CALIBRATION OF GAMMA RAY DETECTORS AND

LOGS
One problem of gamma ray logging is choosing a standard calibration system. This is because
all logging companies use a variety of counters encased in different steel housings of various
sizes and shapes. On very old logs, the scale might be quoted in micrograms of radium
equivalents/ton of formation. For many reasons, this method was found to be unsatisfactory to
calibrate gamma ray logs, so an API standard was devised. A test pit (installed at the
university of Houston) contains an "artificial shale"(

Figure 1: API Gamma Ray Standard).

Figure 1

A cylinder 24 ft long and 4 ft in diameter contains a central 8-ft section consisting of cement
mixed with 13-ppm uranium, 24-ppm thorium, and 4% potassium. On either side, completing
the sandwich, are 8-ft sections of neat Portland cement cased with 5-1/2 inch J55 casing. The
API standard defines the difference in radioactivity between the neat cement and the
radioactively doped cement as 200 API units. Any logging service company may place its tool
in this pit to make a calibration.
Field calibration is performed using a portable jig that contains a radioactive "pill." Placed over
the center of the gamma ray detector, the jig produces an increase over the background count
rate equivalent to a known number of API units, depending on the tool type and size and the
counter it encloses.

TIME CONSTANTS
Radioactive emissions are random phenomena that are subject to statistical variations. Since
they vary in time, they produce statistical fluctuations on the gamma-ray log. For example, if a
radioactive source emits an average of 360,000 gamma rays per hour over a period of hours,
then we can suppose that the source will emit 100 gamma rays per second (100/sec. x 60
seconds x 60 minutes). If the count is measured for 1 second, however, the actual count might
be more or less than 100, thus forcing a choice. A relatively quick gamma ray count provides a
poor estimate of the real count rate, while a long count yields a more accurate estimate of the
count rate at the expense of much rig time.
The logger must therefore choose between various time constants, according to the
radioactivity level measured. The lower the count rate, the longer the time constant
required for adequate averaging of variations. In the past, a simple resistor -capacitor (R-
C) circuit was used; however, nowadays the averaging is carried out digitally after an analog to
digital (A-D) conversion. The time-averaging constant (TC) helps to smooth the gamma-log.
The faster the tool moves through the hole, the fewer gamma rays will be counted per
depth unit, so a longer time averaging period has to be employed to smooth out the
statistical fluctuations.
On a typical logging job, gamma rays might be counted for a short period of time (e.g., one
second); however, we must remember that during this 1-second time frame, the gamma ray
detector will have moved past the formation whose activity is being measured. Thus, the
logging speed and the time interval used to average count rates are interrelated. The
following rules of thumb are generally recognized.

Table 1: Logging Speeds

Logging Speed Time Constant

3600 ft/hr 1 sec

1800 ft/hr 2 sec

1200 ft/hr 3 sec

900 ft/hr 4 sec

A theoretical example is given in Figure 2: Example of Boundary Displacement GR Reading.

Figure 2

For a logging speed of 1800 ft/hr and a time-averaging constant TC = 2 sec, the time lag
produces an apparent boundary displacement of about 1 foot. The averaging procedure
 causes a time lag on the log boundaries which increases with logging speed and TC, as
demonstrated in the table embedded in the above graphic. The selection of the TC is a
practical compromise of logging speed and log quality, as shown in the table below. The
standard for most logging jobs is 1800 ft/hr and a TC of 2 sec.
Table 2: Logging Speed versus Log Quality for the GR Measurement

Logging speed (ft/hr) 3600 1800 1800 900

Time constant, (sec) 5 5 2 4

Statistical variations low low fair low

Travel during TC, ft 5 2.5 1 1

Thin bed definition poor poor good good

The parameters listed in the last column of this table can be used over short intervals for good
bed definition. It is customary to maintain the product of logging speed (ft/sec) and TC
(sec) at one foot.
The investigation volume of the Gamma Ray tool has the shape of a sphere around the
detector. The depth of investigation is determined by:

 Rock density, and mud density that attenuate the gamma-rays

 Natural GR energy
 Detector length (4'', 8'', and occasionally 12")
A rough value for the vertical resolution is 2 feet, while the depth of investigation is about 1
foot.
In the future, when the efficiency of gamma ray detectors and their associated electronics
improves by one or two orders of magnitude, the use of a time constant will be obsolete
except in the cases of extremely inactive formations with intrinsically low gamma ray count
rates.

PERTURBING AFFECTS ON GAMMA RAY LOGS

Gamma ray logs are subject to a number of perturbing effects, including

 Sonde position in the hole (centered/eccentered)

 Hole size
 Mud weight
 Casing size and weight
 Cement thickness
Since there are innumerable combinations of these effects, an arbitrary standard set of
conditions is defined as a 3-5/8 in. OD tool, eccentered in an 8-in. hole filled with 10-lb mud. A
series of charts exists for making the appropriate corrections. Note that if a gamma ray log is
run in combination with a neutron density tool, it is run eccentrically. If run with a laterolog or
an induction log, it is usually centered.

GAMMA RAY SPECTROSCOPY

Each radioactive decay produces a gamma ray that is unique in terms of energy level and
abundance, and which is expressed in counts per time period. The simple method of counting
how many gamma rays a formation produces can be carried a step further to count how many
gamma rays from each energy group it produces. If the number of occurrences is plotted
against the energy group, a spectrum can be produced that is characteristic of the formation
logged.
Figure 3 shows such a spectrum, where energies from 0 to approximately 3 MeV have been
split into 256 specific energy "bins." The number of gamma rays in each bin is plotted on the
Y-axis.

Figure 3

This spectrum can be thought of as a mixture of the three individual spectra belonging to
uranium, thorium, and potassium. A unique mixture of these three radioactive "families" has
the same spectrum as the one observed. The trick is to find a quick and easy method of
discovering that unique mixture. Fortunately, the on-board computers in logging trucks are
capable of quickly finding a "best fit" to produce continuous curves showing the concentration
of U, Th, and K.

Figure 4 illustrates a gamma ray spectral log.

 Figure 4

Note that in Track I, both total gamma ray activity (SGR) and a "uranium free" version of the
total activity are displayed (units are API). In Tracks II and III the concentrations of U, Th, and
K are displayed. Depending on the logging service company, the units may be in counts/sec,
ppm, or percentage.