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A. INTRODUCTION – THE RESERVOIR
A.1 INTRODUCTION - THE
RESERVOIR
In the first “half” of a well’s life, it is drilled,
cased, cemented, perforated and completed.
Lithology?
Cement Quality?
Porosity?
Saturation?
Fig. A1: Life of a well - Part 1
In an open hole well evaluation the questions
asked are simple, where is the oil and how
much is there. The question is effectively,
where will we perforate?
Fig. A2: Life of a well - Part 2
In the second “half” of a well’s life the well is
produced, there may be workover activity and
recompletion.
Here the questions are different. Here the em-
phasis is on production, fluids and pressures.
We need to know:
• Production flow rates
• Perforation efficiency
• Fluid mix
• Zone Production
• Pressures
Different techniques are employed. Well test-
ing, production logging and reservoir moni-
toring tools are used to answer most of the
questions. Some specialist devices such as
corrosion monitoring tools may be required.
This phase of the well's life lasts for a much
longer time, often years; hence there will be a
number of surveys during this time.
In the multiple well case the problem is com-
plicated, the questions become related to the
space between the wells, the reservoir scale.
How much hydrocarbon is in these wells? Where is it?
Is there communication What is the extent of this reservoir?
between these reservoirs? How much will it produce?
Will it require enhanced
recovery techniques?
Fig. A3: Reservoir Questions
Are the zones connected, are the beds con-
tinuous and so on. These questions cannot be
easily answered by measurements taken in a
single, or indeed, many wells. Interwell
measurements (well tests or crosswell seis-
mic) provide some of the answers. These
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Introduction to Production Logging

techniques are often, difficult to do and give A.2 FLUIDS

inconclusive answers.
Liquids are defined as fluids relatively free to
flow but restricted enough by cohesive forces
In addition, there is the question of time, how
so as to maintain a relatively fixed volume.
long will it produce, will the fluid mix
change, are there any production problems
Gases are defined as fluids relatively free to
developing. The latter questions can only be
flow but unresrtricted by cohesive forces so
answered with surveys and tests over the pro-
as to have no definite volume.
ducing life of the reservoir.
Reservoir fluids need to be described in a dif-
The lithology of a reservoir is important in
ferent way from the rocks. The first definition
open hole evaluation and the measurement of
is one of contacts, where the fluids would be
the amount of hydrocarbon in place. There are
in equilibrium. These are the gas-oil-contact,
two major reservoir lithology types, clastics
the oil-water-contact and the gas-water-
and carbonates.
contact. The latter is only possible in a well
with gas and water (no oil). The second defi-
Clastics are composed of sandstones and
nition is the oil in place, the amount of hydro-
shales, the latter of limestone, dolomite and
carbon in the reservoir. The final definition is
evaporites such as salt or anhydrite. Sand-
one of the hydrocarbon properties, the gas-
stone reservoirs are usually regular in forma-
oil-ratio; how much gas is in the oil. Due to
tion while carbonate reservoirs have very ir-
the complexity of the hydrocarbons in the
regular structures. Flow from the this type of
reservoir there are many other parameters
reservoir rock is often from fractures which
which are needed to fully describe the fluids.
can lead to irregular flow patterns and even
flow from only those few perforations which
A reservoir normally contains either water or
intresect with the fracture.
hydrocarbon or a mixture. The hydrocarbon
may be in the form of oil or gas. The specific
The sandstones are often completed on multi-
hydrocarbon actually produced depends on
ple small zones of differing permeability.
the reservoir pressure and temperature. Other
This may mean that only some of the higher
gases can be found in wells, these include,
permeability zones actually flow.
helium, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sul-
phide. In most cases these occur as traces to-
The description of the reservoir rock is usu-
gether with the hydrocarbon and water nor-
ally simple, sandstone or carbonate.
mally found.

The formation water is uniquely described by

its salinity which may be fresh or salty. Using
the reference of seawater with a salinity of
around 30000 ppm chlorine, this varies from
500 ppm to 250000 ppm; a wide range.

The amount and type of fluid produced de-

pends on the initial reservoir pressure, rock
properties and the drive mechanism. The ma-
jor rock property involved in production is the
permeability.

