6.

Exploration Techniques-
Subsurface Geology / Borehole Geophysics

1
EXPLORATION WORKFLOW - RECAP
• Surface geology
• Desk study (reports, maps)
• Direct Indications such as oil and gas seeps, pock marks
• Geological Mapping
• Remote sensing
• Seeps
• Reservoir architecture
• Geophysical surveys
• Gravity
• Magnetics
• Seismics
• Subsurface geology
• Drill well
• Cuttings
• LWD
• Wireline
• Coring
• Conventional
• Sidewall
• Shot
• Fluid sample
2
DRILLING

3
BOREHOLE ENVIRONMENT

4
DRILLING

• Mud systems and Invasion

• Oil based mud
• Small conductivity mud
• Shallow invasion
• Thin cake
• Water based mud
• Moderate to very conductive mud
• Shallow to deep invasion
• Thin to thick cake

5
MUD LOGGING OBJECTIVES

• Mud logging is necessary in order to

1. Determine gas levels and gas type(s) in the mud
2. Continuous monitoring of the pit levels
3. Monitoring mud properties (density, temperature, etc) at inlet and outlet
4. Monitoring drilling parameters (WOB, rpm, torque, etc)
5. Cuttings description
6. Cuttings fluorescence (“shows”)
7. Shale density
8. Calcimetry (carbonate content analysis)

6
MUD LOGS - EXAMPLE

1. Drilling through a dolomite (clue the calcimetry readings)

with some visible porosity and slight gas reading (possible
gas show).
2. Drilling breaks in thin sands. Only a trace of sand seen in
cuttings but drill rate and gas readings are diagnostic. These
sands may be hydrocarbon bearing. It is likely that a check
for flow was carried out at the first of these (i.e., drilling and
pumping stopped to see if mud returns continue), unless
this was totally expected from nearby wells.
3. Slow drilling as a result of bit wear - just before the bit was
changed. Drillrate change in this case not due to formation
change.
4. Penetration of top reservoir and clear sand in the cuttings -
stop to change to a core bit to cut core. Note that low
returns during coring often mean that no samples are
caught during coring, the log being based on recovered core
material.
5. Reverse drilling break and drop off in gas and oil shows
suggest a hydrocarbon contact has been drilled
7
CUTTINGS

8
CORE - TYPES

Exploration diamond drilling (Conventional Cores)

• The well is drilled using a diamond coated drill bit which surrounds a hollow centre for storage of
the core sample. This hollow centre is called a core barrel.
• Once the core sample is in the barrel, it is raised to the surface and retrieved
• When raising the core sample to the surface, it is important to limit the amount of contact with the
drilling fluid to minimise changes in rock properties.
• The dimensions of core samples retrieved using diamond drilling varies, ranging from a few
millimetres to 150mm in diameter and from less than one metre to approximately 100m in length.
• The loss of core is usually representative of a good reservoir rock

9
CORE - TYPES

Sidewall Coring
• A cheaper and quicker method of retrieving core samples
• Samples are smaller than conventional cores, with a diameter of 1 inch and length of 1.75 inches.
• Sidewall cores are obtained extensively from soft sand areas, however it is also possible to analyse
cores taken from harder formations.
• There are two different types of sidewall coring used to retrieve these samples:
1. Percussion
2. Rotary

10
 CORE - TYPES

Sidewall Coring
1. Percussion sidewall coring –
• A sidewall coring tool containing explosives is
lowered into the well.
• The explosives are used to propel a number of
small, hollow, cylindrical tubes into the sides of
the well to retrieve samples of the rock.
• As the coring tool is raised to the surface, the
tubes, which are connected to the tool by wires,
are pulled up as well.
• The samples recovered by this method are often
shattered due to impact fracturing caused by the
explosives, resulting in erroneous measurements
of rock properties
• They are usually excellent for indication of
lithology and interpretation of potential
productivity.
11
CORE - TYPES

Sidewall Coring
2. Rotary Sidewall Coring
• Small core samples are retrieved from the
side of the well using a rotary sidewall
coring drill.
• The rotary drill does not cause as much
damage to core samples as percussion
coring equipment, therefore reliable,
accurate measurements of various rock
properties can be made

12
TYPES OF CORE ANALYSIS

13
USES OF CORES

14
LIMITATIONS OF CORES

15
WELL LOGGING - INTRODUCTION

• Well logs provide valuable information about the

formation within a few feet of the wellbore that
supports formation evaluation
• The objectives of formation evaluation include
assessing resource size, supporting the placement of
wells, and interpreting reservoir performance
during development
• Well logging involves lowering a well logging tool
(sonde) of about 12m to about 45m in length into a
wellbore.
• Logging tools can be designed to measure such
physical quantities as electromagnetic and sonic
wave signals that pass through a section of the
formation and detect elementary particles emitted
by formation rock.

