CEMENT EVALUATION

CBL-VDL-CET-USI

Presented to: Dr. Adel Salem

APRIL 3, 2017
FACULTY OF PETROLEUM AND MINING ENGINEERING
Suez university
Acoustic logging measurements
1. Introduction
Acoustic logs are without a doubt the most widely used and efficient method to evaluate cement jobs. Cement job
evaluation through acoustic log interpretation seeks the relationship between the response of a tool and the quality
of the cement job after a given time following cement placement. With the response of acoustic tools, related to
the acoustic properties of the surrounding environment (casing, cement, and formation), it is possible to determine
the quality of the acoustic coupling between the casing, cement, and formation. The present lack of a relationship
between the acoustic coupling and the hydraulic isolation is a major limitation of the acoustic log interpretation.
“Good Bond” indicates a good acoustic coupling, but does not necessarily mean good zonal isolation. Nevertheless,
acoustic log interpretation can still provide a large amount of valuable information concerning the cement job,
provided the acoustic properties of the cement and formation are known. Cement is only one of many parameters
that can affect the log response. The analysis of the log must be performed very carefully to determine the origin of
the log response. Most of the time, detailed information regarding the well geometry, formation characteristics,
and cement job is required.

2. Acoustic Properties
2.1. Definitions

Acoustics deals with the characteristics of the propagation of sound waves (Chang, 1985). The propagation of sound
is actually the periodic compression and rarefaction of molecules (in the case of a gas or liquid) or the squeezing and
stretching of the grain fabric (in the case of a solid). When this motion occurs in the same direction as the traveling
propagation, the phenomenon is called a compressional wave. In a solid, a second type of wave (the shear wave)
can propagate. It does not exist in fluids. When it passes through a solid, the grain fabric vibrates perpendicularly
to the direction of wave propagation. The shear wave always travels more slowly than the compressional wave.
Compressional and shear wave velocities are intimately related to the elastic properties of the material (Young’s
modulus, shear modulus, and Poisson’s ratio), and are almost independent of the frequency.
In well logging, sound waves are generally characterized by their slowness (∆𝑇), traditionally expressed in
𝜇𝑠/𝑓𝑡 or 𝜇𝑠/𝑚, which is the inverse of velocity.
Today, for cased hole log interpretation, one is mainly interested in the propagation velocity of compressional waves.
The knowledge of the velocity of the compressional waves through a material enables us to determine the
compressional acoustic impedance (𝑍) of this material, traditionally expressed in 106 𝑘𝑔/𝑚2 𝑠 s, also called
Megarayleigh (Mrayl).

𝑧 = 𝜌𝑉𝑐
where
𝜌 = density of material (𝑘𝑔/𝑚3 ), and
𝑉𝑐 = velocity of compressional wave (𝑚/𝑠).

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While propagating through a material, a sound wave loses energy. This loss of energy, called attenuation, is
characteristic of the material and increases with the frequency of the wave. No general relationship exists between
attenuation and frequency.

2.2. Acoustic Properties of Formations

Acoustic properties of the formation have an influence on acoustic logs. The familiar terms fast formation and Slow
formation refer to sound velocity. Traditionally, for cement evaluation purposes, a formation is called “fast” when
sound travels through it faster than along the casing, i.e., less than 57 𝜇𝑠/𝑓𝑡. The typical characteristics of common
formations and common fluids are given in the following table. The same table cannot be constructed for attenuation
characteristics, because they are frequency dependent. Generally speaking, attenuation is high when slowness is
high. Attenuation is very high in nonconsolidated materials, e.g., shales at shallow depth. Attenuation is negligible
in strong consolidated rocks.

2.3. Acoustic Properties of Cements

Cased hole acoustic log response is primarily dependent upon the acoustic properties of the hard cement. The
acoustic properties of rocks are well known; however, it is more difficult to know those of the cement because they
change with time. This fundamental difference makes the log analysis critical in some cases.

 The log can change with time, because the physical properties of the cement are changing with time.

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  The cement is not in the same physical state all along the casing string. This can produce a strong difference
in the log response on longstrings where a large temperature difference exists between the bottom and top
of the cement.
Foamed cement also has an extremely low acoustic impedance. When the quality (porosity) of the foam is high,
it may be difficult to differentiate the cement from water.
Acoustic property fluctuations over days or even weeks have also been experienced in the field. It is evident by
the improvement of acoustic logs with time after cement jobs. Such problems often originate from an
overestimation of the bottomhole circulating temperature, and subsequent overretardation of the slurry. At
higher temperatures, the kinetics of cement hydration are faster, and the acoustic properties stabilize more
rapidly; thus, less time dependence is observed.