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A.2.1 Hydrocarbon Classification H H H

Hydrocarbons vary widely in their properties.
H C H H C C H
The first classification is by fraction of each
component. This ranges from a dry gas which
H H H
is mostly C1 (methane) to tar which is mostly
the heavier fractions. The black oil normally PARAFFIN SERIES, METHANE AND ETHANE
found is between the two extremes, with some H H
C1 and some heavier fractions.
C
Every hydrocarbon extracted from a reservoir H NAPTHALENE SERIES
H
C C
is of a different composition. H H CYCLOPENTANE

Typical hydrocarbons have the following H H

C C
composition in Mol Fraction: H
H

H
Hydrocarbon C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6+
Dry gas .88 .04 .04 .01 .01 .01 C
5 5 AROMATIC SERIES
Condensate .71 .08 .04 .04 .04 .08 H C C H
BENZENE
Volatile oil .6 .08 .05 .04 .03 .2
Black oil .41 .03 .05 .05 .04 .42
Heavy oil .11 .03 .01 .01 .04 .8 H C C H
Tar/bitumen 1.0 C
Table A1: Hydrocarbon Types H
Fig. A4: Hydrocarbon Structure

The 'C' numbers indicated the number of car-

bon atoms in the molecular chain.
Another way to describe the hydrocarbons is
by the mixtures of the groups of hydrocar-
bon structure types. The three major groups
are shown. The simplest and most abundant is
the paraffin series, with the more complex
structures in varying proportions.
Natural gas is mostly (60-80%) methane,
CH4. Some heavier gases make up the rest.
Gas can contain impurities such as Hydrogen
Sulphide, H2S and Carbon Dioxide, CO2.
Gases are classified by their specific gravity
which is defined as:
"The ratio of the density of the gas to that of
air at the same temperature and pressure".
Gas specific gravity with respect to air should
not be confused with the specific gravity with
respect to water.

Oil is more complex than gas and has to be

defined in a more complete manner. The Gas-
Oil Ratio, GOR (symbol Rs) is a measure of
how much gas is in the oil and hence how
light it is. This is measured at a specific pres-
sure, for example the reservoir pressure.
The API gravity is a weight.

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Introduction to Production Logging

The table gives some typical values: The pressures in the oil and gas depend on the
gradients (densities) of these fluids. The dif-
GOR API Gravity ference in gradients with the water gradient
Wet gas 100mcf/b 50-70 depends on the specific gravity with respect
Condensate 5-100mcf/b 50-70 to water.
Volatile oil 3000cf/b 40-50
Black oil 100-2500cf/b 30-40
Heavy oil 0 10-30
Tar/bitumen 0 <10
Table A2: Hydrocarbon Classification

The specific gravity of an oil is defined as

⎛ 141.5 ⎞
o
API = ⎜ ⎟ − 131.5
⎝ specific gravity(60 F )⎠
o

A.2.2 Reservoir Pressures and

Temperatures
Reservoir Pressures are normally controlled Fig. A6: Reservoir Temperatures
by the gradient in the aquifer. The pressure in
the reservoir is controlled by the aquifer as it
The chart shows three possible temperature
is assumed that it is, somewhere, connected to
gradients. The temperature can be determined
surface. This means that the pressure in the
if the depth is known. Temperature in wells
water is effectively continuously controlled
depends on a regional gradient. There can be
by the pressure gradient. The pressure gradi-
local “hot spots” where this is sharply in-
ent depends on the salinity of the water, the
creased. The temperature is measured during
temperature and the regional tectonic stresses.
each logging run. Local knowledge is impor-
It is usually constant over a large area. Al-
tant.
though, high pressures exist in some reser-
voirs.
Temperatures gradients are greatest near the
edges of the plates and lowest near the centres
of the old continental plates as these are the
thickest points of the crust.

