Applications of Pulsed Neutron Capture Logs

The applications of pulsed neutron capture logging may be conveniently

categorized into four groups:

Evaluation of Water Saturation Through CasingThese measurements are used

for initial evaluation when openhole data are not available, or to serve as a
baseline for later comparisonto check for bypassed production in the producing
interval, or to locate other zones for possible completion.

Time-Lapse LoggingThis technique is used to monitor changes in saturation.

Movements of gas-oil or water-oil contacts can be predictive of breakthrough or
depletion. The log in Figure 1 ,

Figure 1

Figure 2 ,
 Figure 2

Figure 3
 Figure 3

and Figure 4 show an initial TDT-K run and a monitor run about two years later.
 Figure 4

The third track on this log indicates Porosity and Fluids Analysis by Volume. The
black coding indicates hydrocarbon and white indicates water, while their
envelope defines the porosity. Comparison of the initial and later monitor runs
indicates a movement of the hydrocarbon/water contact in both zones A and B.
The shaded area corresponds to the moved hydrocarbons.

Residual Oil SaturationOne method for determining residual oil saturation (ROS)
after a reservoir waters out is the log-inject-log technique. This basically involves
injecting relatively fresh water of known salinity into the formation to be tested,
thereby displaceing the native formation waters and all movable hydrocarbons,
and then running a pulsed neutron capture log. This is followed by a second
injection with high-salinity water, and a second log run. The residual oil
saturation is then given by the equation

(1)

Residual oil saturation may also be determined from time-lapse logging

techniques.

Secondary MeasurementsSecondary measurements include the wellbore

capture cross-section measurement and the inelastic count rate mentioned
earlier, as well as lithology and spectral data, and the various quality-control
curves offered by the service companies.

Oxygen-ActivationA schematic showing the oxygen-activation measurement is

illustrated in Figure 5 .
 Figure 5

The neutron generator emits a burst of neutrons which causes oxygen (present in
water molecules) in the borehole to become activated. If the water is moving up
past the tool, a population of activated water is formed. This activated water has
a half-life of about seven seconds, and as the oxygen atoms return to their
normal state, gamma rays are emitted. These gamma rays are counted by the
detectors and are shown as an increase in the background counts. Oxygen
activation has particular application in production logging, where it is used to
identify water flow in wellbores or behind casing strings. Tools such as Western
Atlas Hydrolog or Schlumbergers Water Flow Log (WFL) are used for this
purpose.

The log in Figure 6 shows a Halliburton TMD log.

 Figure 6

The primary presentation is virtually identical to the Schlumberger TDT-K,

although a wellbore sigma measurement is usually shown. The quality
presentation is shown in part on the right and includes the long-spaced (LS) and
short-spaced (SS) background count rates. The perforated intervals are indicated
between the presentations. The increase in background above the lowest and
middle set of perforations indicates water entry from those perforations.