16
WELL LOGGING - TYPES

• Wireline
• Logging While Drilling (LWD)

17
WIRELINE LOGGING

• Wireline logs are made using highly specialized

equipment entirely separate from that used for drilling.
• Onshore, a motorized logging truck is used which brings
its array of surface recorders, computers and a logging
drum and cable to the drill site.
• Offshore, the same equipment is installed in a small
cabin left permanently on the rig
• Most logs are run while pulling the tool up from the
bottom of the hole.
• The cable attached to the tool acts both as a support for
the tool and as a canal for data transmission
• The cable is wound around a motorized drum on to
which it is guided manually during logging. The drum
will pull the cable at speeds of between 300 m/h (1000
ft/h) and 1800 m/h (6000 ft/h), i.e. 0.3 to 1.8 km/h,
depending on the tool used. As the cable is pulled in, so
the depth of the working tool is checked.

18
WIRELINE LOGGING - COMPONENTS OF A WIRELINE UNIT

1. Tool or probe with sensors,

transmitters and sources
2. Cable connecting probe with cable
connector. Cable provides depth
information of the tool position,
transmits energy downwards and
measured data upwards
3. Winch with depth counter
4. Surface unit for controlling the
measuring process, visualizing and
storing the measured data

19
LOGGING WHILE DRILLING

• LWD involves simultaneously logging the formation whilst drilling

• The sensors in LWD are integrated into drill collars (DC’s) that forms part of the bottom hole
assembly and the measurements are made while the well is being drilled.
• LWD tools transmit partial or complete measurement results to the surface via a drilling mud-
pulser or other improved techniques (Real Time Data).
• Complete measurement results can be downloaded from LWD tools after they are pulled out of
the hole (Memory Data Logging)
• LWD tools provide deviation and logging options in high-angle wells.
• LWD tools have to be very robust and strong to handle the torque, compression, extension, and
vibration of drilling, and certain tools (ie sonic etc) are expensive and difficult to develop to
handle this kind of treatment .

20
LOGGING WHILE DRILLING

21
BOREHOLE LOGGING -
PRINCIPLES OF WELL LOGGING

• The general objective of well logging is

the evaluation of formations by
measuring certain rock properties.
• The inside of the holes are protected
from wall collapsing by casing to lower
the geophysical probes and high-
density drilling fluids/mud with
cement.

Logging methods - overview 22

PRINCIPLES OF WELL LOGGING – DEPTH OF INVESTIGATION AND
RESOLUTION

23
BOREHOLE LOGGING - PRINCIPLES OF WELL LOGGING

• The instrument is housed in a cylindrical metal tube (Sonde) connected to an unbreakable multicore cable fixed in a
rotating drum fitted with winches and a recorder.
• The probe is lowered to the bottom of the hole and logging is carried out while hoisting the instrument ups though
the section.
• Logging data are automatically recorded on a paper strip and simultaneously on magnetic tape in analogue or
digital form for subsequent computer processing.
• Performance of logging tools depends on the logging environment. The environment includes such factors as rock
type and structure, fluids in the well and adjacent formation, temperature and pressure
• Geological properties obtained from well logging are formation thickness, lithology, porosity, permeability, pore
pressure, fluid contacts, proportion of water and hydrocarbon saturation and temperature.
• Most logs are run in open hole with cased hole logging being restricted to instances such as:
• Cement-bond logs are used after setting casing to determine the quality of the bond between casing and cement. If the
bond is not sufficient, then remedial operations are needed before proceeding with any completion operations.
• Gamma radiation log for correlating depths of target formations for completion operations in cased holes.
• Temperature logs and flow-rate logs may be used to identify sources of fluids in completed wells.

24
BOREHOLE LOGGING – DEPTH OF INVESTIGATION

• Some logging tools measure properties in the first

few inches of the formation, while
other tools measure properties deeper into the
formation.
• This depth of investigation is usually characterized
as shallow, medium, or deep and can range from a
few inches to several feet.
• The lithology, or mineral composition, of the
formation can be determined by shallow
measurements.
• One purpose of resistivity logs is to estimate brine
saturation in the formation, as an indication of the
presence of oil and gas in the formation. For these
estimates to be useful, deep measurements that
penetrate beyond the transition zone are needed.