Fig. A5: Reservoir Pressures

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A.2.3 Hydrocarbon Phases
A fluid phase is a physically distinct state,
e.g.: gas or oil. In a reservoir oil and gas exist
together at equilibrium, depending on the
pressure and temperature. The behaviour of a
reservoir fluid is analyzed using the proper-
ties; Pressure, Temperature and Volume
(PVT). There are two simple ways of showing
this:
• Pressure against temperature keeping
the volume constant.
• Pressure against volume keeping the
temperature constant.
The pressure and temperature are two quanti-
ties that can be easily measured. Thus it is
useful to describe the fluids behaviour during
production in these terms. Experimentally it is
easier to measure pressure and volume hence
the classical experiment is done using these
parameters at a constant temperature.
Fig. A7: PVT Experiment
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The easiest experiment is to keep the tem-
perature constant, measuring volumes and
pressures.
The fluid used is a pure, single component
hydrocarbon. (This is not found in a reservoir
fluid which consists of a number of compo-
nents.) Starting in the liquid and increasing
the volume, the pressure drops rapidly with
small changes in volume until the first bub-
ble of gas occurs. This is the Bubble Point.
Further increase in the volume causes no
change in the pressure until a point is reached
where all the liquid has vaporised.
This is the Dew Point.
Increasing the volume beyond this point
causes the pressure to drop, but much slower
than with the liquid phase.
The experiment is conducted at different tem-
peratures. The final plot of Pressure against
Temperature is made.
The Vapour Pressure Curve represents the
Bubble Point and Dew Point, (for a single
component they coincide).
Fig. A8: Pressure temperature phase diagram for a
single hydrocarbon component
This is a plot for the single hydrocarbon com-
ponent used in the experiment. The Vapour
pressure curve terminates in the Critical
Point. This is a unique point for any sub-
stance, pure or a mixture. This is the point at
which all properties of the coexisting gas and
liquid phases become identical.
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Introduction to Production Logging

At pressures and temperatures above the criti-

cal point, for a single-component system,
there is only one fluid present and, depending
on the pressure and temperature, the fluid
may have the properties of a liquid or a gas.
The plot describes how this fluid behaves
with changing pressure and temperature.

If it starts in the liquid and the pressure is re-

duced, keeping the temperature constant, it
will cross the vapour pressure curve and be-
come a gas. Starting as a liquid at constant
pressure and increasing the temperature will
also change it to a gas.
Reservoirs do not have simple single-
component hydrocarbons. There is now an
envelope where two phases, oil and gas, exist
in equilibrium. This is due to there being both
heavy and light components in the fluid. The
Bubble Point and Dew Point curves still meet
at the critical point.
The critical pressure and temperature are no
longer necessarily the maximum pressure and
temperature (cricondentherm) at which liquid
and gas can co-exist. The shape of the enve-
lope and location of the critical pressure,
critical temperature, maximum pressure, and
cricondentherm are determined by the com-
position of the mixture.
The Pressure/Temperature (PT) phase dia-
gram for an oil reservoir is used to describe
how the oil at reservoir conditions behaves
when it is produced to surface (Figure A9).
Fig. A9: Phase diagram for an oil reservoir
Point 'A' is the initial reservoir condition of
pressure and temperature.
If the reservoir is produced at a constant tem-
perature until the fluid reaches the wellbore,
the line to Point 'B' is drawn. This represents
the flow of fluid from the reservoir to the
borehole.
The fluid travelling to surface now drops in
both temperature and pressure arriving at the
"separator conditions" (s) with a final volume
of oil and gas.
Gas condensates, as the name suggests, start
as a gas and condense out some liquid (Figure
A10. This type of gas reservoir is commer-
cially very good as the liquid can easily be
sold. Point 'C' is at the initial reservoir condi-
tions. The reservoir is produced at a constant
temperature from C to D. Fluids flowing up
the well now drop in temperature and pres-
sure, crossing the Dew point line and liquid
condenses out.

At separator conditions (s) the result in both

liquid and gas on the surface.

