Borehole Geophysics

Water Resources Protection Spring 2007 University of Trento Reading: Keys, W. Scott, Borehole Geophysics Applied to GroundGround-Water Investigations, Techniques of Water Resources Investigation, TWRI TWRI2-E2, U.S. Geological Survey, 1990.

Borehole Geophysics for GroundWater Investigations

Technology borrowed from the oil industry Purpose to Characterize:

Borehole conditions Formation Fractures Fluid Properties

Borehole Logging
Conventional Logs

Fluid Logs Formation Logs

Borehole Imaging Flow Logging

Conventional Methods

Often run as a suite soon after drilling: Fluid

Temperature Fluid Resistivity Caliper Gamma Neutron Acoustic Formation Resistivity EM Induction

Formation:

Fluid Temperature
What is measured and how?

Absolute Temperature: Measured with thermistor or solid-state probe. Local Temperature Gradient (dT/dz): Measured with two temperature probe 10cm to 1 m apart.

Fluid Temperature
Applications and Interpretation:

Very useful for indicating flow through a well Temperature gradient usually better indicator because of natural geothermal gradient (increases with depth about 1C per 50 m) Subject to circulation and buoyancy effects in borehole

Cautions:

Fluid Temperature Logs

Absolute versus

differential temperature

Fluid Conductivity

What is Measured and How?

Electrical conductivity is the capacity of a fluid to pass electrical current and it is related to the concentration if ions in solution. Resistance to voltage measured with a simple electrode, corrected for temperature. SI unit of conductivity is the Siemen (S). 1 S= 1 A/V (ampere/volt). DI water has an SC of 0 and sea water has an SC of about 50,000 S/cm :

SCS / cm = 10,000 ( ohm m )

Fluid Conductivity
Applications and Interpretation:

Commonly used to locate depth zones of contamination, particularly leachate from landfills or other ionic waste fluid. Often used to indicate seawater contamination May be used to focus water sampling Subject to circulation and buoyancy effects in borehole

Cautions:

Seawater Flow Under Levee in Biscayne Aquifer, Florida

http://sofia.usgs.gov/publications/sim/I-2846/gwflow.html

Caliper Log
What is Measured and How?

Measures borehole diameter mechanically, with arms attached to a potentiometer. May read arms independently or average all to get a single diameter measurement.

Caliper Logs

Caliper Survey of UB W ells Geomatrix 1/12/00

Borehole Diameter (in)
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Caliper Logs

Application and Interpretation

Important for verifying integrity of drilling (presence of collapse, washout) that may affect completion and sealing Important for many other logs that are influence by hole diameter (e.g. gamma, neutron) Valuable for locating fractures, dissolution zones (gypsum, limestone) and inflow zones in porous media. may miss deep voids because of arm angle Steeply dipping fractures can be missed

Cautions:

Gamma (Natural-Gamma) Logs

What is Measured and How?

Measures total natural gamma radiation due to isotopic decay:

PotassiumPotassium-40 -> argonargon-40 Uranium 238 -> many daughter products ThoriumThorium-232 -> many daughter products

Gamma radiation is highhigh-energy photon, usually occurs along with alpha and beta emission. GammaGamma-rays produce charged particles in the scintillator crystals (sodium iodide) which interact with the crystal and emit photons. These lower energy photons are subsequently collected by photomultiplier tubes (PMTs ). (PMTs).

Gamma Logs
Applications and Interpretation

Detects rocks or soil with higher concentrations of radioactive isotopes

Gamma Logs

Application and Interpretation

Potassium is abundant in feldspars and micas that decompose into clay and may form shale. The most common use of the gamma log is to correlate beds using gammagamma-emitting layers like clay or shale as markers Difficult to predict which material will produce gamma radiation Logging speed, casing, cement, large boreholes can influence logs

Cautions:

Gamma Logs

Fred Paillet, USGS: http://water.usgs.gov/ogw/karst/kigconference/flp_borehole.htm

Gamma Logs
Cautions: Logging Speed

Gamma-Gamma (Density) Logs

What is Measured and How?

Records backscatter of gamma radiation from CesiumCesium-137 source in probe Backscatter is a function of electron density of geologic material so is related to bulk density Measures a radius of about 1010-13 cm Highly affected by casing and drilling material including residual drilling mud Wellbore diameter must be known (caliper log)

Cautions

Gamma-Gamma Logs
Application and Interpretation

Used to distinguish lithologic units Measures bulk density and porosity Used for formation analysis but also gravel pack integrity

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Gamma-Gamma Logs

Gamma Tools

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Usually combined with other probes:

Natural Gamma Focused Resistivity Caliper Far Gamma-GammaNear Gamma-Gamma Gamma Source

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Neutron Logs

What is Measured and How?