Schematic of invasion zones or zones of investigation25

BOREHOLE LOGGING – DEPTH OF INVESTIGATION TERMINOLOGIES

26
WELL LOGS FORMAT

• Logging measurements are recorded as a

function of depth which is recorded in
the first track
• More than one measurement may be
displayed in each measurement track
• The header contains information about
the well (such as name, location, and
owner), the logging run (such as date,
logging company, and tool description),
and the scales for the measurement at
the top of the tracks

27
BOREHOLE MEASUREMENT LOGS - CALIPER

• Caliper logs allows us to map the diameter

of the borehole as a function of depth
• Usually plotted in Track 1
• Achieves measurement via 2 principles:
• Mechanical systems - One or more pads are
pressed against the borehole wall during
upward motion
• Acoustic systems – Ultrasonic caliper or
acoustic borehole televiewer deliver a
circular two-way travel time from the
rotating tramsitter-receiver system to the
borehole wall. Distance conversion utilizes Different types of mechanical caliper tools
the mud wave velocity

28
BOREHOLE MEASUREMENT LOGS - CALIPER

• Caliper measurements can be run in both open

and cased holes with all types of borehole fluids
• Applications include:
• Borehole geometry and stability
• Indication of permeable zones (mud cake)
• Thickness of mudcake
• Indication of fractured zones
• Quantify irregularities for correction
• Borehole volume for cement computations
• Due to the fact that several logging tools are
influenced by borehole diameter, the caliper
tool serves as a quality control for other tools in
which borehole diameter corrections could be
applied

Caliper log response in different formations

29
BOREHOLE MEASUREMENT LOGS -
CALIPER

Typical caliper log response 30

GAMMA RAY LOGS

• Lithology log
• A gamma-ray tool detects natural gamma-ray emissions from radioactive isotopes.
• Gamma-ray logs imply the presence of shale when there is a high gamma-ray response.
• Clean (shale-free) sands or carbonates tend to have a low gamma-ray response.
• Depth of investigation is about 1.5 ft
• Natural radioactivity includes alpha, beta, and gamma rays.
• Alpha rays are helium nuclei, beta rays are electrons, and gamma rays are photons.
• Alpha and beta rays are low energy. Gamma rays emitted by nuclei have energies in the range from
103eV (electron volts) to 107eV and can penetrate several feet of rock.

31
GAMMA RAY LOGS

• Naturally occurring radioactive materials (NORM) are minerals that contain radioactive isotopes of the
elements uranium, thorium, potassium, radium, and radon.
• The decay of naturally occurring radioactive isotopes produces gamma rays.
• Gamma ray log is reported in pseudo-units called API units
• Can be used in both open and cased holes as it can pass through steel casing
• High gamma ray reading associated with clays or shale is due to presence of K and its absorption of Ur
and Th

32
GAMMA RAY LOGS

• Uses a linear scale for log plot

• Gamma ray index IGR is calculated
from the gamma ray log data and then
used to find corrected volume of shale.

Illustration of gamma‐ray (GR) log response 33

 GAMMA RAY LOGS - EXERCISE
• Determine shale and sand intervals by
shading their layers

34
GAMMA RAY LOGS - USES

1. Correlation between wells

2. Determination of bed boundaries
3. Evaluation of shale content within a formation
4. Lithology indicatior
5. Depth Control (matching)

35
SPONTANEOUS POTENTIAL LOGS

• Lithology log
• The SP log is an electric log that records the direct current (DC) voltage difference, or electrical
potential, between two electrodes. One electrode is grounded at the surface, and the other
electrode on the logging tool moves along the face of formations in the wellbore.
• The range of the voltage on an SP logging track is typically up to 200mV.
• The SP voltage for shales in a particular well is fairly constant and forms a “shale baseline” for
interpretation of the SP log for that well. The SP for shale-free formations is negative by 50–100
mV relative to the shale baseline and forms a “sand baseline.”
• These two boundaries provide a rule for interpolating the amount of clay or shale in a formation
based on its SP.

36
SPONTANEOUS POTENTIAL LOGS

• The SP results from diffusion processes in porous rock

driven by differences in the ionic composition of
aqueous mud filtrate and in situ brine. As a result, the SP
log cannot function with air- or oil-based drilling mud
• In porous formations with less clay or shale, the voltage
is lower because the ions can diffuse more freely. Thus,
deflection of the SP from the shale baseline to lower
voltage indicates increasing permeability.
• If the concentration of salts dissolved in the mud filtrate
equals the concentration in the in situ brine, then the SP
is zero.
• For most wells, the filtration concentration is less than
the in situ brine concentration, and the shale baseline is
more positive than the sand baseline.
37
 SPONTANEOUS POTENTIAL LOGS

• An increase or decrease in the SP curve

indicates the boundary between one rock type
and another.
• Boundaries between rock types that appear
along the SP curve can be used to estimate net
and gross thickness of a log interval.
• In some cases, the shape of the SP curve can
yield information about the depositional
environment when combined with other logs
and is used for correlating structure among
wells.
• The presence of oil and natural gas in the pore
space with formation water reduces the
number of ions in the pore space resulting in a
change in SP curve values at the hydrocarbon–
water contact
38
SELF POTENTIAL - APPLICATIONS

39
SPONTANEOUS POTENTIAL – SHALE CONTENT

• Example 9.1 SP Log

On an SP log, if the shale baseline is +40mV and the sand baseline is -80mV,
what is the shale content of a formation with SP of -30mV?

