Logging

What is Logging
Logging means recording of information and in oil industry, a log means recording against depth of
any of the characteristics of the rock formations traversed by a measuring apparatus in the well-bore.
Wireline logs or well logs are obtained by downhole logging tools lowered into the wells by means of
a cable. Measurements are transmitted up the cable to a recording unit mounted on a logging truck.
The recorded information on film or paper is called as well log.

Logging Objectives
The primary aim of well logging is to evaluate sub-surface formation in a well in terms of their
hydrocarbon bearing potential. However, the well logs also aid in drilling, completion and production
operation of wells besides geological and geophysical exploration and development of reservoir
models for efficient production. In fact well logging offers a way of gathering the data needed for
both economic and production planning.

Log measurements can give a wide variety of information regarding

 Formation Lithology, texture and composition of rocks, formation heterogeneity
 Sedimentary environment, and sequence of beds
 break of sedimentation, diagenesis
 Porosity (both primary and secondary)
 Permeability
 Hydrocarbon type (oil gas or condensate)
 Water saturation and hydrocarbon movability
 Well deviation, borehole geometry, abnormal pressure zone, fractures
 Formation temperature and pressure
 Cement evaluation behind casing

In producing wells, logging provides measurement of:

 Flow rate
 Fluid type
 Pressure
 Temperature
 Oil and gas saturation
 Points of fluid entry

These measurements help to understand the well behaviour and are of great utility to production
engineer. Thus well logging measurements when properly applied can answer a great many questions
from a wide spectrum of special groups ranging from basic geology to exploration or development
economics.

Need for well logging

Wells are logged for the following reasons-
 Where are we?
 Is there any oil or gas?
 How much hydrocarbons is there (Porosity)?
 Can the formation flow (Permeability)?
 Will the formation flow (Pressure)?
Formation evaluation with logs
We know that almost all the oil and gas produced today comes from accumulations in the pore spaces
of reservoir rocks usually sandstones, limestone and dolomites. Such accumulation in the pore space
is known as reservoir. The main purpose of drilling the well is to find and produce the hydrocarbons
from these reservoirs.

The main petro-physical parameters needed to evaluate a reservoir, then, are its porosity,
hydrocarbon saturation, thickness, area and permeability. Also formation temperature and
lithology can play an important role and their knowledge is necessary.

Fortunately the answers to most of the questions can be derived from various logs.

Reservoir identification:

Reservoir may be identified by

 SP
 Gamma Ray
 Evidence of mud cake on calliper
 Existence of porosity
Bed thickness: The following logs can be used for identifying the bed boundaries and therefore bed
thickness
 SP
 Gamma Ray
 Resistivity logs

Porosity determination: Porosity is the pore volume per unit volume of reservoir and can be
determined with the help of following logs:
 Acoustic Log
 Density Log
 Neutron Log
Saturation determination: The saturation of a formation is the fraction of its pore volume occupied
by the fluid considered. There is no method/technique available till date, which can provide oil/gas
saturations directly. The pores contain water and may contain some hydrocarbon (Both oil and gas).
Sum of all saturations will be 100%. Therefore evaluation through logs aims at computation of water
saturation ‘Sw’ of reservoir using different models, which eventually provide data about hydrocarbon
saturations (1 – Sw).

In addition to these parameters, inferences about several other geological parameters like grain size,
bedding plane features, post depositional deformations like fractures, faults etc. can be drawn from
well logs.
Wireline Logging Unit