
 Porosity Calculation

Time Average Equation in Uncompacted formation

∆𝑡𝐿 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 1
𝐶𝑜𝑟𝑟 = ×
∆𝑡𝑓 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 𝐶𝑝

Graphical representation of time average equation

Courtesy: Schlumberger
 Porosity Calculation

Greertsma’s Model This equation takes the following form

Using Elastic properties of medium, this model 𝛥𝑡 = 𝛥𝑡𝐴 + 𝛥𝑡𝐵 𝜙

proposed the following
𝛥𝑡𝐴 are 𝛥𝑡𝐵 have to be determined empirically
1 1 𝐶
= Τ
1+1 2 −1 𝜙
𝑉𝑏 𝑉𝑚𝑎 𝐶𝑚𝑎

• Where 𝑉𝑏 and 𝑉𝑚𝑎 are the sound velocity in

the bulk formation and matrix.
• And, bulk and pore compressibility of
formation is defined as

𝐶𝑏 = 𝐶𝑚𝑎 + 𝜙𝐶𝑝
𝐶 is the proportionality constant
𝐶𝜙
𝐶𝑏 = 𝐶𝑚𝑎 +
1−𝜙
 Porosity Calculation

Greertsma’s Model Uncompacted Time Average Equation

Δt = Δt A + Δt B ϕ
Δt A = Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎
Wyllie Time Average Equation
Δt B = 𝐵𝑐𝑝 Δ𝑡𝑓 − Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎
Δ𝑡 = Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎 (1 − 𝜙) + 𝜙Δ𝑡𝑓

Δ𝑡 = Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎 + 𝜙(Δ𝑡𝑓 − Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎 )

Δt A = Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎

Δt B = Δ𝑡𝑓 − Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎
Porosity Calculation

(a) Very fine grains sand with little (b) Clean and very well cementing material
cementing material
Porosity Calculation

(c) Well cemented oolitic limestone (b) Well cemented dolomite

 Porosity Calculation

Raymer-Hunt Equation

• Empirical Transform

2 −1
1−𝜙
Δ𝑡 = + (𝜙/Δ𝑡𝑓 )
Δ𝑡𝑚𝑎
Porosity Calculation
Empirical Raymer-Hunt-Gardner
equation
• Based on extensive field observations of transit
times versus porosity

Sandstone ~ 56 µs/ft
Limestone ~ 49 µs/ft
Dolomite ~ 44 µs/ft

Could be approximated as

∆𝑡𝐿 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎
=𝐶
∆𝑡𝐿
Porosity Calculation
Empirical Raymer-Hunt-Gardner Equation
∆𝑡𝐿 − ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎
=𝐶
∆𝑡𝐿
❑ The value of the constant C has a range of 0.625 to 0.7
❑ However, more recent transit time-to-porosity comparisons indicate that a value of 0.67 is
more appropriate
❑ Schlumberger Chart Por-3m (Figure C6) uses 0.7 for C

❑ For the case of a gas-saturated reservoir rock, C becomes 0.6.

❑ It should be used when the rock investigated by the sonic tool contains an appreciable amount
of hydrocarbon in the gassy (vapor) phase.
❑ Because of the shallow depth of investigation, this condition normally exists only in higher
porosity sandstones (greater than 30%).
Factors affecting Sonic Log

❑ Lithology
❑ Lithology must be known to obtain the correct Vma or ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 .

❑ An incorrect choice of Vma or ∆𝑡𝑚𝑎 will produce erroneous calculations.

❑ Matrix is often mixture of minerals with different impurities, such as calcite in sandstone,
anhydrite in dolomite, etc. are found;
Factors affecting Sonic Log
❑ Shale
• The sonic reads primary porosity, which may be affected by shale.
• The effect of shales is very variable
• Shale content generally causes ∆t to read too high for a porosity calculation because shale
or clay will have longer transit time.
• Because of the differences in the velocities of the clay particles and the matrix.
Consequently, the calculated porosity in shaly sands is too high.
• There is no set correction because the transit time of shale (∆𝑡𝑠ℎ ) can vary greatly
• Logging companies have different equations to take into account the effect of shale and
whether the formation is compacted or uncompacted.
 Factors affecting Sonic Log
❑ Fluid Type

❑Oil
• Oil usually has no or very little effect.

❑Water
• There is usually no effect from water
• Except where the drilling fluid is salt saturated
• A different Vf should be used, usually 607 microsecond/m.
 Factors affecting Sonic Log
❑ Fluid Type

Gas
❑ The presence of gas in rock formations can lead to overestimation of porosity due
to the lower acoustic velocity of gas compared to liquids
❑ Presence of gas causes ∆𝑡𝐿 to read too high when the formation is uncompacted.
❑Overall if residual gas saturation is low, it will have very low effect
❑A correction factor of 0.7 sometime is applied if needed.
❑ Gas can also cause cycle skipping and further increase the travel time.
Factors affecting Sonic Log
❑ Sonic Log as Gas Indicator ??????

