FORMATION EVALUATION

LITHOLOGY LOGS
IPGC
Perugia
Mauro Gonfalini

IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS 1

 Lithology Logs
Lithology logs are the ones used for the straight
classification of the lithology of the rock sequence
crossed by a well.
The mostly used ones are:
- Spontaneous Potential
- Gamma Ray & Gamma Ray Spectrometry
In any case, all the logging measurements are
affected by the mineralogical composition of the
subsurface rocks and the log interpretation process
takes advantage of a large number of logging
measurements, such as:
- Resistivity,
- Neutron, Density and Acoustic log,
- Nuclear magnetic Resonance, etc..

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 Elements of lithology

Courtesy Daniel Georgi – Baker Atlas
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 Spontaneous Potential
When the well bore is filled by a water
based mud (WBM) and in presence of an
alternation of permeable and impermeable
layers, due to electrochemical phenomena,
electrical currents are spontaneously
generated at the interfaces between mud
and formation and between impermeable
shales and reservoir sands.
The SP log is the measurement of the
potential of a down hole electrode with
respect to a surface reference electrode
which is proportional to the intensity of the
currents generated.

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 Spontaneous Potential
The magnitude of the SP generated is a
function of the salinity contrast between mud
and formation water.
Two are the main SP generation mechanisms:
• membrane potential,
• liquid-junction potential.
SSP = - K log (Rmf/Rw)
SSP = Static SP value
-K is a constant function of temperature
Rmf = mud filtrate resistivity
Rw = formation water resistivity
The SP log is primarily a permeability contrast
indicator as well as a fundamental lithology log
especially in shaly sand sequences

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 SP log and Volume of shale evaluation

SPsh (Vsh =100%)

SPsd (Vsh = 0%)
SPlog

SPlog – SPsd
Vsh =
SPsh – SPsd

Vsh = Volume of shale

SPlog = Spontaneous Potential log
SPsd = Spontaneous Potential sand
SPsh = Spontaneous Potential shale

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 SP log interpretation problems
Main problems of SP log interpretation
are mostly related to:
– lack of permeability contrast
– lack of mud/formation water salinity
contrast
– lack of vertical resolution
– hydrocarbon effects
– often noisy due to parasitic currents
affecting the reference potential of
the surface electrode
Marls
– vertical drifts and shifts
– of very little use in carbonate Low permeability
Low permeability contrast
reservoirs limestones

Marls

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 SP response in beds of different thickness
d =8.5 in

Vertical Resolution of the SP

log is a function of many 8.8m

different factors but mainly the

contrast between Rmf and Rw
and the Resistivity Rt of the 1.1m

level of interest.
As soon as the formation 0.3m

resistivities become very high,

the SP measurements begins
6.7m
to loose its Vertical Resolution
Low Rt High Rt
capability.

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 SP log interpretation problems
SP log behavior as a function of Hydrocarbon effect on the SP log
mud/formation water salinity contrast

Shales

Shales

Gas bearing
sands
High permeability
sandstones

Water bearing
sands

Shales
Shales

mV mV
SSP = -K log (Rmf/Rw)
Rmf > Rw Rmf = Rw Rmf < Rw
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 SP log interpretation problems

SP log

Shales

inflexion
point

High
permeability
sandstones

inflexion
point

Shales

mV

Vertical resolution of the SP log Boundary location by means of the SP log
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10
 SP log effects of Rmf and Rw contrasts

SP

SP

Rmf > Rw Rmf = Rw

When mud filtrate salinity and formation water salinity are When mud filtrate salinity and formation water salinity are
different (i.e., Rmf >Rw) the response of the SP log is similar (Rmf = Rw) the response of the SP log is flat and
suitable for lithology interpretation not suitable for lithology interpretation

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 Other SP responses

When mud filtrate salinity is higher than the formation water

salinity (Rmf << Rw) the response of the SP log is inverted.

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Geological applications of SP logs

Evaluation of depositional environments

from SP shapes

Correlation among wells using

SP profiles

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 Gamma Ray Logging
The natural radioactivity of geological
formations is due to the presence in
rock forming minerals of the radioactive
isotopes of elements such as Uranium
(U), Thorium (Th) and Potassium (K).
These isotopes are mostly related to
clay minerals whose content in Th and
K is generally higher than associated
sand and sandstones.
In carbonate formations the radioactivity
is mostly due to the presence of U and
the Gamma Ray level is not directly
related to formation shalyness.

