COMMERCIAL BOREHOLE LOGGING

PAUL SPIELMAN September 2007

From Warrior Energy Services Website, www.warriorenergyservices.com

TYPICAL WIRELINE TRUCK

From Welaco

TYPICAL WIRELINE SKID UNIT

Welaco Unit at Ormats Puna Geothermal Venture in Hawaii

TYPES OF LOGS
Geophysical Logs
Resistivity Porosity Gamma Ray Dip Meter Borehole Imaging Other

Production Logging
Pressure Temperature Spinner Fluid Density Sonic Caliper Electro-magnetic Ultrasonic RA Tracer Video

Well Inspection

RESISTVITY LOGS
Measure bulk resistivity of formation Laterlog
The original well log Electrodes direct current into formation to ground electrodes on surface

Induction
Magnetic field induces current in formation Used with low conductivity well fluids

Porosity can be calculated if water salinity is known Oil or gas saturation can be calculated if porosity and water salinity are known

POROSITY LOGS
Neutron tool
Neutron source High energy neutrons are slowed down by hydrogen atoms in water (or oil) and detected by tool Porosity is function rock type and slow neutron count

Density tool
Gamma ray source Electrons reflect gamma rays back to detector in tool Electrons in formation proportional to density Porosity is function of rock type and density

Sonic tool
Measures speed of sound in formation Porosity slows sound Porosity is function of rock type and measured speed of sound

GAMMA RAY LOG

Gamma ray detector measures natural radioactivity of formation Mostly due to Potassium in Shale
Shale has porosity but no permeability

Uranium and Thorium

Less common sources natural radioactivity Detected by more sophisticated tools that measure gamma ray energy

Run with other tools to correlate logs

DIP METER AND BOREHOLE IMAGING

Dip Meter
Four or six arms with few buttons measure small scale resistivity Wellbore inclination and orientation Map bedding planes of sedimentary formations

Imaging Tools
Resistivity imaging tools
FMI - Schlumberger, EMI Halliburton Pads with many buttons map small scale resistivity

Ultrasonic imaging tools

USIT Schlumberger, CAST Halliburton Spinning ultrasonic transducer measures I.D. and sonic impedance

Borehole image
Dip and orientation of fractures Structure and stress of formation
Borehole breakout Drilling induced fractures

OTHER GEOPHYSICAL LOGS

Mineral identification
Pulsed neutron source stimulates gamma ray emissions Tool measures energy spectrum of returning gamma rays Percentage of elements (silica, calcium, etc.)

Magnetic resonance
Detects free water Determine permeability

GEOTHERMAL APPLICATIONS
Geophysical tools designed for sedimentary formations
Algorithms for sandstone, shale, limestone, dolomite Special algorithms required for crystalline rock

Resistivity tool is sufficient to quantify porosity when water salinity is known Sonic tool puts seismic surveys on depth Density tool calibrates gravity surveys Formation imaging tools map fractures and quantify stress regime Neutron and density tools can identify lithology,
if samples are available to create correlations if there is variation in rock type

Schlumberger Litho-Density Log

COMPANIES
The Big Three SCHLUMBERGER HALLIBURTON BAKER ATLAS Geothermal Production Logging WELACO Bakersfield CA PACIFIC PROCESS SYSTEMS Bakersfield CA SCIENTIFIC PRODUCTION SERVICES Houston TX INSTRUMENT SERVICES INC. Ventura CA

Worldwide Geophysical, Production & Inspection Logging

Video DOWNHOLE VIDEO Oxnard CA many other companies

Pressure-Temperature-Spinner & some other services Sell and service equipment Many other companies in Japan, New Zealand, Philippines, Iceland, Kenya (KenGen), etc.

