Apparatus and method of processing multi-component induction data

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10649109-B2
Application number	US-201315029162-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 30, 2013
Priority date	Oct 30, 2013
Publication date	May 12, 2020
Grant date	May 12, 2020

Abstract

Various embodiments include apparatus and methods to utilize signals acquired from a multi-component induction tool operating in a wellbore. The acquired signals can be correlated to apparent conductivity of a formation and mapped to components of an apparent conductivity tensor. For each receiver array operated by the multi-component induction tool, a combination of these components from the acquired signals can be generated. Combinations generated from different receivers of the multi-component induction tool can be mixed together. From such combinations, data, with respect to evaluation of formation around the wellbore, can be generated. Additional apparatus, systems, and methods are disclosed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method comprising:
acquiring signals indicative of electromagnetic properties of a downhole formation generated from operating a multi-component induction tool in a wellbore, the multi-component induction tool having at least one transmitter triad and a plurality of receiver arrays, each receiver array having a receiver triad;
generating under control of a processor, for each receiver triad at a fixed frequency, one or more combinations of components from the acquired signals, the components corresponding to components of an apparent conductivity tensor;
for each of one or more receiver triads, combining, under control of the processor, a geometric factor associated with each receiver of the receiver triad to form a respective combination of the geometric factors, wherein the receivers of the receiver triad are oriented in different directions;
generating, under control of the processor, filters based on (i) the one or more combinations of geometric factors and (ii) a target function, wherein each of the one or more combinations of geometric factors correlates the electromagnetic properties of the downhole formation to the apparent conductivity tensor;
mixing together, under control of the processor, combinations measured from the plurality of receiver arrays, wherein the mixing comprises applying the filters to the one or more combinations of components; and
generating, under control of the processor, data indicative of the electromagnetic properties of the downhole formation, with respect to evaluation of a formation around the wellbore, from the mixing together combinations, wherein the data has an improved resolution at multiple depths of investigation compared to the acquired signals.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method includes:
acquiring signals generated from operating the multi-component induction tool at multiple subarrays and a number of different frequencies;
generating, for each receiver array at each frequency, a combination of components from the acquired signals, the components corresponding to components of the apparent conductivity tensor;
mixing together combinations measured from the plurality of receiver arrays at the different frequencies; and
generating data with respect to evaluation of formation around the wellbore, from the mixed together combinations.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method includes:
performing the acquiring signals and the generating the combinations for a number of different locations to which the multi-component induction tool is disposed along the borehole; and
mixing together the combinations from the different locations.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating combinations of components includes, for each receiver array and each frequency, generating aZZ+bXX+cYY with a, b, and c being numerical coefficients or generating dIJ+e JI, IJ and JI being different components of the apparent conductivity tensor with d and e being numerical coefficients.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating data with respect to evaluation of formation around the wellbore includes performing vertical-resolution matching based on the mixed together combinations measured from the plurality of receiver arrays.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein generating data with respect to evaluation of formation around the wellbore includes:
separating the combination of components for each receiver array into two sets based on a distance of each receiver array from a transmitter array from which the acquiring signals is based, one set of the two sets having combinations of components from receiver arrays categorized as short arrays and the other set of the two sets having combinations of components from receiver arrays categorized as deeper arrays relative to the short arrays; and
using the combination of components for each receiver array in an inversion process, in which data from the combinations of components of the short arrays is used as constraints in inverting the combinations of components of the deeper arrays.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method includes the filters being weights generated from generating an apparent conductivity of a radial-direction focusing log based on the one or more geometric factors.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the generating data from the mixed together combinations includes using filter weights from a library or look-up table for different background conductivities.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the method includes generating the combination of components based on a specific feature of the formation.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the specific feature is anisotropy, bed boundaries, or fractures.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein acquiring signals generated from operating the multi-component induction tool includes acquiring signals from a plurality of the receiver triads disposed axially on the multi-component induction tool in response to the transmitter triad disposed axially on the multi-component induction tool generating probe signals, the receiver triads at different distances from the transmitter triad.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprises logging the data indicative of the electromagnetic properties of the downhole formation while drilling into the downhole formation, wherein the improved resolution at multiple depths of investigation of the data facilitates extraction of oil and gas from the downhole formation.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein each of the receiver triads comprise receivers arranged on axis and orthogonal to each other; and wherein combining the geometric factor comprises combining the geometric factor associated with each receiver orthogonal to each other to form the combination of the geometric factors.

14. A machine-readable storage device having instructions stored thereon, which, when performed by a machine, cause the machine to perform operations, the operations comprising:
acquiring signals indicative of electromagnetic properties of a downhole formation generated from operating a multi-component induction tool in a wellbore, the multi-component induction tool having at least one triaxial transmitter triad and a plurality of receiver arrays, each receiver array having a receiver triad;
generating under control of a processor, for each receiver triad at a fixed frequency, one or more combinations of components from the acquired signals, the components corresponding to components of an apparent conductivity tensor;
for each of one or more receiver triads, combining, under control of the processor, a geometric factor associated with each receiver of the receiver triad to form a respective combination of the geometric factors, wherein the receivers of the receiver triad are oriented in different directions;
generating, under control of the processor, filters based on (i) the one or more combinations of geometric factors and (ii) a target function, wherein each of the one or more combinations of geometric factors correlates the electromagnetic properties of the downhole formation to the apparent conductivity tensor;
mixing together, under control of the processor, combinations measured from the plurality of receiver arrays, wherein the mixing comprises applying the filters based on the one or more combinations of geometric factors to the one or more combinations of different coupling components; and
generating, under control of the processor, data indicative of the electromagnetic properties of the downhole formation, with respect to evaluation of a formation around the wellbore, from the mixing together combinations, wherein the data has an improved resolution

Assignees

• Halliburton Energy Services Inc

Inventors

• San Martin Luis Emilio
• Hou Junsheng

Classifications

• E21B47/026 Primary

  of penetrated ground layers · CPC title

• G01N23/22

  by measuring secondary emission from the material · CPC title

• G06F17/40

  Data acquisition and logging (for input to computer G06F3/00) · CPC title

• G01D21/00

  Measuring or testing not otherwise provided for · CPC title

• G01V3/26

  operating with magnetic or electric fields produced or modified either by the surrounding earth formation or by the detecting device (with electromagnetic waves G01V3/30) · CPC title