FORMATION EVALUATION

Lesson 3
_______
PASSIVE MEASUREMENTS - SP

Sep – Dec 2017

Notes modified from Dr. Jerry L. Jensen

 DRILLING DISTURBS
FORMATION
• Drilling and rock crushing
• Damage zone
• Mud systems and invasion
Damaged zone
Mudcake • Oil based mud
• Small conductivity mud
• Shallow invasion
• Thin cake
Invading filtrate • Water based mud
• Moderate to very
conductive mud
• Shallow to deep invasion
• Thin to thick cake
 MUD FILTRATE INVASION
Uninvaded
Zone
(Rt)
Invaded
Zone (Rxo)

Wellbore
Mud
(Rm)

Uninvaded Mud Cake

Zone (Rmc)
(Rt)

Modified from J. Jensen, PETE 321 Lecture Notes

COMMON TERMINOLOGY
Borehole
Rm : Borehole mud resistivity
Rmc : Mudcake resistivity
Invaded zone
Rmf : Mud filtrate resistivity
Rxo : Invaded zone resistivity
Sxo : Invaded zone water saturation
Uninvaded zone
Rw : Interstitial water resistivity
Rt : Uninvaded zone resistivity
Sw : Uninvaded zone water saturation
PASSIVE MEASUREMENTS
• Caliper
• Spontaneous Potential
• Gamma Ray
• Natural
• Spectral
 CALIPERS
Two-arm caliper • Uses
• Hole volume
• Mudcake (permeability)
arm • Tool corrections
• Crude lithology indicator
actual • Properties
apparent • two, three, or four arms
apparent
• linked or independent
actual • Calipers may disagree
(limitations)
• non-circular hole
arm • deviated wells
Three-arm caliper
CALIPER INTERPRETATION
• Hole volumes
• In general, more arms give better accuracy
• Two arms < 100% error
• Three arms < 20% error
• Mud cake
• If dcaliper < dbit
• hmc = (dbit - dcaliper)/2
• Lithology
• Shales may indicate borehole enlargement
• Spikey curve may indicate fractures
 SP – DEFINITION
• SP is a natural occurring electrical potential
relative to a surface potential measured in
the borehole mud
• Potentials are created by chemically induced
electric current
• The potential of the surface reference must
remain constant
 USES OF SP
1. Determine values of formation water
resistivity
2. Identify permeable zones
3. Qualitative indication of shale content
4. Define bed boundaries
5. Well-to-well correlation
SPONTANEOUS POTENTIAL (SP)

• Uses
• Correlation
• Lithology
• Shaliness indicator -12 +59 +
+
mV mV SHALE
• Environmental +
+
indicator - POROUS,
• Properties -71
mV
-
- PERMEABLE
BED
• measures formation -
+
voltage +
• passive measurement
+
+ SHALE

Ransom, PFE
 THE SP TOOL

• One electrode
SHALE
• Insulators on
either side
• Surface ground
SAND electrode – at a
stable potential

SHALE
 SP PRINCIPLES
Electrochemical Effect • Must have water-based mud
SHALE • Mud--formation water
Flushed
Zone
Virgin
Zone
salinity difference causes
SAND
Less Salty Salty
battery effect
Water Water
• Battery effect components
• Electrochemical
• Liquid Junction Potential, Ej
• In permeable region
Membrane effect • Anions more mobile than cations
+
Membrane
+
+
effect • Membrane Effect, Em
+
+ • Shale acts as membrane
Virgin • Repels anions / passes cations
Zone
• Electrokinetic (Streaming)
• Usually minor, disregarded
ORIGIN OF SPONTANEOUS POTENTIAL

The electrochemical
potential sensed in
the borehole is
generated by the
sum of two potentials
known as the
membrane potential
and Em and the liquid
junction potential Ej.
Ec = Em + Ej
LIQUID JUNCTION POTENTIAL

A liquid junction potential

develops when a
concentrated salt solution
(formation water ) is in
direct contact with a
diluted salt solution (fresh
mud filtrate)
The net effect of more
positive ions in formation
water and more negative
ions in mud filtrate creates
potential difference.
MEMBRANE POTENTIAL, Em
Created when a
shale is introduced
between a
concentrated salt
solution(formation
water) and a
diluted salt solution
(fresh mud filtrate)
 Note:
SP CURRENTS Reverse SP occurs when
formation water is fresher
than mud filtrate
SP CIRCUIT
• Three voltage sources
– Membrane (80%)
– Electrochemical (15%)
– Streaming (usually <5%)
• Voltage of sand
compared to shale
rm
Esp  ( El  Em )
rxo  rt  rsh  rm
• Hence,

Esp  ( El  Em )
 TYPICAL SP RESPONSES

REVERSED SP
5 – BASED ON THE
(+) DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
4
Rw and Rmf.