3. Cement Bond Log-CBL/VDL

3.1. Description of the Conventional Bond Logging Tool
The following figure shows a schematic diagram of representative bond log tool, along with the cross section of
a cased and cemented well. There is an acoustic transmitter which is usually made of a piezoelectric ceramic.
There are two receivers, also of piezoelectric ceramic, in most tools. Some designs incorporate a single receiver.
In the former case, the two receivers are generally located 3 ft. (0.9 m) and 5 ft (1.5 m) from the transmitter.
In the latter, the single receiver is 4 ft (1.2 m) from the transmitter. Some hostile-environment tools use
magneto-restrictive transducers rather than those made of ceramics. This requires different
pressure/temperature corrections (Naive et al., 1984). Not shown in the figure, but always a required part of
the tool, are a sufficient number of centralizers to ensure that the transmitter/receiver section of the tool
remains absolutely centered in the pipe.

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3.2. Acoustics of the Bond Log Measurement
The transmitter repeatedly emits short bursts of acoustical energy. The duration of each burst is about 50
𝜇. 𝑠, and the repetition rate is between 10 to 60 Hz, depending upon the particular tool design (and on
the setting made by the logging engineer, in some cases). The frequency content of each burst is centered
at about 20 kHz for larger diameter tools (larger than 3 in. or 8 cm) and about 30 kHz for smaller diameter tools
(less than 2 in. or 5 cm). One company offers a tool with a center frequency of 12 kHz. In the time interval
between transmitter bursts, the receiver picks up the signal and makes the bond log measurements. Most of
the signal of interest arrives at the receiver within one to two milliseconds after the transmitted burst.
The transmitter burst creates an approximately spherical wave front expanding away from the tool in all
directions. As the wave front strikes the inside wall of the casing, it is refracted according to Snell’s law. There
is one particular direction of travel of the wave front that will result in a refraction straight down the pipe. This
is the “critical angle.” It is about 16.5° with fresh water in the hole. The part of the wave front which is
refracted straight down the pipe ultimately determines the “amplitude” and “transit-time” measurements
which appear on the log. Some parts of the original wave front travel directly through the mud, and some parts
are refracted into the annulus and formation. Part of the latter ultimately arrives at the receiver as a “formation
signal,” and the former shows up as “mud waves.”
The following figure is a schematic representation of these various “paths” which the original burst can follow
and still arrive at the receiver. The waveforms in the figure are meant to convey the relative times of arrival of
the acoustic energy which has traveled along the various paths. The wave which is refracted directly down the
casing wall usually arrives first because of the high velocity of sound in steel combined with the relatively short
distance. A relatively low sound speed in fluids results in the mud wave arriving very late in spite of having the
shortest distance to travel. The arrival time of the formation wave, both shear and compressional, is highly
variable. The signal from the receiver will be a mixture, or composite, of waves from all these paths. The
interpretation of the actual bond log measurement (as opposed to a picture of the entire composite wave)
depends upon the casing wave arriving before anything else. If the annulus contains a fluid, so little energy
arrives at the formation that the received signal consists almost exclusively of the casing signal and the mud
waves.
The so-called casing wave is the portion of the original acoustic burst which propagates directly down the casing
wall. It loses energy into the annulus and borehole as it propagates, because of the shear coupling with the
adjacent materials. The greater the shear coupling, the greatest the energy “lost” into the adjacent materials.
The loss to the borehole is low and constant; thus, the loss to the annulus is the variable. The rate of this loss is
reflected in the “amplitude” or “attenuation” appearing on the log.it should be expected that there will be little
attenuation of the casing signal if there is a fluid in the annulus.
In fact, all fluids would be expected to “look” alike because there is no shear coupling for any fluid. This is also
the reason why even a microscopic gap of a few thousandths of an inch between the pipe and a cement sheath,
referred to as a “microannulus,” has a strong effect on the signal.

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3.3. Description of the Full Acoustic Wave Display-VDL
The presentation of the full waveform provides some information about the cement job. The actual
“composite” signal received is presented in the following figure While its use in bond log interpretation is
primarily qualitative at present, it contains all available information in “picture” form.
An amplitude of zero is converted to the median intensity level. Positive amplitudes have higher intensities
(darker) as they become more positive. Negative amplitudes have lower intensities (lighter shades) as they
become more negative. Continuous and discrete (five- level) intensity scales are used in the industry. This
display is continuous with depth and easy to read, but de-pends on intensity or darkness to convey the
information.
In multiple-receiver tools, the full wave display generally comes from the 5-ft (1.5-m) spaced receiver.
Increasing the spacing between the transmitter and receiver has the advantage that the various constituents of
the composite wave (casing, formation compressional, and formation shear) are spread apart from one another,
because the effect of their velocity differences is more pronounced as the distance increases. However,
increased spacing is problematic because the received wave is more attenuated; thus, a compromise is
necessary. Since the full wave display is used qualitatively in most cases, the very high attenuation at 5 ft (1.5
m) is not a problem, because the qualitative characteristics are still distinct.