❑ Gas Bearing Formation may be identified by increase in

transit time
❑ Transit time will be severely affected by degree of
compaction
❑ Sonic log unsuitable for gas detection.
❑ In compacted sand, provide good results of porosity if
density/neutron data could not be used or unavailable.
Secondary and Fracture Porosity

❑ The sonic log is sensitive only to the primary

intergranular porosity.
❑ By contrast, the density and neutron logs record
the total porosity.
❑ The difference between the two measurements,
therefore, can be used to calculate a value for the
secondary porosity, whether it be isolated vugs in
carbonates or fractures.
Secondary and Fracture Porosity
 PETROLEUM FORMATION EVALUATION

Dr. Sayantan Ghosh

Department of Petroleum Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad
Lecture 08: Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)
Module 05: NMR tool working principle
NMR Log Uses

• Total Porosity (mineralogy free)

•Bound and free pore fluid
•Presence and type of hydrocarbons
•Intrinsic permeability
•Pore size distribution

85
 NMR Tool Development

• Since its discovery in 1946, nuclear magnetic resonance has become a valuable
tool in physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine.
• Early forms of this tool for petrophysical analysis have been around since 1960s
• Initial tools were not very popular because these relied on weak magnetic field
of the earth
• In 1984, first tool with permanent magnet was designed
• Modern implementations of the tool stems from work done in 80’s and 90’s
• At present, there are two leading tools in the market, one by
Schlumberger (CMR) and other by Halliburton (MRIL)

86
 NMR Tools
Cable Head In its basic configuration,
the MRIL tool consists of a
D4TG
81" Diam: 3 5/8" magnetic mandrel, an
Weight: 110 lbs. electronics cartridge, and
one or two energy-storage
MRCC-D cartridges.
166" Diam: 3 5/8"
Weight: 275 lbs.

Diam: 3 5/8"
166”
MREC-D Weight: 250 lbs.

MRSN-D

Crossover Sub
Diam: 3 5/8"
MRIL 24" Weight: 34 lbs.

8
CMR (combinable magnetic resonance) MRIL (Magnetic Resonance Imaging Logging)
87
MRIL-Prime Tool
MRIL probe Shell Gauss kHz G/cm

A 178.5 760 20.8

B 161.1 686 17.9
C 158.3 674 17.4
Borehole D 154.1 656 16.7
E 151.2 644 16.2
F 147.0 626 15.6
G 144.2 614 15.1
H 140.0 596 14.5
J 137.1 584 14.0

A BCD EF GH J

88
 NMR Introductory Concepts
• Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) refers to the response of atomic
nuclei to magnetic fields. Many nuclei have a net magnetic moment
and angular momentum or spin.
• NMR measurements can be made on any nucleus that has an odd
number of protons or neutrons or both, such as the nucleus of
hydrogen (1H), carbon (13C), and sodium (23Na).
• For most of the nuclei found in earth formations, the nuclear
magnetic signal induced by external magnetic fields is too small to be
detected with a borehole NMR logging tool.
• However, hydrogen, which has only one proton and no neutrons, is
abundant in both water and hydrocarbons, has a relatively large
magnetic moment, and produces a strong signal.
• To date, almost all NMR logging and NMR rock studies are based on
responses of the nucleus of the hydrogen atom (proton) in the fluids.
89
The Origin of Magnetization

+
Because of their inherent nuclear
magnetism, hydrogen nuclei (left)
behave as though they are tiny bar
magnets aligned with the spin axes of
the nuclei.

90
The Origin of Magnetization
In the absence of an external
magnetic field, the nuclear
magnetic axes (right) are
randomly aligned.

91
 Non-Polarized Protons

 =

Where, γ is the gyromagnetic ratio.

For hydrogen, γ /2π = 42.58 MHz/Tesla. Other nuclei have other γ values
92
 Polarized Protons
The macroscopic magnetization
M0 is defined as the net
N magnetic moment per unit
N
volume. For the case of N
N nuclei per unit volume, the
N S S magnetization is given by
S N Curie’s Law as
N
N N
S
N S Low energy state
S S

S N
High energy state

N S

S
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3WnFYBnghU
93
Polarization (cont.)
After the protons are aligned in the static magnetic field, they are said to be polarized. Polarization
does not occur immediately but rather grows with a time constant, which is the longitudinal relaxation
time, T1

Where, t is the time that the proton are exposed to the B0 field.

• T1 is the time at which the magnetization reaches 63% of its final value.