• Answer
Vshale = (- 80mV – -30mV) / (-80mV – 40mV)
= -50mV / -120mV
= 0.42 or 42%

40
 PHOTOELECTRIC LOG

• Lithology log
• The PE refers to the absorption of a low energy gamma ray by inner
orbital atomic electrons. The extent of this absorption (PEF) varies Photoelectric Factors
with atomic number of the atom.
• The PE logging tool is part of the density logging tool. The PE tool
measures the absorption or falloff of low energy gamma-ray energy.
• The falloff in gamma-ray energy is quantified as a PE factor (PEF).
• Hydrocarbons and water contribute very little to the PEF because their
atomic numbers are low compared to rocks in the formation.
• The atomic numbers of different rock types can be correlated to PEF so
that PEF serves as a good indicator of lithology or rock type as listed in
the adjacent table.
• PEF is not very sensitive to porosity.
• The PE logging track is often scaled from 0 to 10 in units of barns per
electron (b/e). A barn is a measure of cross-sectional area and 1 barn
equals 10–28m2.
41
• Depth of investigation for the PE logging tool is typically 1 to 2 ft.
DENSITY

• Porosity log (bulk density)

• A density logging tool uses intermediate energy
gamma rays emitted from a radioactive source in
the tool to induce Compton scattering in the
formation.
• In this process, gamma-ray photons from the tool
collide with electrons in the formation and transfer
some of their energy to the electrons.
• The remainder of the energy is scattered as
lower-energy gamma-ray photons. The density
logging tool then detects some of these scattered
photons.
• The gamma-ray count rate at the tool depends on
formation electron density, which is proportional to
formation bulk density ρb.
• Dense formations absorb many gamma rays, while
low density formations absorb fewer.
42
DENSITY – POROSITY DETERMINATION

• Combining ρb from the density log with rock matrix density, ρma and fluid density, ρf yields
porosity, ϕ:

• Formation bulk density ρb can be obtained by rearranging to give

43
DENSITY

• Results of the density tool are presented in three tracks on a log: bulk density, density correction, and
porosity.
• The density correction track shows corrections to the bulk density due to irregularities in wellbore
diameter. It is an indication of the quality of the bulk density response. For density corrections greater
than 0.2 g/cm3, the bulk density values are suspect.
• The depth of investigation for the density tool is typically 1–2 ft.

• Example 9.2 Density Log

A density log shows that the bulk density ρb of a formation is 2.30 g/cc. The density of the rock matrix
ρma is 2.62g/cc and the density of the fluid ρf in the formation is 0.869g/cc. Calculate porosity.
• Answer

44
DENSITY LOGS -USES

• Density logs are primarily used as porosity logs.

• Other uses include:
A. Identification of minerals in evaporate deposits
B. Detection of gas
C. Determination of hydrocarbon density
D. Evaluation of shaly sands and complex lithologies
E. Determination of oil-shale yield
F. Calculation of overburden pressure
G. Rock mechanical properties

• Corrections are to be applied if the hole diameter is larger than 10 inches using chart
• Corrections are to be applied for shale volume

45
DENSITY LOGS -USES

46
NEUTRON

• Porosity log
• Conducted in both open and cased hole
• Neutron logging is undertaken in combination with the
density porosity reading in order to identify and correct
effects of shale and gas
• Neutron logging devices include one or more detectors
and a neutron source that continuously emits energetic
(fast) neutrons.
• Principles of operation:
• A neutron source emits a continuous flux of high-energy
• Collisions with formation nuclei reduce the neutron energy -
thereby slowing it down.
• At thermal energy levels (approximately 0.025 eV), neutrons
are captured
• Neutron capture results in an emission of gamma rays
• Depending on the type of tool, the detector measures the
slowed down neutrons and/or emitted gamma rays
47
NEUTRON

• The neutron log curve will provide a good measure of formation porosity if liquid-filled pore
spaces contain hydrogen, as is the case when pores are filled with oil or water.
• A small response illustrates a low hydrogen concentration which can be interpreted as gas
presence, while oil and water have higher and almost the same concentration of hydrogen
than gas.
• Neutron - GR logs require departure curves (provided in chart books) to make corrections. The
following formula can be used for correction:
ΦNcor=ΦN - (Vsh × ΦNsh)
Where:
ΦNcor: Corrected neutron porosity
ΦN: Apparent neutron porosity read from the neutron log
Vsh: Shale volume (correction required if > 5%)
ΦNsh: Apparent neutron porosity at the shale point