3 1. Rmf >> Rw - Amplitude large and

negative
2. Rmf > Rw - Amplitude negative
2 but not large
NORMAL SP

3. Rmf = Rw - No SP deflection

(-) 4. Rmf < Rw - Amplitude positive but

not large
1 5. Rmf << Rw - Amplitude large and
positive
 STATIC SP (SSP)
If it were possible to prevent SP currents from
flowing and measure the potential of mud this
would provide a value for the SSP
There are conditions where the SSP is recorded
directly
1. Thick zones
2. Clean (no shale) zones
3. Only water – bearing zones
4. Permeable zones
SELECTING A 100% WATER SATURATED ZONE

Low resistivity
suggesting a
water bearing
formation

Low GR response and high SP deflection

SELECTING A SHALE BASE LINE

Sandstone
baseline
Shale base
line is the SP
response
across a
thick shale
or several
shale
intervals
PSEUDO- STATIC SP (PSP)
• The presence of shale in the formation will
reduce the static SP. Shale lattice will slow
the migration of chlorine ions and assist the
flow of sodium ions, decreasing Ej.
• This reduces SSP to a pseudo- static value,
PSP.
• The volume of shale can be calculated:
Vsh = 1- (PSP)/(SSP)
EXAMPLE PROBLEM
SP RESPONSE
IN THIN
BEDS
 USING THE SP EQUATION FOR
Rw DETERMIMATION - CLASSICAL METHOD

1. Determine formation temperature

2. Find Rmf at formation temperature

3. Convert Rmf at formation temperature to Rmfe

value

4. Compute Rmfe / Rwe ratio from the SP

5. Compute the Rwe

6. Convert Rwe at formation temperature to Rw

 A
USING THE SP EQUATION FOR Rw
To determine Rw, we must
know:
1. Formation Temp, Tf
Original sample: Rw = 0.1 ohm-m@ 150F;
What is Rw at formation temperature (Tf), • Actual temp reading or
which is 250F?
• BHT and geotherm
gradient
• Chart GEN-2 (H) GEN-6
(S)
0.1 ohm-m, 150
1 2. Rmf at Tf
2 • Actual measurement or
• Correct surface Rmf
• Chart GEN-5 (H) GEN-9
Rw = 0.058 ohm-m 0.58 ohm-m, 250
(S)
4
• or Arp’s equation
3
• R1(T1 + 7) = R2(T2 + 7) (T ºF)
• R1(T1 + 21.5) = R2(T2 + 21.5) (T ºC)
3. Essp
• SP log
 B
THE SP EQUATION - 1
-20mV+ • Define Essp = (Esp)max
• We assume:
Essp Shale

- 80 mV Essp  ( El  Em )

Clean • From electrochemical theory:

Shale Baseline

Sand
Essp  0.133(T f  460) log10 (aw / amf )

Shaly
Sand
- 60 mV where Tf = formation temp, deg F
aw = formation water activity
-20 mV
Sandy amf = mud filtrate activity
Shale
Essp = max SP deflection, mV
Shale
 C
THE SP EQUATION - 2
• Difficult to measure activities
• Substitute resistivities for activities

Essp  0.133(T f  460) log10 ( Rmfe / Rwe )

Essp  0.24(T f  271) log10 ( Rmfe / Rwe )
Rwe or Rmfe

• For small salinities, a = 1/R

– For fresh mud filtrate, assume
– Rmfe = Rmf or
– Rmfe = 0.85Rmf (Schlumberger)
• For high salinities
– Correction needed
– Use Chart SP-2 (Schlumberger)
– Use Chart SP-3 (Halliburton)
 D
EXAMPLE
• Determine Rmf @Tf (Arp’s Eq.)
– 5.6(11+21.5)/(33+21.5) = 3.3m 10mV
-||+
• Determine Essp
– Shale base line
– Maximum deflection line
– Calculate deflection -50mV