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Fig. A10: Phase diagram for a retrograde condensate
gas reservoir
In a gas reservoir the initial point is A (in
Figure A10). Producing the well to separator
conditions B does not change the fluid pro-
duced.
The point B is still in the "gas region" and
hence dry gas is produced.
This is the final diagram for the reservoir flu-
ids. This is a dry gas which never enters the
envelope under any normal producing condi-
tions.
For an adiabatic expansion, where no heat is
added to keep the temperature constant, the
temperature of gases tends to increase for
pressure drops above maximum pressure and
decrease (normal Joule-Thompson effect) for
pressure drops below maximum pressure.
Each reservoir fluid has a unique phase dia-
gram that usually changes with time (e.g.,
production). The relationship of the reservoir
fluid system, at reservoir pressure and tem-
perature, to its critical pressure, critical tem-
perature, and phase diagram determines the
state the fluids are in and the production
mechanism that may be encountered. The
pressure-temperature path taken by the fluids
from the reservoir to the stock tank or produc-
tion facilities will determine the percent of
gas and liquid present at a given time.
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Another factor to consider with a multi-
component system has to do again with the
dual processes of phase change and solubility.
When fluids are separated at the surface either
a flash or a differential process is usually con-
sidered. A flash process is one in which the
composition of the system does not change.
In a differential process, gas is removed as it
is liberated and the composition of the system
is constantly changing. The composition of
the system at a given pressure and tempera-
ture will then determine which components
will change phase and which components will
come out of solution with a further pressure-
temperature change. Therefore, even though
the final pressure and temperature may be the
same for two different separations of the same
system, the percent of liquid and gas present
at the end will be determined by the pressure-
temperature path taken.
A.2.4 Fluid Volume Changes
As described, fluids at bottom hole conditions
produce different fluids at surface:
• Oil becomes oil plus gas.
• Gas usually stays as gas unless it is a
Condensate.
• Water stays as water with occasionally
some dissolved gas.
Fig. A11: Fluid changes from downhole to surface
The volume change has to be quantified. Sur-
face volumes are measured (production rates);
these need to be converted to downhole con-
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Introduction to Production Logging

ditions in order to compute how much has

been produced at reservoir conditions and
hence how much is left. This change in vol-
ume between downhole conditions and the
surface is described by the Formation Volume
Factor:

Volume at Downhole Conditions

FVF =
Volume at Reference Conditions

Bo = formation volume factor for oil.

Bw = formation volume factor for water.
Bg = formation volume factor for gas.

Bw is around 1, as water is nearly incom-

pressible. Bo is measured in a PVT laboratory
experiment, it is just over 1, a typical value
would be 1.2.
Bg can be measured in the laboratory or using
empirical charts. This figure depends very
much on the pressure and is always very
small, in the order of 10-3. (See appendix at
the end of this section for methods of calcu-
lating these factors).
A.2.5 Saturation
The porosity of a formation has to be split
between the fluids occupying the pore space.
Saturation is the name given to the fraction of
a given fluid.
Formation saturation is defined as the fraction
of its pore volume (porosity) occupied by a
given fluid.
Volume of specific fluid
Saturation =
Total pore Volume
Definitions
Sw = water saturation.
So = oil saturation.
Sg = gas saturation.
Sh = hydrocarbon saturation
= So + Sg
Saturations are expressed as percentages or
fractions, e.g. Water saturation of 75% in a
reservoir with porosity of 20% contains water
equivalent to 15% of its volume.
Fig. A12: A unit volume of the reservoir rock is divided
into its matrix, and fluid parts. The total fraction of
fluids is the porosity, φ. This is further split into the
fractions of each fluid present
The graphical representation in Fugure A12
shows the simple porosity model split now
between water and hydrocarbon. The volume
of a fluid is the porosity times the saturation.
A.3 FLUID FLOW
Fluid flow in the casing and/or the tubing de-
pends on the fluids flowing from the reser-
voir. An oil with a high gas-oil ratio will pro-
duce a lot of gas somewhere on its journey to
the surface, a low GOR oil will produce less
gas. If there is water production as well, three
phase flow will exist in the tubing as the gas
comes out of solution and two phase (dipha-
sic) flow in the casing/tubing before the gas
has come out of solution.
These flow regimes cause problems for meas-
urements.
Flow in the casing and/or tubing is broken
into different regimes from Bubble flow, gas
bubbles in oil, to mist flow, oil droplets in gas
(Figure A13). The actual flow regime encoun-
tered in the well depends on the flow veloci-
ties and gas-oil ratio.

