Guard Log

Chapter 4

he guard resistivity log was run as early as 1927 by Conrad Schlumberger. Abandoned for over twenty years, the log was then reintroduced by Birdwell. Reintroduction was necessitated by new drilling techniques utilizing saltladen mud. These drilling muds greatly reduced the effectiveness of conventional resistivity logs, namely the Normal and Lateral Logs. Today, the guard log is employed in all facets of geophysical logging from oil and gas minerals and coal to water resource and environmental studies. As previously stated in this manual, resistivity is the measurement of electrical current flowing through rock strata saturated with formation fluids. Objectively, all downhole resistivity devices try to obtain a measurement that is insitu and independent of drilling fluids, borehole conditions, and bed boundaries. Various devices have been engineered, all with advantages and disadvantages. one device that has had success is the guard log. To understand the guard log, a brief overview of the Normal sonde is necessary. Figure 2-12 illustrates the configuration of the Normal device. As seen, a constant current is applied to electrode A resulting in an electrical potential between A and ground B. At radial points away from A equipotential spheres are established. These spheres are not only equal in potential but also are proportional to the resistivity of a given material that intersects these spheres. The normal takes advantage of this by placing measuring electrodes (M) at known distances from the current electrode A. The greater M is from the A the deeper the field of investigation. However, the further M is from A the poorer the resolution. The normal is a give and take device, where distance is the condition of either sacrificing resolution or taking deeper undisturbed readings. The guard log tool shown in Figure 4 - 1 solves this problem by placing three electrodes downhole at equal potential. This is accomplished by using two guard electrodes (F,F) to focus the current electrode (A) into a flat disc with a thickness approximately equal to the length of the current electrode A (see Figure 4 - 2), while at the same time providing a radius of investigation approximately three times the length of one guard electrode. With a four inch current electrode and a three foot guard electrode, one can resolve beds down to four inches with an investigative radius of nine feet!

The guard electrodes (F,F) are automatically adjusted to the potential of the current electrode (A) (see Figure 4 - 3 for the electric configuration). When all three electrodes are at equal potential the magnitude of the current flowing from A, is proportional to the resistivity of the formation being investigated. This configuration allows the sonde to have excellent thin bed resolution while minimizing borehole effects such as wash-outs and low Rm values (ie, low mud resistivity, salt mud). The application of the guard resistivity is extensive. The guard log, by virtue of excellent resolution and deep penetration can be used in alluvial environments that are of mixed matrix with poorly defined bedding. In this environment the Normal log will often average the grading of a gravel zone that contains interbedded silts and sand, whereas the guard sonde will delineate the grading, providing better detail on deposition. In well defined sequences of sand and clays the guard log can be used for well construction when accurate bed thickness is needed for placement of screen and seals (shoulder effect from adjacent beds are virtually nil). Whenever the normals are used an accompanying guard log is viable. A typical Guard Log is shown in Figure 4 - 4. In the case of hard rock where fracture porosity is primary, the guard log will often index the fractures and provide information on whether the fracture is water bearing or not. The signature of fractures is unique in that when the sonde is across competent rock of no fracturing or filled fractures, the log will record 2000 ohm meter readings (the rock matrix is without conductive fluids-porosity is essentially zero). When the sonde passes an open fracture filled with fluid the tool responds with readings less then 2000 ohmmeters. As fracturing increases or fracture aperture becomes larger, the lower the response of the reading. However, the log should never read less than Rw (the resistivity of formation water) unless the fracture is altered by clay deposits. The guard log has been corroborated successfully in these environments with the use of the Acoustic Borehole Televiewer.Because of the amount of metal used in the sondes design, a Spontaneous Potential curve is not provided. Instead a Gamma Ray is used for correlation (the Gamma Ray detector is located at the bottom of the sonde). The measuring point on the guard sonde is three feet above the bottom of the tool where the current electrode is located. The Gamma Ray is located approximately six 31

Gamma Ray-Guard Log Tool

Chapter 4
inches up from the bottom of the tool. The units of measurements are Ohmmeters2/meter for the Guard and API units for the Gamma Ray. The log presentation is on API grid with the Guard resistivity in track 4 (if an E-Log was run, the guard is normally scaled the same as the E-Log for correlation).

Electrical Field around the Guard Sonde

Figure 4 - 2

Figure 4 - 1

Schematic of the Guard Sonde

Guard Resistivity Configuration

Figure 4 - 3 32

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Notice the difference between the Guard and Normal resistivity values. The Guard Log is influenced much less by borehole conditions, thus giving much truer bed resistivity values.

Thin Bed Detection

Figure 4 - 4

Typical Guard Log

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