Schlumberger Technology Corporation

Schlumberger Canada Limited

Services Petroliers Schlumberger

Schlumberger Holdings Limited

Prad Research and Development Limited

Nicholas N Bennett

Richard Timothy Coates

Lalitha Venkataramanan

Jakob Brandt Utne Haldorsen

Terizhandur S Ramakrishnan

Hiroaki Yamamoto

Dzevat Omeragic

Jean P Seydoux

Emmanuel Legendre

Francois M Auzerais

Qiming Li

Takeshi Endo

Denise E Freed

Nicholas J Heaton

Douglas E Miller

Ian D Bryant

Denis Heliot

Roger Griffiths

Martin D Hürlimann

Peter Gerhard Tilke

Koji Ito

Andrei Davydychev

Raj Kumar Michael Thambynayagam

Jean-Michel Denichou

Robert Burridge

Alberto Malinverno

Naoki Saito

John Adam Donald

Georgi Kutiev

Asbjoern Lund Johansen

Yevgeniy Karpekin

Yi Zeng

Nobuyasu Hirabayashi

Nobuyasu Hirabayasbi

Reetam Biswas

Emmanuel Legandre

Richard T Coates

Jeanmi Denichou

Jean Seydoux

Embodiments provide for a method that utilizes the azimuthally spaced receivers of a sonic logging tool. Signals from monopole and dipole sources are reflected from the geologic interfaces and recorded by arrays of receivers of the same tool. For the incident P-waves from the monopole source, phase arrival times for the azimuthal receivers are compensated for stacking using properties of wave propagation in the borehole, and for the incident SH-waves from the dipole source, signs of waveforms for the receivers are changed for specified azimuths.

Beamform processing for sonic imaging using monopole and dipole sources

A method is provided for identifying and characterizing structures of interest in a formation traversed by a wellbore, which involves obtaining waveform data associated with received acoustic signals as a function of measured depth in the wellbore. A set of arrival events and corresponding time picks is identified by automatic and/or manual methods that analyze the waveform data. A ray tracing inversion is carried out for each arrival event (and corresponding time pick) over a number of possible raypath types to determine i) two-dimensional reflector positions corresponding to the arrival event for the number of possible raypath types and ii) predicted inclination angles of the reflected wavefield for the number of possible raypath types. The waveform data associated with each time pick (and corresponding arrival event) is processed to determine a three-dimensional slowness-time coherence representations of the waveform data for the number of possible raypath types, which is evaluated to determine azimuth position and orientation of a corresponding reflector, and determine the ray path type of the reflected wavefield. The method outputs a three-dimensional position and/or orientation for at least one reflector, wherein the three-dimensional position of the reflector is based on the two-dimensional position of the reflector determined from the ray tracing inversion and the azimuth position of the reflector determined from the three-dimensional slowness-time coherence representation. The information derived from the method can be conveyed in various displays and plots and structured formats for reservoir understanding and also output for use in reservoir analysis and other applications.

Methods and systems for automated sonic imaging

A sonic logging method is provided that transmits acoustic signals using a high order acoustic source and processes waveform data to identify a set of arrival events and time picks by automatic and/or manual methods. Ray tracing inversion is carried out for each arrival event over a number of possible raypath types that include at least one polarized shear raypath type to determine two-dimensional reflector positions and predicted inclination angles of the arrival event for the possible raypath types. One or more three-dimensional slowness-time coherence representations are generated for the arrival event and raypath type(s) and evaluated to determine azimuth, orientation and raypath type of a corresponding reflector. The method outputs a three-dimensional position and orientation for at least one reflector. The information derived from the method can be conveyed in various displays and plots and structured formats for reservoir understanding and also output for use in reservoir analysis and other applications.

Floss

An interactive display of results obtained from the inversion of logging data is produced by obtaining and inverting the logging data using a Monte-Carlo inversion. An interactive plot having a percentile scale plotted against a location parameter is produced and a particular percentile is selected using the interactive plot. A cross-section plot for the particular percentile using the results of the Monte-Carlo inversion is produced. The particular percentile can be a curve representing a best-fit solution or a polyline representing selected solutions. Background color/shading can be displayed on the interactive plot to indicate user-defined constraints have been applied. Uncertain features can be plotted on a corresponding cross-section display using fading. Clusters of solutions that are substantially equally likely, given the measurements at a particular drill location, can be identified and plotted. A cross-section constructed from the layered models belonging to a particular cluster can be overlaid on another cross-section.