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More than one type of flow will be present in

the well as the pressure change and more gas
come out of solution.
FLOW REGIMES velocity = 0
102 at pipe wall

Laminar Flow Turbulent Flow

LIQUID VELOCITY

10
REGION I
Fig. A14: Flow occurs in two types, laminar flow and
REGION II REGION III turbulent flow. The profile is different and hence so is

N
IO
the flow measured by the tools

SIT
AN
TR
1
BUBBLE FLOW Reynolds number, Nre can be used to deter-
mine if flow is laminar or turbulent.
MIST FLOW
SLUG FLOW
PLUG FLOW
10-1 1 10 102 103 ρvd
GAS VELOCITY
N re =
Fig. A13: Fluid phases in the wellbore µ

Where:
A.3.1 Single Phase Flow
Single phase fluid flow is the simplest type of ρ = fluid density
flow; even so, it can cause problems with sen- v = average fluid velocity
sor response. Single phase flow can be di- d = pipe diameter
vided into two basic types of flow: laminar µ = fluid viscosity
and turbulent.
If Nre is greater than approximately 4,000,
Laminar flow is a smooth flow in which fluid the flow is turbulent. The relationship of
elements follow paths that are straight and Reynolds number to flow rate is illustrated in
parallel to the walls containing the fluid. The Figure A15.
velocity of the fluid varies from 0 at the con-
10000
tainer wall to a maximum at the center for a Reynolds Number v Flow rate
for 1.0g/cm 3 fluid
pipe or wellbore. The velocity profile shape Turbulent flow
is parabolic. transition zone

Turbulent flow is characterized by random,

1000
irregular movement of the fluid elements
throughout the fluid except at the container
Reynolds number

Laminar flow
wall. The velocity again varies from 0 at the
wall to a maximum at the center, but with a
much flatter profile. Velocity profiles for
laminar and turbulent flows are illustrated in 100
Figure A14.
pipe od
3
4
5
6
8
10
10 100 1000
Flow rate in barrels/day

Fig. A15: Chart to determine the flow type depending

on the flow rate and the pipe size

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Introduction to Production Logging

Figure A16 illustrates the ratio of average ve- For a given set of conditions, spinner speed
locity to center velocity versus Nre for water is a function of fluid velocity, viscosity, den-
or air in a smooth pipe. sity, blade angle and condition, and bearing
friction.
9.0
8.0
7.0
6.0
5.0
4.0
x1000 Reynolds Number

3.0

2.0

1.0 Turbulent Flow

.9
.8
.7
.6
.5
.4

.3
Transition

.2

Laminar flow

1.0 .9 .8 .7 .6 .5
Average Velocity
Centre Velocity

Fig. A16: The flowrate at the centre is different from

the average flowrate depending on the flow type. The
chart shows how this changes with Reynolds number
and hence the flow type

The average or superficial velocity v , for

laminar flow from Poiseuilleus law, can be
calculated as follows:

4q q
v= =
πd2 A

v is what a flowmeter attempts to measure.

The velocity profile may not be symmetric

due to pipe ovality, pipe roughness, proximity
to fluid entries, or other causes.

The velocity a tool sees will depend not only Fig. A17: Flowmeters measure different flowrate de-
on the actual fluid velocity profile, but also on pending on the flow type and also their position in the
tool size (spinner size) relative to pipe size, borehole
tool centering, tool configuration (cages and
centralizers), and whether annular flow is a
factor (in-line spinners and tracer tools). (Fig-
A.3.2 Multiphase flow
ure A17).
Multiphase flow is a much more complex
phenomena than single phase flow. Unless
Diverter flowmeters do not eliminate all of
the fluids are a homogeneous mixture, the
the above problems because of leakage
phases will move at different velocities. The
around and through the diverter elements or
light phase will move faster than the heavy
petals, but diverter flowmeters can minimize
phase because of the density difference be-
some of the problems.

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tween the two phases. This difference in ve-

locities is called the slip velocity.