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 Gamma Ray Logging principles

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 Gamma Ray log

Typicalresponses
responses
Typical
OfGRGRlog
log
Of

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 Gamma Ray Tool Calibration Principle

Tool Signal
(mV)

Low activity Cement

High activity
Cement signal
(mV)

K = 4% GAIN
High activity Cement Th = 24 ppm
U = 12 ppm Measured signal
200 GAPI (mV)

Low activity
Cement signal
(mV)
Low activity Cement
Output
GR (GAPI)
OFFSET

Gamma Ray American Institute Test Pit Low activity High activity GR
Cement GR Cement GR

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 Shale volume from GR log
BS, CALI, SP, GR LLD, LLS, MCFL TNPH, RHOB, DT
Caliper - GR Resistivity Density/Neutron

GRsh

GRsd

GR

(GR-GRsd)
Vsh = -----------------
(GRsh-GRsd)

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 Shaliness, shales, silt and clays
Due to the relative abundance of shales in sedimentary
rocks, very seldom hydrocarbon-bearing clastic
reservoirs are essentially free of the effects of shales
and clay minerals.
The impact of shales and clay minerals on hydrocarbon
E&P processes may be (often) very relevant.
Shales and clay minerals have, in fact, a significant
effect of on important reservoir petrophysical properties
such as porosity, water saturation and permeability and
on most well log measurements.
In consequence of these effects, the petrophysical
interpretation of well logs in shaly formations is quite
complex and many different techniques are used to
describe the quality of shaly clastic reservoirs in terms
of petrophysical parameters, type and volume of
hydrocarbon resources, expected productivity behavior
and formation damages problems.

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 Mineralogy in clastic reservoirs Adriatic Sea

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 Gamma Ray: environmental corrections
Main factors affecting GR measurements are:
• hole diameter
• sonde position in the well
• mud loaded with radioactive material

Sand
γ γ

Shale γ γ γ mud γ

γ γ γ γ
Sand

mud
γ γ
γ γ γ γ
Shale

Sand
Tool eccentered Tool centered
BS Measured GR
CAL Corrected GR

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 Environmental corrections on GR measurements

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 Gamma Ray Spectrometry

Gamma Ray emission spectra

WLL Services
SLB NGS
SLB HNGS (PEX)
BA SL

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 Elements of Gamma Ray Spectrometry

IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS 24

 Elements of Gamma Ray Spectrometry

Typical Wire Line

Typical Wire Line
Gamma Ray
Gamma Ray
emission spectra
emission spectra
(NGS Schlumberger)
(NGS Schlumberger)

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 LDL/CNL/NGS NGS (SGR & CGR)

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 A bit of confusion between Vsh and Vcl

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 GR in Cased Hole

GR correlation Log in cased hole Formation Evaluation logging in CH

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Sedimentological applications of GR responses

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 Caliper log

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 Caliper log

Single arm
caliper

Two arm
caliper

Four arm
caliper

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 0 GR 200 0.2 MCFL 2000 0 PEF 10

6 BS 16 0.2 LLS 2000 1.95 RHOZ 2.95

6 CAL 16 0.2 LLD 2000 45 NPHI -15

Mud cake
Mud cake
resulting in a
resulting in a
hole diameter 
hole diameter 
restriction
restriction

Comparison
Comparisonamong
amongdifferent
different
caliper measurements
caliper measurements

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 Borehole geometry Tool (BGT)

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 Borehole Geometry Tool (BGT)

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 Caliper measurements while drilling

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 RHOB

TNPH

CALIPER

DRHO

“Noisy”logs
“Noisy” logsdue
duetotopoor
poor
boreholewall
borehole wallquality.
quality.
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 Electromagnetic wave propagation
• Three parameters uniquely characterize a rock electrically.
• They are:
• Magnetic Permeability, μ (Henry/meter)
• Electrical Conductivity, C (Siemens/meter)
• Dielectric Permittivity (or Dielectric Constant), ε
(Farad/meter)
• While μ for non-magnetic rocks is the same of the free space,
ε of most materials is low with the exception of water.
ε measured at very high frequency (1 GHz), is primarily a
function of the water filled porosity and practically independent
of the salinity.
• This allows the measurement of the water saturation in the
flushed zone (Sxo).
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 Definitions

•Polarizability is the ability of electrically charged particles

of a medium to orientate or distort themselves in an
electrical field.
•Water is about the only abundant material in geological
formation that exhibits electrical dipole characteristics.
•At high frequencies, the water molecules cannot follow
perfectly the fast variations of the direction of the electric
field because of its inertia.
•Energy is, therefore, dissipated in the form of heat in the
medium.
•This phenomenon is called dipolar relaxation.