48
NEUTRON - USES

1. Porosity determination, usually in combination with density log data

2. Gas detection, usually in combination with the density and sonic tool
3. Shale volume determination, in combination with the density tool
4. Lithology indication, in combination with the density log and/ or sonic log (Shale reads high
porosity on sonic and neutron due to bound water and low on density logs)
5. Formation fluid type

49
SONIC

• Porosity logs
• The elapsed time to propagate a sound wave from a source on a logging tool through the formation and back to a
receiver on the tool depends on formation porosity.
• The tool that sends and receives sound waves is called an acoustic log or sonic log.
• The speed of sound in a medium depends on the density of the medium. In the case of rock, density depends on
the density of rock matrix and the density of the fluids occupying the pore space in the rock.
• Fluid density is usually much smaller than matrix density. Consequently, the bulk density of a formation with
relatively large pore volume is less than the bulk density of a formation with relatively small pore volume if the
fluids in the pore volume are the same in both formations.
• An estimate of the speed of sound v in a formation is given by Wyllie’s equation. If we write the speed of sound in
fluids occupying the pore volume of a rock as vf, rock porosity as ϕ and the speed of sound in the rock matrix as
vma, Wyllie’s equation is

• The depth of investigation for sonic logs is typically 1–4ft 50

SONIC

• Porosity logs
• The elapsed time to propagate a sound wave
from a source on a logging tool through the
formation and back to a receiver on the tool
depends on formation porosity.
• The tool that sends and receives sound waves
is called an acoustic log or sonic log.
• Sonic log tools consist of one transmitter and
two or three receivers and all of these are
located in single unit called a “sonde”

51
SONIC - USES

• Sonic logs are mainly used in combination with other logs for the following purposes:
1. Determination of porosity
2. To improve interpretation of seismic records
3. Identifying lithology
4. Estimating secondary pore space
5. Estimating permeability

52
RESISTIVITY LOGS

• The resistivity of a substance is a measure of its opposition to the passage of electrical current
expressed in the units of Ω cm2/m or Ω.m
Resistivity = Resistance of material x A / L
• Rock grains in the formation are usually nonconductive, so formation resistivity depends
primarily on the electrical properties of the fluid contained in the pore space.
• Hydrocarbon fluids are usually highly resistive because they do not contain ions in solution.
• Formation water contains ions in solution that can support an electrical current and have
relatively small resistivity.
• Resistivity logs can be used to distinguish between brine and hydrocarbon fluids in the pore
spaces of the formation.

53
 RESISTIVITY LOGS - TOOLS

• There are two general types of resistivity tools:

• Electrode: forces a current through the rock and
measures resistivity.
• Induction: Uses a fluctuating electro-magnetic field to
induce electrical currents in the rock; it measures
conductivity which is converted to resistivity.

Various electrode logs and depth of measurement:

Illustration of resistivity log. The three resistivity traces are

54
for shallow, medium, and deep resistivity measurements.
FACTORS INFLUENCING RESISTIVITY

Fluid Resistivity
1. Concentration (ppm) and type of dissolved salts
• Resistivity decreases as salinity increases up to a maximum
• Dissolved salt impedes the passage of current carrying anions.

2. Temperature
• Resistivity of a solution is inversely proportional to the temperature

55
FACTORS INFLUENCING RESISTIVITY

Resistivity of rocks also depends on the following factors:

1. Resistivity of water in pores: Rw
2. Quantity of water present (Φ and Sw )
3. Lithology, i.e nature, percentage of clay present and conductive materials.
4. Texture of rock such as distribution of pores, clays and conductive materials
5. Temperature

56
RESISTIVITY - USES

• Determining true formation resistivity (Rt) for calculating uninvaded zone saturation (Sw)
• Identification thin beds
• Determining flushed zone resistivity (Rxo) for calculating flushed zone saturation ( Sxo)
• Indicate moveable hydrocarbon (in combo)
• Estimate diameter invasion (in combo)
• Correct deeper reading of resistivity because effect of invasion

57
LOG RESPONSES

58
INTERPRETATION PROCESS – WHY INTERPRET LOGS

• Calculate Oil in Place

• STOIIP:

• Where:
• 7758 = conversion factor from acre-ft to bbl
• A = area of reservoir (acres) from map data
• h = height or thickness of pay zone (ft) from log and/or core data
• ø = porosity (decimal) from log and/or core data
• Sw = connate water saturation (decimal) from log and/or core data
• Boi = formation volume factor for oil at initial conditions (reservoir bbl/STB) from lab data; a quick estimate is
• where N is the number of hundreds of ft3 of gas produced per bbl of oil
[for example, in a well with a GOR of 1000, Boi = 1.05 + (10 × 0.05)] 59
 INTERPRETATION PROCESS