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3.4. CBL-VDL Qualitative Interpretation
The analysis of the full wave display gives only qualitative information about the cement job. If the cement is
well bonded to the casing, most of the sonic energy will leave the casing and pass into the cement-casing waves
will have an extremely low amplitude. If the cement is well bonded to the formation, the energy will go through
the cement into the formation. The sonic waves will then propagate (compressional and shear) and attenuate
through the formation. Since formations are never perfectly homogeneous, their acoustic properties change
with depth. Wavy patterns on the received waveforms are the perfect illustration of this, a qualitative indication
of good acoustic coupling between cement and formation, and also between casing and cement.
Several special cases should be taken into consideration:
Unconsolidated formations: Occurring at shallow depth, this type of formation strongly attenuates the sound.
The VDL does not show any formation waves because their amplitude is too low.
Fast formations: are those through which sound travels faster than along the casing. The wavy pattern on the
VDL is seen earlier than the casing arrivals. Obviously, both the casing-to-cement bond and the cement-to-
formation bond are generally good.
Salt formations: which are highly plastic, have little heterogeneity. Across such a zone, the VDL is very
regular most of the time, sometimes appearing similar to free pipe.

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Concentric casings: if the inner casing is well cemented, the VDL will show the quality of the previous
cement job, but often shows parallel stripes as in free pipe. The chevron patterns at the casing collars are
visible. When the annular gap between both casings is well cemented, the casing collars from the previous
casing can also be seen on the VDL. Often in this type of situation, an apparent frequency increase is seen on
the signal, which is visualized on the VDL by a larger number of thinner black-and-white stripes (Jutte, 1988).
Intimate contact between the casing and formation: When the casing is not centralized, even when not well
cemented, formation arrivals may be seen on the VDL. The casing signals are also very strong.

CBL-VDL Qualitative Interpretation

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1) Free pipe
 Notice straight line and high amplitude pattern on VDL pipe arrivals (railroad track pattern).
 Travel Time curve is constant and amplitude curve reads high.
 Note casing collar anomalies on travel time and amplitude curves, and more weakly on VDL display.

2) Good Bond to casing & Formation

 "Amplitude" low.
 "VDL" formation signals are strong.
 Good cement. No need for squeeze.

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3) Good Bond to Casing without bond to Formation
 "Amplitude" low.
 "VDL" doesn't show casing and formation signals. Thin mud signals are visible
 Squeeze needed
 Note: Keep in mind that gas in formation can give the same model.

4) Poor Bond to Casing

 Moderate amplitude
 late arrivals on VDL have "shape" and track porosity log shape.

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5) Microannulus
 "Amplitude" is moderate.
 "VDL" can shows both wiggly formation signals and straight casing signals.
 In case of doubt, repeat the log under 1000psi pressure to the well. The gap will be closed and log will
change to "Good Cement"
 No need for squeeze.

6) Fast Formations
 "Amplitude changes between low and high
 Formation signals cover casing signals.
 No need for cement.

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7) Channelling

Unfortunately, with traditional cement bond logs, high amplitude over a cemented section can be due
either to channeling or to a microannulus. In both cases, the VDL will show strong casing signals (parallel
stripes) and weak formation arrivals. The only way to differentiate both cases is to run a CBL under
internal casing pressure. If it is a microannulus, there will be a significant amplitude reduction. If the CBL
does not improve when pressure is applied, it can be either a large microannulus or a channel: zonal
isolation is probably not achieved. The alternative is to use recent ultrasonic tools similar to the CET to
evaluate the cement job.