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 Polarization and dipolar relaxation
H+
2- 2+
Electric
O- O- H+ dipole

H+
E
+

+
+
-

+
+ - -
- Dipolar polarization
+

+
+ +
+

+
+ + (H2O molecules)
- -
+

-
-

+ +

Dielectric energy losses at high frequency Dipolar

relaxation
IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS 39
 Propagation characteristics of bulk water
Polarization Microwave Infrared Ultraviolet

20 GHz

1.1 GHz

ε’
εx
C/ω

dielectric atomic electron Frequency

•Phenomenons of conductivity, polarization and dipolar relaxation

are electrical characteristics of a medium.
•They can be represented all together by one parameter:
•the dielectric permittivity ε*.
ε * = ε '− j (C / ω ) − jε x
IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS 40
 Theory of the measurement

ε * = ε '− j (C / ω ) − jε x
•C/ω is a parameter related to conductivity losses
•C is the conductivity and ω is the angular frequency of the
applied electrical field
εx represents the dipolar relaxation losses
ε’ is related to the polirazibility
•j is imaginary operator j = −1
•Around 1.1 GHz ε’ is constant, εx is negligible and C/ω is
small and, therefore the measurement mainly read the part ε’
of the dielectric constant.
•Dielectric constant, which is proportional to the electric dipole
moment per unit volume, is one of the main factors affecting
electromagnetic propagation
IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS 41
 Theory of the measurement

•The velocity (phase shift) and the attenuation of a micro-

electromagnetic wave are related to the dielectric constant
and the conductivity of the material through which passes.
•The expression of the traveling wave is the following:
− j ( γ * z +ωt ) − βz j (αz −ωt )
E ( z , t ) = Eo e = Eo e e
γ∗ is the complex Propagation Constant, given by:
γ * = α + jβ
α = attenuation factor (nepers/meter)
β = phase shift (radians/meter)

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 High frequency EM propagation
•What influence EM waves propagation?
• conductivity
• polarization ….represented by ε*
• dipolar relaxation
• EM energy losses (Joule effect)
•What are the effects?
• attenuation …represented by Ac
• phase shift …represented by Tpl

Att e Tpl are a function of ε∗

¾ε of water is very large
compared to that of other
formation components;
¾measuring ε (by means of Att
& Tpl) will show the amount of
water in the formation.

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43
 Dielectric log: EPT Schlumberger

R1

R2

Depth Of Investigation 1.5 inch

Vertical Resolution 1 ft
Azimuthal Aperture 23°
Mud Cake

Bore Hole Invaded Zone

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 Dielectric log: EPT Schlumberger

Relationships between Solution Resistivity,

temperature, Propagation Time (blue curves)
A typical EPT log and Attenuation (red curves)

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 0 EATT 600
(dB/m)

20 TPL 10
(ns/m)

Rm
Rsh

Rxo Rt

Rsh

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 EATT logging in Clastics

DRHO

NPHI

RHOB

EATT (0-600)

SGR (0-100)

EATT in a Offshore Adriatic Well EATT in a Po Valley well

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 The Tpo Method

Mud Res.
filtrate Oil

tpo = tpl corrected for EM energy losses

• The EPT measurement responds

to the water content of the rock.
• Main (Schlumberger) interpretation
methods are:
• CRIM (Complex Refractive Index)
• CTA (Complex Time Average)
• Tpo (Time of Propagation
corrected)
IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS 48
 EPT log interpretation

Gas effect
on EATT

EATT Sh

EATT Sd

EATT − EATTsd
Variation of log readings in water & hydrocarbons VshEATT =
IPGC 2010 - Formation Evaluation – LITHOLOGY LOGS
EATTsh − EATTsd 49
 EPT in Offshore Adriatic Sea Wells

Evidence of the high resolution Geological interpretation

of the EATT curve of the EATT curve
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