Neutrons from source are scattered by protons (hydrogen) so the amount of water is measured Neutron source is usually americiumamericium-beryllium Increasing sourcesource-detector difference increases depth of penetration Minerals with high H content (gypsum, coal, clay) may read falsely high water contents Drilling fluids may obscure formation readings

Cautions:

Neutron Logs
Applications and Interpretation

Used in the saturated zone to measure porosity Used in unsaturated zone to measure moisture content (though usually with different probe) Recently been applied to detection of NAPL

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Neutron Logs

Acoustic (Sonic) Logs

What is Measured and How?

Velocity of compressional (P) sound wave through formation is measured using 20-30 kHz signal Velocity is measured as difference in arrival time at two receivers Radius of investigation is about 3 times wavelength. For 20 kHz signal this is 0.2 to 1 m Velocity depends on fluids, minerals, grain distribution and size.

Cautions:

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Acoustic Logs
Applications and Interpretation

Influenced by many parameters but usually used as an indicator of porosity Also may be good indicator of lithology in highly varying formations Often best for locating secondary porosity (fractures, vugs)

Acoustic Logs

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Neutron vs GammaGamma

Both gamma-gamma and neutron logs can be used to estimate porosity

Exercise: caliper, gamma, neutron logs to distinguish, gravel, silt, and clay

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Solution?

Formation (Normal) Resistivity

What is Measured and How?

Voltage drop across formation induced by current from surface to probe in the well. Current is from A to B electrodes, and drop is measured between M and N. A and M are usually located in well and N and B at surface R = rS/L, rS/L, where R= resistivity (ohm/m) r = resistance (ohms) S = cross section (m2) L= length (m)

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Normal Resistivity
N B Voltage drop

current

Normal Resistivity
Volume sampled

depends on distance between A and M electrode A-M spacing of 16, 64 inches is common

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Normal Resistivity
Applications and Interpretation

Often used to measure water quality in a formation. May also measure porosity (through Archies Law) and other properties but these are usually better measured using other logs Highly affected by bed thickness Requires proper calibration and correlation to other logs for quanitative analysis

Cautions:

EM Induction

What is Measured and How?

Measures conductivity of formation rocks (in mS/m or mOhm/m) mOhm/m) AC transmitter generates a timetime-varying primary magnetic field with induces a flow of EM eddy currents in conductive rocks. Secondary magnetic field from eddy currents is measured as voltage in receiving coil Most tools are applicable only in smallsmall-diameter plastic casings.

Cautions:

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EM Induction

After http://www.nga.com/Geo_ser_Borehole_logging_tech.htm

EM Induction
Applications and Interpretation

Widely used for environmental projects for conductive contaminants. Can also be used for lithologic identification in conjunction with gamma logs Can be most useful for geochemical characterizations in some cases because concentrations are measured in situ.

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EM Induction

Comparison of induction and neutron porosity logs showing abrupt changes in water salinity where thin confining units separate aquifers in the shallow subsurface Unrealistically large porosity values above 10m in depth are caused by a combination of large annulus and large diameter external surface casing.

After Fred Paillet, USGS, http://sofia.usgs.gov/publications/papers/int_geophysics/

Borehole Imaging
Useful primarily in hard rock environments

where wells are not cased. Methods Include:

Video logging Acoustic Televiewer

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Borehole Video
What is Measured and How?

A high resolution submersible digital camera High-tech versions provide 360 view with compass positioning. Only useful in clean water May confuse lithology with fractures Magnetic compass positioning ineffective in presents of ferrous minerals

Cautions:

Borehole Video
Basic downhole camera

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Borehole Video

Optical televiewer unwraps 360 degree image of borehole wall for display

Borehole Video

Optical televiewer

After Carole Johnson, USGS

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Borehole Video
Applications and Interpretation

Used almost exclusively for hard rock except for inspection of wells, casing, screens. Useful only in clean waters so well water may need to be flushed or a plastic insert sleeve inserted and filled with clean water. Usually used with other logs (e.g. ATV) to distinguish fractures and lithology

Acoustic Televiewer
What is Measured and How?

Also called an acoustic caliper, measures distances from sound source to reflection point on the wall of borehole Provides high-resolution 2-D unwrapped measurement of borehole diameter. Deep features such as large washouts or caves cannot be properly measured High angled reflectors poorly measured

Cautions

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Acoustic Televiewer
Measures sound

travel time to borehole wall. An acoustic caliper log

Acoustic Televiewer
Multiecho ATV

can provide layered response through some casings

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Acoustic Televiewer
Applications and Interpretation

Used commonly for hard rocks in combination with borehole video Advantage over video is that it can image through dirty water and some casings In some cases can get 3D morphology of fractures and aperture measurements near borehole

Flow Logging
What is Measured and How?

Flow velocity along borehole is measured using impeller, heat pulse, or dissolved tracer Flow is either natural or in response to pumping May be use in single well or cross-hole mode Measurements disturbed by borehole turbulence Multiple well interactions may complicate interpretation as compared to packer testing

Cautions

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Flow Logging

Heat-pulse flowmeter capable of measuring 3 cm/min velocity in boreholes

Flow Logging

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Flow Logging

Log Integration

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Interpretation

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