Interactive display of results obtained from the inversion of logging data

Apparatus and methods of analyzing a composition of a hydrocarbon-containing fluid including using a nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) tool to conduct a NMR relaxation measurement, a diffusion measurement, or both on the hydrocarbon-containing fluid to obtain NMR data, using a non-NMR tool to conduct an additional measurement of a reference fluid to obtain non-NMR data wherein the additional measurement comprises gas chromatography, optical observation, or both, and using the NMR data and the non-NMR data in an inversion process to determine an indication of the composition of the hydrocarbon-containing fluid. In some embodiments, the indication is determined over 4 chain length nodes.

Methods for compositional analysis of downhole fluids using data from NMR and other tools

A method of obtaining nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) data from a subterranean formation may include operating a tool in a subterranean formation for generating both NMR data and NMR scaled data based upon NMR measurements of the subterranean formation. The method also includes operating the tool for encoding and transmitting both the NMR data and NMR scaled data, and receiving and decoding, above the subterranean formation, both the NMR data and NMR scaled data from the tool. The method also includes performing error-correction of the received and decoded NMR data based upon the received and decoded NMR scaled data.

Method of performing error-correction of nuclear magnetic resonance data

Methods and apparatus for determining slowness of wavefronts. An example apparatus includes one or more sources spaced from a receiver. The one or more sources are to transmit one or more signals and the receiver is to receive at least a portion of the one or more signals. The apparatus includes a processor to process waveform data associated with the one or more signals by stacking waveforms of the waveform data based on to linear moveout and sinusoidal moveout.

Methods and apparatus for determining slowness of wavefronts

Methods and related systems are described for measuring and analyzing refracted acoustic energy. A plurality of receivers mounted are on a downhole tool, and are arranged and adapted to receive refracted acoustic energy from a downhole formation. Measurements of refracted acoustic energy is analyzed such that information relating to an azimuthal direction relative to the downhole tool of an interface within the downhole formation can be estimated. The receivers can be mounted on a drill collar as part of a LWD tool and steering of the drilling trajectory can be based in part on the estimated formation information.

Analysis refracted acoustic waves measured in a borehole

A computer-based method is provided for modeling and visualizing a property of a subterranean earth formation while drilling a borehole therethrough. The computer-based method gathers electromagnetic signals corresponding to a current measurement station location of a measurement-while-drilling tool, and generates a multilayer model corresponding to such electromagnetic signals. A histogram characterizing uncertainty of the multilayer model is used to generate a set of color hue values which represent predictions of the formation property for depth values above/below the tool, and a corresponding set of saturation values (which represent uncertainties for these predictions). A curtain plot is generated and displayed. The curtain plot employs colors to visualize formation property predictions for depth values above/below the tool over successive measurement station locations. A new column of the curtain plot is generated for the current measurement station location. The color values of the new column are based upon the set of color hue values and the set of saturation values derived from the histogram. The saturation levels of the new column represent uncertainties for the corresponding predictions.

Computer-based method for while-drilling modeling and visualization of layered subterranean earth formations

An oilfield data analysis system is based on a four-tier software model which includes a &ldquo;shared earth model&rdquo; and a federation of &ldquo;directory services&rdquo;. The first tier is a universal graphical user interface (GUI) which can operate on any inexpensive computer as well as on an expensive workstation, i.e. a &ldquo;web browser&rdquo;. The second tier is an application server which is coupled to users via the worldwide web and serves geoscientific software applications. The third tier is a geometric modelling system where geometric data is stored and processed. The third tier embodies the &ldquo;shared earth model&rdquo;. The fourth tier is a database management system where non-geometric data is stored. According to the invention, there can be (and preferably are) multiple instances of each tier. Communication of data between different tiers is accomplished via XML data exchange. According to a presently preferred embodiment, the geoscience applications served by the second tier are written as JAVA servlets and applications may communicate with each other without human direction by registering requests with &ldquo;directory services&rdquo;. Applications interested in certain types of data &ldquo;listen&rdquo; for &ldquo;data events&rdquo; being registered with directory services. The cost of utilizing an application can be based on a time-rental billing operation which is carried out automatically via directory services.

Oilfield analysis systems and methods

A borehole image interpretation method that utilizes a Hough transform technique is described. The method can detect planar structures such as fractures and formation beddings in the borehole, as well as geometric patterns such as elliptical vugs.

Method of determining dips and azimuths of fractures from borehole images

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Sugar Land, TX, United States of America

Nicholas N Bennett