• Three times T1 is the time at which 95% polarization is achieved.

• Different fluids, such as water, oil, and gas have very different T1 relaxation
times. Differences in T1 are used to discriminate between hydrocarbon and
water.

94
Polarization [T1 Longitudinal Relaxation]
T1–relaxation (polarization) curves
indicate the degree of proton
alignment, or magnetization, as a
function of the time that a proton
population is exposed to an external
magnetic field.

95
 Radio Frequency Magnetic Field

• For effective interaction with

protons (left), the oscillating Initial B0
magnetic field B1 must have a
substantial component
perpendicular to the static
field B0 and must have Application of 90°
frequency ƒ equal to the Oscillating magnetic
proton’s Larmor frequency ƒ0 pulse (B1) generated
in the static field. by a radio-frequency
(RF) resonant circuit
• In this case (right), the
protons will precess in phase
with one another and may
absorb energy from the
oscillating field

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZLew6Ff-JE
Relevant part→ 0:48 to 2:49
96
Tip Angles

The tip angle θ depends on

the strength of the oscillating
field B1 and on the time τ over
which the field is applied.

97
Spin Echo Train

TE: Inter-echo spacing

NE: Number of pulses in
the pulse train

The inter-echo spacing 320 microseconds for CMR and 1200 microseconds for MRIL
Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill Sequence (CPMG) 98
Idealized CPMG Spin-Echo Train

Note: τ here is not the same as that related to tipping angle

99
 Time Constant of the Transverse Magnetization Decay
The amplitude of the spin-echo train at time t, which is the amplitude of the
transverse magnetization Mx(t), is given by this equation:

Here, M0x is the magnitude of the transverse magnetization at t = 0 (the time at which
the 90° pulse ceases).

Note:
-The T2 decay from the formation contains most of the
petrophysical information obtainable from NMR logging and
therefore is the prime objective of NMR logging
measurements.
-T2 is the time required for the transverse magnetization to
fall to approximately 37% (1/e) of its initial value.
100
Complete CPMG Sequence

This NMR-measurement timing

diagram shows (top) CPMG pulse
sequences and (bottom)
polarization (T1-relaxation) curves
and spin-echo-train acquisition.

101
 T1 and T2 Recapped

T1 characterizes the rate at which longitudinal magnetization builds up

(longitudinal relxation)

T2 characterizes the rate at which transverse magnetization decays (transverse

relaxation)

102
 Relaxation Mechanisms
For fluids in rock pores, three independent relaxation mechanisms are involved:
• Bulk fluid processes affect both T1 and T2 relaxation
• Surface relaxation affects both T1 and T2 relaxation
• Diffusion in the presence of magnetic field gradients affects T2 relaxation. All three processes act in parallel
• T1 and T2 times of pore fluids are given by

T2 = transverse relaxation time of the pore fluid as measured by a CPMG sequence;

T2bulk = T2 relaxation time of the pore fluid as it would be measured in a container so large that container effects
would be negligible;
T2surface = T2 relaxation time of the pore fluid resulting from surface relaxation;
T2diffusion = T2 relaxation time of the pore fluid as induced by diffusion in the magnetic field gradient;
T1 = the measured longitudinal relaxation time of the pore fluid;
T1bulk = T1 relaxation time of the pore fluid as it would be measured in a container so large that container effects
would be negligible;
T1surface = T1 103
Relaxation Mechanisms

1 +
=
T1
Relaxation Mechanisms for T1

• Bulk Relaxation - intrinsic property of fluid T1B = f (temperature, little pressure effect (liquids))

• Surface Relaxation - Fluid-Rock interface T1S = f (S / V ratio (pore size), surface relaxivity ρ1 )

104
Relaxation Mechanisms (cont.)
• Surface relaxivity of the rock is the rate at which the surface of the minerals in the rock
influences the magnetic moment of the protons in the fluid, and it is usually correlated
with the iron content and accessory minerals.
• Surface relaxivity varies with mineralogy. For example, carbonate surfaces exhibit weaker
surface relaxivity (1.7 micrometers/sec) than quartz (5 micrometers/sec) surfaces.
Estimates of surface relaxivity can be determined in the laboratory.
• The relative importance of the three relaxation mechanisms depends on the type of fluid in
the pores (water, oil, or gas), the sizes of theρ pores, the strength of the surface relaxation,
and the wettability of the rock surface. In general, for a water-wet rock,
• For brine, T2 is dominated by T2surface
• For heavy-oil, T2 has T2bulk as its main contributor
• For intermediate-viscosity and light oil, T2 is a combination of T2bulk and T2diffusion and is
dependent on viscosity
• For gas, T2 is dominated by T2diffusion

105