• The interpretation process can be summarised

into the following bullet points:
I. Correlate and depth match Logs
II. Interpret Lithology
III. Identify the permeable and non-permeable
beds on the logs
IV. Determine and Divide the beds into zones
consisting of water bearing and hydrocarbon
bearing zones
V. Determine the porosity of the zones of
interest
VI. Determine the hydrocarbon saturation of
the zones of interest

60
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

1. Correlate And Depth Match Logs

• This is necessary because the sondes are stacked upon each other in a particular logging tool and
only a certain number of sondes can be run in any particular tool.
• Hence the sondes are making the measurements at different points in time as the tool is being
extracted from the well. If the sondes were all at the same depth, at the same time, when making
the measurements then correlation would not be necessary.
• The correlation of logs is usually performed on the basis of the Gamma Ray Log, since the gamma
ray log is generally run with each logging tool run in hole and measurements made by the sondes
on a particular logging tool are depth matched automatically.
• This means that all log measurements are automatically aligned with the Gamma Ray log and
therefore depth correlation of the Gamma Ray log from one logging tool with the Gamma Ray log
from another tool will ensure that all logs on both tools are depth correlated

61
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

2. Interpret Lithology
• If the formation is made up of one mineral then a particular log measurement may be used to
identify that mineral and therefore infer the rock type (lithology).
• However, if the formation is made up of a mixture of known minerals then it is necessary to use a
combination of logs to obtain a good indication of the mineralogical content and therefore
lithology of the formation.
• The composition of the rock can be inferred by cross-plotting combinations of the Density,
Neutron and Acoustic log data

62
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

3. Identification Of Permeable And Non-permeable Zones

• The permeable zones on a suite of logs can be identified by referring to the GR, SP and resistivity logs.
• The Gamma Ray log is generally used as a depth reference tool and the Gamma Ray sonde is therefore
run with all logging tools.
• It is however primarily used from an interpretation viewpoint to differentiate between shales and
other formation types.
• Since shales generally have a very low permeability (very common caprocks), the Gamma Ray log
response can be used in a qualitative way to identify non-permeable zones.
• A comparison of the resistivity readings from the flushed zone, shallow and deep in the reservoir will
give some indication of the depth of penetration of the borehole fluid and therefore the permeability
of the formation
• The resistivity logs can only be used to differentiate between hydrocarbons and water. This is because
the conductivity of gas and oil will be similar whereas the resistivity of (salt) water and hydrocarbons
will be significantly different. 63
 WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

4. Hydrocarbon vs water bearing zones

• In a hydrocarbon bearing formation the hydrocarbon saturation is
reduced in the flushed zone and increases in the transition zone
until the original saturation is reached in the undisturbed zone.
• In a water bearing formation the water saturation in the zone
between the flushed zone and the undisturbed zone would not
change but the salinity and therefore the resistivity may.
• These changes in saturation and resistivity create resistivity profiles
which can be used to identify the water bearing and hydrocarbon
bearing formations.
• in a water bearing zone the resistivity of the flushed zone is high
and the resistivity readings decrease with movement out into the
undisturbed zone (figure top right)
• In a hydrocarbon bearing formation the resistivity of the zone
behind the flushed zone may be higher or lower than the flushed
zone depending on the water saturation and resistivity of the
formation water (figure bottom right)
64
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

5. Determine The Porosity Of The Zones Of Interest

• Rock porosity is generally determined from the measurements from one or a combination of, the
following logs:
I. Acoustic log
II. Density log
III. Neutron log

• Porosity values can be derived from a single log in clean, water bearing formations, where properties
including lithology are known and this value can be corrected for various environmental effects.
• Other factors such as the presence of hydrocarbons and shale influence the value of porosity obtained
by well logs.

65
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

5. Determine The Porosity Of The Zones Of Interest

• Determining porosity in complex formations
• In these complex situations, it is necessary to cross plot the measurements from two different types of
well logs in order to determine porosity.
• Deciding which logs to combine often depends on the complexity of the lithology or proportions of
minerals present.
1. Neutron/density cross plots
• This combination of logs can be used to determine lithology and porosity in clean, liquid filled
formations, but not when gas is present.
• The value of porosity provided by this combination is usually fairly accurate and does not vary
much when incorrect matrix lithology is chosen to determine porosity from the cross plot.