PRODUCTION LOGS
Very useful in geothermal wells Can be run with simple or sophisticated equipment Temperature surveys are essential for exploration work Pressure & Temperature surveys are more useful for well testing and production

TEMPERATURE LOGS
Most important parameter in geothermal wells Thermocouple wire
easiest for shallow holes

RTD
most accurate

Mechanical tool
Only option for deep hot wells 10 years ago

Electronic surface readout tool in thermal flask

Requires high temperature wireline

Electronic memory tool in thermal flask

State of the art Slick line or braided cable

Fiber Optics
Instantaneous temperature profile of entire wellbore Good for measuring transients

High temperature electronics

Not yet commercial

TEMPERATURE PROFILE
SURFACE CONDUCTIVE GRADIENT

DEPTH

HYDROTHERMAL SYSTEM OUTFLOW ZONE UPFLOW TEMPERATURE REVERSAL

CONDUCTIVE HEAT SOURCE TEMPERATURE

PRESSURE LOG
Second most important reservoir parameter
pressure drives flow producing drawdown indicates reservoir productivity (or injection buildup) drawdown curves analyzed to determine reservoir permeability

Water level, easily measured

used in hydrology but less useful in geothermal systems dependant on wellbore temperature and gas or steam pressure above water

Mechanical pressure tool

common ten years ago

Capillary tubing filled with nitrogen or helium

reservoir pressure is measured at surface good for long term reservoir pressure monitoring of hot wells

Electronic surface readout tool in thermal flask

requires high temperature wireline

Electronic memory tool in thermal flask

state of the art slick line or braided cable

STATIC PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE PROFILES

PRESSURE 0 0 0 0 00 0 00 0 00 0 TEMPERATURE 00 0 00 0 00 0

00 0

00 0

DEPTH

WATER LEVEL
00 0 STATIC PRESSURE STATIC TEMPERATURE

00 0

00 00

00 00

STATIC AND FLOWING PRESSURE AND TEMPERATURE PROFILES

PRESSURE 0 0 0 0 00 0 00 0 00 0 TEMPERATURE 00 0 00 0 00 0

00 0 FLOWING TEMPERATURE 00 0

DEPTH

00 0

STATIC PRESSURE FLASH DEPTH

STATIC TEMPERATURE

00 0

FLASH DEPTH PRESSURE DRAWDOWN

00 00 FLOWING PRESSURE 00 00

SPINNER LOG
Propeller measures flow in wellbore Identifies production (or injection) zones Calculate fluid velocity from series of up and down runs at different cable speeds

FLOWING SPINNER SURVEY Log down 000 fpm Log up 000 fpm

SPINNER COUNTS -00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

00 0

00 0 DEPTH

00 0 FLASH DEPTH 00 0

00 00

MAIN PRODUCTION ZONE

00 00

TYPICAL SHALLOW WELL LOGGING UNIT

From USGS website, nc.water.usgs.gov

TYPICAL SLICK LINE WINCH

From BOP Controls Inc. website, bopcontrols.net

WELL INSPECTION LOGS

Sonic Cement Bond Log (Same tool as sonic porosity log)
Measures quality of cement on outside of casing Difficulty with large geothermal well casing Difficulty with micro-annulus caused by temperature and pressure changes Measures I.D. of casing Detects corrosion, scale, washouts, parted casing Measures metal loss Detects corrosion, holes and parted casing Measures I.D. and thickness of casing, and impedance of material behind casing Detects corrosion, holes and cement Injects slug of iodine 131 into wellbore Gamma ray detector measures radioactive slug Detects leaks in casing and flow behind pipe Identify well problems Requires very clear water

Caliper

Electro-magnetic Ultrasonic (same as imaging tool) RA Tracer

Video

PRESSURE CONTROL
Should be used there is any possibility of well flowing Pack-off
Rubber cylinder tightens around wireline Few hundred psi Length of pipe below pack-off Necessary to run tool in pressurized well Valve below lubricator that closes around wireline Useful if pack-off fails or wireline gets stuck in pack-off Placed below pack-off For thousands of psi Grease pumped in high pressure end flows to low pressure
Grease in High pressure Grease out Low pressure

Lubricator Blow out preventor

Grease tubes for high pressure

PRESSURE-TEMPERATURESPINNER TOOLS FOR SALE

MADDEN SYSTEMS (Odessa, TX)
Flasked surface readout and memory tools

KUSTER COMPANY (Long Beach, CA)

Mechanical tools Flasked surface readout and memory tools

Anyone with a slickline or braided cable winch can run memory tools.

GEOPHYSICAL LOGGING TOOLS AND WIRELINE WINCHES FOR SALE

Companies that used to make tools and sell wireline systems went out of business in the 1990s Companies that sell systems now are on the internet