Qh = Yh Qt - Yh (1 - Yh) Vs A

Qh = heavy phase flow rate

Yh = heavy phase hold up
Qt = total flow rate
Vs = slippage velocity
A = flow area

Slip velocity is the reason water holdup is not

equal to water cut. This will be covered in
more detail in the section on multiphase flow
interpretation.

In a deviated well the situation is further

complicated as the fluids will gravity segre- Fig. A19: Flowmeters may read two different types of
flow in deviated wells
gate unless the flow velocity is high enough
to ensure complete mixing.
A flowmeter in segregated flow may exhibit a
Slippage
Velocity response resembling downflow (Figure A19).
vs ft/min
140 The light phase moving up the high side of
the pipe will drag heavy phase with it. Some
120
of this heavy phase will fall out and flow
100 down the low side of the pipe. This can occur
80
where the heavy phase is water, even if no
water is being produced at the surface. A
60 spinner, as in the diagram, may see this down
40
flow. What other sensors see will depend on
30Þ
40Þ whether they get a representative fluid sample
20 20Þ
10Þ
in their measuring section.
0Þ
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0
Vw
The temperature of a moving fluid at any
point in a well is a function of many parame-
Fig. A18: The chart shows the changes in slippage
velocity with hole deviation (Vw is the water or heavy
ters. Occasionally, simplifying assumptions
phase) velocity can be made and a temperature log may be
used quantitatively for flow rates. It is usu-
Figure A18 is the result of flow loop work ally much better as a qualitative indicator of
relating slip velocity to hole angle for kero- fluid quantities and types.
sene and water flow in a five inch pipe with
the water flow not over approximately 400 When fluids undergo a sufficient pressure
B/D. A few degrees of deviation can make drop, some energy is expended in the form of
large changes in flow regime. sound. These sounds can be related at times
to fluid types and quantities. The energy ex-
pended per unit time is proportional to the
pressure drop times the flow rate.

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Introduction to Production Logging
Multiphase flow discussion has been limited
to two phase flow for two reasons. First,
models or correlations describing three phase
flow of oil, gas, and water are limited. Sec-
ond, sensors do not exist to properly measure
three components. Under the proper condi-
tions, tool combinations using both density
and capacitance measuring devices can be
used for quantitative interpretation in a three
phase environment.
A.4 PERFORATION
Perforation is the most popular method of
reservoir completion. The objective is to cre-
ate a path for flow from the formation to the
well through the casing and cement. The re-
quirement is thus for a hole to be made in the
casing, cement and into the formation for a
short distance. Standard perforations have an
entrance hole of about 0.4” and a penetration
of around 20”.
It is made using a perforation gun system.
Gun systems use three components:
• Detonator - primary high explosive
ignited by heat or shock
• Primacord - secondary high explosive
ignited by the detonator, burns at 8400
m/sec
• Shaped charges - create the perforations,
detonated by the primacord.
The detonator starts the reaction, the prima-
cord propagates it and the shaped charge
makes the holes.
Shaped Charges are the most important part
of the system. They were developed shortly
after World War II from the military bazooka
weapon.
There are three basic elements of a shaped
charge (Figure A20):
• case (Steel or Aluminium).
• cylinder of high explosive & a primer.
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• conical metallic liner.
Case
Primacord
Primer
Charge
Explosive
Charge
Liner
Fig. A20: Shaped charge design
It was found that the conical shape produced
a depression/hole in a metal target. The addi-
tion of the liner increased the efficiency of the
system. Modern liners are made of powdered
metal and leave a powder residue at the end
of the perforation. A typical charge has only
about 20 grams of explosive material.
Slug Jet
p=100GPa
500 m/s
Tip
7000 m/s
Fig. A21: Jet Formation
The explosion forces the liner to flow inwards
and out. It forms into a characteristic shape,
the jet (Figure A21), which is moving rapidly
and has extremely high pressures at the tip.
The pressure causes the material in the path
of the jet of metal to move out of the way cre-
ating the perforation tunnel into the forma-
tion.
The dimensions of the perforation, length of
the tunnel, and the diameter of the entrance
hole are linked and depend on the geometry
of the shaped charge.
If the liner opening is widened the entrance
hole size increases but the penetration de-
creases. These type of charges are used for
applications such as gravel pack.