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4. Cement Evaluation Tools (CET)
4.1. General Description
Ultrasonic tools induce casing resonance by transmitting a broad band pulse (300 to 600 kHz) normal to
the casing wall. Two major advantages of this technique are:
 good spatial resolution-about one square inch of cross-sectional area.
 lack of need for perfect shear coupling between the pipe and cement.
The disadvantages, for the purpose of cement evaluation, have to do mainly with the combination of high
frequency and short wavelength.
 Extreme surface roughness on the pipe (more than 0.1 in) can prevent cement measurement.
 suspended particles in the borehole fluid can cause high attenuation of the acoustic wave.
4.2. Tool Configuration
Eight ultrasonic transducers are arranged in a helical spiral around the sonde, each facing outward as
shown in the figure.
They are evenly spaced around the circumference of the tool body-one transducer every 45”.
A ninth transducer, facing downward in an opening in the tool body just above the bottom centralizer,
measures the speed of sound in the borehole fluid. An integral reflector (located a precisely known
distance below the transducer) is used.
Three general measurements are possible with each transducer-cement (or annular material) properties,
internal casing radius, and pipe wall thickness. The ultra-sonic beams are cylindrical, and are about 1 in.
(2.54 cm) in diameter; thus, the measurements made by a transducer represent an average value over an
area of roughly one square inch for the cement and wall thickness measurements, which are based upon
the energy and frequency content of the reflected signal, respectively.
The radius measurement represents a minimum
radius over this area, because it is based on the
round-trip time of the first arrival in the echoed
signal.
Note that each transducer is a transmitter and
receiver.

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4.3. CEL Interpretation
1- Channeling
On the log section presented in the next figure, mud channels are well evidenced on the cement map.
Note as well that the orientation of the mud channel follows the rotation of the tool. In this case, the
image was not corrected to present the low side of the pipe in the middle of the cement map. However,
do not forget that the azimuthal coverage is complete only in 4.5-in. (11 -cm) casing.

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2- CEL across gas formation
The pulse echo measurement is very sensitive to the presence of gas in the annulus, especially at the
interface between the casing and the cement. Quite often gas enters into the cement across the gas zone,
leading to a decrease in the cement acoustic impedance.
The next figure is a section across a gas zone. At the level of the gas zone, the cement map is white and
gas flags indicate the presence of gas in the annulus. Below and above the gas zone, the cement map is
dark, showing a larger cement acoustic impedance.

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3- Logs across a fast formation
This log interval is in the middle of a massive limestone formation that is generally tight, but highly
fractured. The amplitude curve on the bond log is strongly influenced by fast formation effects and is
unusable. All CBL interpretation must be done qualitatively from the VDL data. Note also that the transit-
time curve is very irregular, with the lowest values in zones of low amplitude. The VDL display does not
show strong casing signals, but fuzzy patterns which could be due to the fractures in the formation or in
the cement. Since ultrasonic cement logs are not influenced by a fast formation, they provide a clearer
indication of the cement quality in this type of environment.
The CET log shows a large amount of cement, but with a channel from the perforated interval downward
about 50 ft (15 m). A comparison of the two logs shows that the diffraction patterns on the VDL display
correspond largely to problem areas in the cement sheath.

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5. Ultra Sonic Imager Tool (USIT)
5.1. Introduction
The USI ultrasonic imager delivers an accurate, high-resolution, comprehensive real-time confirmation of
the pipe-to-cement bond quality and downhole pipe condition.
Casing inspection and monitoring applications include corrosion detection, identification of internal and
external damage or deformation, and casing thickness analysis for collapse and burst pressure
calculations.
In contrast to CET processing, which uses traditional energy windows, USI processing derives acoustic
impedance directly from the fundamental resonance to measure the following:
1) The acoustic impedance of the cement or whatever material is between the casing and the formation.

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 2) Casing thickness from the natural resonant frequency of the casing, which is approximately inversely
proportional to the wall thickness.
3) Internal casing radius. The time between the firing and the major peak of the echo is measured by
locating the waveform peaks.
Time is converted to a measurement of the internal radius using the fluid properties measurement to
compute the velocity of sound in mud, taking into account the transducer's own dimensions.
4) Casing inspection. The inside and outside diameters are determined from the transit time and casing
thickness measurements. The maximum amplitude of the waveform provides a qualitative measure of the
internal surface rugosity of the casing.

5.2. Tool Configuration

5.3. USI General Specifications

Length (sonde and cartridge only) 248 in. [6.3 m]
Diameter 3.6 to 11.2 in.
Weight
 Sonde 188 to 210 lb
 Cartridge 153 lb
Maximum temperature rating 350oF [175oC]
Maximum operating pressure 20,000 psi
Recommended logging speed 400 to 3200 ft/hr
Combinable with CBL-VDL, CBT, GPIT, Gamma Ray. CCL

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5.4. USI Interpretation

USI cement image settings

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1) Good cement

2) Mud channel and contaminated cement

3) Gas channel and microannulus

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 4) Micro-debonded cement

Patchy “gas”/ cement indicates micro-

debonded cement (patchy dry micro-
annulus)

References
 Erik B. Nelson: “Well Cementing”, Schlumberger Educational Services.
 Mickaël Allouche: “Cement Evaluation”, Schlumberger, SRPC – France.
 Crain’s Petrophysical Handbook-Cement Integrity Logs-Part 1—CBL/VDL

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