66
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

5. Determine The Porosity Of The Zones Of Interest

• Determining porosity in complex formations
2. Sonic/neutron cross plots
• This combination of logs also provides good values of porosity with little error.
• The presence of evaporates however changes this and results in different porosity values when incorrect matrix
lithology is chosen from the cross plot.
3. Sonic/density cross plots
• Sonic/density cross plots are not so good for determining porosity but can be used to identify certain minerals.
• If incorrect matrix lithology is chosen from the chart to determine porosity, this can result in a large error in the
value of porosity. Error in the measurement of either sonic transit time or bulk density can also result in inaccurate
readings of porosity and lithology.
4. Density/photoelectric cross plots
• The photoelectric index and density log can be cross plotted to determine porosity and also to identify mineral
types. 67
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

6. Determination Of Saturation
• Estimation of hydrocarbon saturation cannot be measured directly but
inferred from determination of WATER SATURATION (Sw) from RESISTIVITY
and POROSITY logs
• The electrical resistivity of a formation is a very good indicator of the fluid
in the pore space of that formation.
• Neither oil nor gas conducts electrical current but water does.
• It is assumed that all pore space not filled with water is occupied by
hydrocarbons
• It is very rare however for a formation to contain no water at all and there
is generally some level of water saturation of the pore space, Sw in all
formations
• Sw – Fraction of pore space occupied by water.
• Sh – Fraction of pore space occupied by hydrocarbon. 68
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

6. Determination Of Saturation
• In clean formations, the water saturation (Sw) can be determined using Archie’s water saturation
equation:

Where:
• Rw: Resistivity of Water in the formation
• Rt: True formation resistivity
• F: Formation resistivity factor
• In this equation, n is a constant and is usually assumed to be 2

• The formation resistivity factor (F) can be found using the following equation:
• Where:
• a: Constant
• m: Cementation factor 69
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION PROCESS

6. Determination Of Saturation
• Combining the two equations, gives:

• If: n=2, m=2, a=1, then:

• Therefore, when Rw is constant, porosity is proportional to

1/Rt0.5
• In a formation with 100% water saturation, Rt=Ro. Plotting
Ro (when Sw=1) on an inverse square root scale against
porosity generates a straight line on which all points should
fall. The equation of this line is:

70
WELL LOG INTERPRETATION
PROCESS

• Determination of Sw
• Figure shows an example of this plot
where the upper line is for 100%
water saturation.
• The value of Rw corresponds to the
gradient of the line. In this case,
Rw=0.65 ohm-m.
• The other line on the plot is for a
formation water saturation of 50%
(Sw=0.5).
• For any values of Sw other than 1,
the relationship between Rt and Ro is
given by

71
SUMMARY OF INTERPRETATION PROCEDURES

72
NET TO GROSS

• NET:
Thickness of clean, permeable, hydrocarbon-
containing rock in the reservoir zone.
• Gross:
The thickness of rock in the reservoir zone
irrespective of whether it is clean, its
permeability or its fluid saturation.
• NTG:
The net to gross ratio (thickness of net rock
divided by the thickness of gross rock) is often
used to represent the quality of a reservoir
zone.

73
EXERCISE

• Identify Marker beds using both logs

• Identify Shale baseline on GR
• Identify Shale vs sand baseline on SP
• Identify Possible Sand vs Shale volumes on GR by shading

74
• Shade sand vs shale

75
76
A) Figure showing gamma-ray and SP (self-potential or
spontaneous potential) logs through an interbedded
interval of sandstone (SS), shale (SH), limestone (LS),
and dolomite (DOL). The effects of lithology are seen on
the two logs in the picture. Gamma-ray counts (in API
units of measure) are high for shales and low for
sandstones and dolomite. The same is true for the SP log
curve. Thus, both logs are lithology indicators. The
gamma-ray log has a better resolving power than the SP
log for detecting beds of a certain thickness, so the
gamma-ray log provides a better characterization of
lithology and bed thickness than does the SP log.
B) The density log measures the density of the rock and its
contained fluids. Thus, the density log is sometimes
referred to as a porosity log. Different fluids, particularly
gas, can have a pronounced effect on the density
measurement, as is shown on the diagram. Limestones
and dolomites tend to have a higher density than do
sandstones of the same porosity. 77
78
79
• Full explanation here
• https://www.studocu.com/row/document/jamaa%D8%A9-almlk-fhd-llbtrol-o-almaaadn/well-
logging/lecture-notes/3-self-potential-log-copy/2764948/view

80
INTERPRET FORMATION AND FLUID

81
WELL LOG CORRELATION

• A correlation expresses how the rock units (or other geological phenomena such as fossil zones)
observed at one location (e.g. a well) are related or connected to those found in other locations
(e.g. other wells, or outcrops)
• Geologists try to use a number of guidelines or considerations to constrain their interpretation,
but the result is still an opinion, and could be altered by the input of further data
• There are many different types of correlation – depending on the data used to correlate
and the reason for correlating.
• For example, a correlation designed to show the age relationship of a succession of rocks will look quite
different from a correlation designed to illustrate the lithological connections
• Correlation is the basis of our understanding of the distribution and the arrangement or
architecture of our reservoir, and therefore what kind of fluid flow behaviour we expect.
• We use correlation and maps to estimate reservoir volume, porosity permeability distributions
and therefore fluid volume and flow units.