• Apply SP equation
– -50 = -0.24(33+271)log(3.3/Rwe)
– Rwe = 0.68
– Chart SP-2 gives Rw = 1.3 ohm-m
(See next page)

Rarely known Rmf = 5.6m @ 11º C

Usually use charts, instead Tf = 33º C
 F

Rwe or Rmfe

Rwe=
0.68

Rw = 1.3
Rw or Rmf
 PROBLEM
The SP deflection is –60 mV across a thick, water-
bearing, clean zone. The value of Rmf at that
temperature of 100 F is 0.5 ohm-m.
Determine Rw at the same temperature (100 F)

Rw from SP: Classical Method

First, we determine the Rmfe (effective Rmf), since
the resistivity is not an accurate determination of
the ion activity that produces the SP.
 Rw ESTIMATION FROM Rwe

1. Determine Rmfe

Rmf, 0.5 ohm-m

0.5,100F

Figure 9-13 in the

manual.

Rmfe = 0.45 ohm-m at

100 F.
0.45 ohm-m
 Rw ESTIMATION FROM SSP
2. Determine
Rwe from
Rmfe

60, 100
7

Figure 9-14
of your
manual

SSP

Rmfe/Rwe = 7. Therefore,
Rwe=0.45 ohm-m/7=0.064 ohm-m at 100 F
 (Rwe=0.064 ohm-m at 100F)
Rw ESTIMATION FROM Rwe
3. Finally, determine Rw
• Using Figure 9-13 of
your text again, we
determine Rw=0.10
ohm-m at 100 F
• Here, Rw<Rmf. This
problem illustrates the
fact that if Rw<Rmf, SP
deflection is negative
(0.1<0.45 ohm-m)
0.064, 100F

(Normal SP)
0.064 mV
THE SILVA-BASSIOUNI METHOD
Rw ESTIMATION FROM Rwe

Figure 9-16
of your
text.
 For the same
problem as
before, ie
Rmf=0.5 ohmm
at 100 F,
determine Rw if
145 mV – 60 mV = 85mV
the SP deflection
is –60 mV.

We see Rw=0.1
ohm-m, as shown
with the classical
method.

Figure 9-16
of your text
COMPARISON OF THE CLASSICAL AND SILVA-
BASSIOUNI METHOD

• The classical method requires 3 steps for the

determination of Rw.
• The Silva Bassiouni method combines Fig 9-13
and 9-14 into one chart ( Fig 9-16 ) and gives
you the same value of Rw. Hence it is easier to
use.
 FACTORS AFFECTING THE SP RESPONSE

• Hydrocarbons: reduce the SP deflection

• Shaliness: reduces the SP deflection
• Bed thickness: thin beds do not develop a full SP
deflection
• Permeability: low permeability zones will have a
very high invasion diameter, so it may be
impossible to read the Junction Potential, hence
SP readings may be low
 OTHER SP ISSUES
R
SSP = -K log mfe
• Shaliness
Rwe
Vsh  1 Esp / Essp
• Environmental
– Uses curve shape
• Permeability
indication
– POOR perm predictor
• SP value & polarity
depend on salinity
Rmf = Rw Rmf <Rw Rmf >Rw
SALINE MUD FRESH MUD contrast
PASSIVE LOG CORRELATION

• GR, SP, and CAL

• often correlate
• different
measurements
• different reasons
• Correlation helps
• GR instead of SP in
oil base mud
• Easier detection of
shales
• Facilitates “zonation”
 ZONATION
• Zonation - Defines intervals of similar properties
• Purpose
• Well-to-well correlation
• Evaluation of specific intervals
• Criteria
• Lithology
• Fluids
• Porosity and permeability
• Begin with coarse zonation
• Typically
• Well-to-well correlation 20 - 100 ft
• Detail evaluation 10 ft thick or more
• Easy lithologies first, e.g., shales
• Refine
• More subtle lithology changes
• Fluids in porous, perm intervals
• Depends on measurements available
 SUMMARY
• Drilling process affects formation
• Alters rock near wellbore
• Invasion
• Passive logs respond to borehole,
formation, and fluids
• Caliper
• Simple measurement
• Care needed when interpreting and
comparing caliper
• SP
• Needs water based mud
• Estimates Rw
EXTRA SLIDES FOLLOW
MEMBRANE POTENTIAL
LIQUID JUNCTION SP
LIQUID JUNCTION EFFECTS