There are a number of decisions to be made in
the planning of a perforation job.
The first is which perforation method to use:
• overbalanced or
• underbalanced.
Overbalanced perforation is made with the
wellbore pressure higher than the reservoir
pressure and so there is invasion once perfo-
rated. Underbalanced perforation means that
the reservoir produces once the perforation is
made.
In the first case the well is controlled using
the normal rig blow out prevention system. In
the latter special pressure control equipment
may be required.
The next question is the type of gun system;
• casing guns
• through tubing guns or
• tubing conveyed guns.
These three systems are summarised as fol-
lows;
Casing Gun
• Well Pressure > Formation Pressure
• Overbalanced perforating
• Large diameter carrier gun
• Carried on an electric line.
The advantage of a casing gun completion is
that all perforation material is carried inside
the carrier hence it is protected from the well
fluids. The resulting debris is also brought out
of the well in the same carrier. The carrier can
be either re-usable or not depending on the
type of operation being performed. The more
complex gun types are all “throw-away” type
carriers. The disadvantage of overbalanced
perforation is that the mud in the well bore
will enter the well as it is at a higher pressure.
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Through Tubing
• Well Pressure < Formation Pressure.
• Completion and final surface produc-
tion equipment, or a temporary comple-
tion and testing facilities are in place
• Underbalanced perforating, with pres-
sure control equipment
• Through tubing gun (small guns)
• Gauges can be run with the string
• Carried on an electric line.
Through tubing perforation eliminates the
invasion problem and gives the formation the
chance to flow immediately. The disadvan-
tage is that smaller guns have to be used,
which means either smaller charges in a small
carrier, or larger charges exposed to well flu-
ids and debris left in the well. The choice de-
pends on the type of well being perforated.
Tubing Conveyed Perforating
• Perforation gun is carried on either the
drill pipe or on tubing.
• Well Pressure < or > Formation
Pres-sure
• Large interval of perforation in one run-
in-hole
• High explosive content, perforation
spacing
• Gauges can be run at the same time.
Tubing conveyed perforation (TCP) connects
a carrier gun to the end of the drill pipe or
tubing. The gun can be fired by a number dif-
ferent types of detonators such as drop bar,
pressure firing heads or inductive coupling.
The choice depends on the conditions and
type of well.
The advantages of this method are mainly the
long interval(s) possible and the possibility of
a simultaneous well test using downhole
gauges.
The final decisions on the perforation are the
shot density, the number of shots per foot,
spf, (the current maximum is 21 spf.) and the
(01/97) A-13
Introduction to Production Logging
Phasing - the directions of the perforations
(Figure A22). This ranges from 0_ to
30_/60_.
The number of shots per foot depends on the
application and the reservoir parameters. The
objective is to obtain the best flow efficiency
most economically. Computer programs exist
which allow the reservoir engineer to select
the best combination of shots per foot and
phasing. Gravel pack completions normally
have very high shot densities.
Shaped charges
shots
per
foot
90° phasing
Fig. A22: Perforation characteristics are the number
of shots per foot of gun (spf) and the phasing of these
shots
(01/97) A-14
A.5 APPENDIX
Fluid parameters
Various fluid physical properties affecting
production logging are changed by pressure
and temperature and these changes need to
calculated.
There are several reasons for wanting to cal-
culate these changes. One is to be able to cal-
culate downhole fluid densities for use in
holdup calculations. Another is to be able to
convert downhole flow rates to surface rates
and vice-versa. Another is to be able to cor-
rect sensor response for fluid effects. Also, it
is helpful to know how many fluid types will
be present downhole when logging.
The physical properties of usual interest are
solubility, formation volume factor, bubble
point pressure, compressibility, natural gas
deviation factor, density, and viscosity.
A number of charts, nomographs, and equa-
tions are available to estimate the properties.
However, they are empirical and may not ac-
curately describe a particular hydrocarbon
system and should be used only if a more ac-
curate model for the fluids in question is not
available.
Perforation
Directions
The publication “Fluid Conversions in Pro-
duction Log Interpretation” contains all the
relevant charts together with examples on
their use.