82
WELL LOG CORRELATION – DATA TO
BE CORRELATED

• Seismic data is the only laterally

continuous data available from the
subsurface
• The basic data used in well log
correlation is usually
1. wireline log curves , especially GR
2. lithology
3. biostratigraphic data
4. chronostratigraphic data can be used
5. Information from seismic sections can
be integrated into a correlation.

D. R. Matuszak, 1972 83
WELL LOG CORRELATION –
LOG TYPES AND INFLUENCES

D. R. Matuszak, 1972 84
WELL LOG CORRELATION - LIMITATIONS

• The correlation process is complicated by a number of factors:

• The presence of high stratigraphic variability due to facies changes, lensing, and thickening of the
section can complicate the correlation process.
• Structural variability caused by faulting and folding are also adverse factors.
• Logs themselves may be affected by variations in rock properties, hole conditions, and logging
techniques.

85
WELL LOG CORRELATION GUIDELINES

1. Align the depth scale of the logs and look for correlation
2. If no correlation is evident, begin to slide one of the logs until a good correlation point is found,
and mark it
3. Continue this process over the entire length of each log until all recognized correlations have
been identified
4. Always begin correlation at the top of the log, not the middle
5. For initial quick-look correlation, review major sand or carbonate bodies using the SP curve or
gamma ray curve.
6. For detailed correlation work, first correlate shale sections with large scale changes; worry
about the formation tops and markers first, before correlating minor changes and beds .
7. Initially, use the amplified shallow resistivity curve (focused or short normal), which usually
provides the most reliable shale correlations.
8. Use colored pencils to identify specific correlation points.
9. Check for missing and repeated sections.
86
 WELL LOG CORRELATION

Example of two different kinds of correlation between three wells. On the left, the three wells are correlated by their different lithologies (note
that the top and bottom of the drawn well section are not correlated, since these are artificial boundaries created by drilling and sampling, and
have nothing to do with geological boundaries). The different lithologies are conglomerate (ovoid symbols), sandstone (dots) and siltstone
(dashes).
On the right, the biostratigraphic markers (numbers 1-5) have been correlated, showing that the bottommost sandstone in Well 1 is older87than
the bottommost sandstone in Well 2 – raising the question of whether they are in fact correlatable between these wells
 WELL LOG CORRELATION

Detailed correlation of two wells showing missing section

caused by normal faulting (from Tearpock and Bischke,
1991). 88
WELL LOG CORRELATION

An example of how the lithological correlation can change with additional information
89
• Correlate the different
lithological units represented
here (dots for sandstone, dashes
for siltstone, brick pattern for
limestone and ovoids for
conglomerate). Assume that
a biostratigraphic datum has
already been defined and used to
align the logs to their
original depositional (flat lying
strata) arrangement.

90
Here the appearance and disappearance
datums are correlated. The yellow star critter
only appears in sands, and it's disappearance is
entirely related to the top of the sand units.
Therefore it is likely to be facies restricted and
therefore not a good candidate for
biostratigraphy. The pink and green critters in
the lower part of the correlation have last
appearance datums that coincide, and also the
green critter is missing from the rightmost
column. This implies that there is erosion below
the limestone unit, an unconformity. In view of
this and the age data from the fossils, the
correlation in the bottom half would look quite
different – as it is likely that the two thinner
sands correlate together, before being eroded
by the unconformity, and the thicker sand does 91
not connect to these units.
• Shade sand/shale units

92
EXERCISE

• Correlate the four logs provided (on

the following pages) and make a
correlation panel from Well 1 to Well
4. The depositional environment is
shallow water at the margin
of a large lake.

93
EXERCISE

• Correlate the four logs provided (on

the following pages) and make a
correlation panel from Well 1 to Well
4. The depositional environment is
shallow water at the margin
of a large lake.

94
EXERCISE

• Correlate the four logs provided (on

the following pages) and make a
correlation panel from Well 1 to Well
4. The depositional environment is
shallow water at the margin
of a large lake.

95
EXERCISE

• Correlate the four logs provided (on

the following pages) and make a
correlation panel from Well 1 to Well
4. The depositional environment is
shallow water at the margin
of a large lake.

96