Technical Developments

Borehole Imaging Tools - Principles and Applications

by Philippe Gaillot, Tim Brewer, Philippe Pezard, and En-Chao Yeh

doi:10.2204/iodp.sd.5.07S1.2007

Industry standard wireline imaging tools: Industry-standard
wireline image tools, top-combinable with open-hole wire-
line tools commonly used in the framework of IODP-ICDP,
measure either the electrical conductivity of the borehole
wall or the sonic travel time and amplitude of
the reflected
acoustic signal.
The wireline resistivity image tools are pad
tools that measure the formation micro conductivity directly
through an array of resistivity buttons mounted on pads that
are pressed against the borehole wall (Fig. 1a; Ekstrom et al.,
1987). Such tools normally provide the best high-resolution
borehole images in conductive (water-based) muds.
Examples are the Schlumberger Formation MicroScanner
(FMS) and Fullbore Formation MicroImager (FMI) with
azimuthal resolution of 64 (FMS) vs 192 (FMI), and capable
of radial microresistivity measurements (vertical resolution
0.2, vertical sampling: 0.1, depth of investigation: 30;
Schlumberger, Ltd., 1994). The wireline acoustic tools (or
acoustic televiewer, ATV) send sound pulses out to the for-
mation and measure both the amplitude and the travel time
of the returning signals (Fig. 1B). Because ATVs rely on
sound pulses, they can work in resistive (oil based) muds,
where electrical conductivity is very poor. Their disadvan-
tages when compared to electrical images are a heightened
sensitivity to borehole roughness or washouts and a gene-
rally poorer quality image overall in part or all of some holes.
One example is the Schlumberger Ultra Sonic Borehole
Imager (UBI): azimuthal resolution: ~2; vertical resolution
from 0.2 to 1.0 depending on pulse frequency (500 to 250
kHz); depth of investigation: borehole wall).
These tools can be used in a wide variety of geological and
drilling environments, providing borehole images of rock

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Figure 1. Schematic of electrical, acoustic and optical imaging tools. [A] Schlumberger Formation MicroScanner (FMS) with four pads, 16 buttons
each pad, covering 25%-40% of hole diameter and Schlumberger Fullbore Formation MicroImager (FMI) with four pads and four hinged flap and 24
buttons on each pad and flap. The hinged flap is able to increase coverage of up to 80% (Modified from Ekstrom et al., 1987; Schlumberger, 1994).
The individual buttons are aligned in two rows; processes for depth corrections shift the recorded resistivity to one row. Each button consists of
an electrode surrounded by an insulation. [B] The Ultrasonic Borehole Imager features a high-resolution transducer that provides acoustic images
of the borehole wall. The transducer emits ultrasonic pulses at a frequency of 250 or 500 kHz (low and high resolution, respectively), which are
reflected by the borehole wall and then received by the same transducer. Amplitude and traveltime of the reflected signal are then determined.
[C] Optical televiewers generate a continuous oriented 360 image of the borehole wall unwrapped using an optical imaging system (downhole
CCD camera which views a reflection of the borehole wall in a conic mirror-sketch of advanced logic technology ALT OB140). Like electrical
imaging tools and acoustic televiewers, the optical televiewers include a full orientation device consisting of a precision 3 axis magnetometer and 2
accelerometers thus allowing for both accurate borehole deviation data to be obtained during the same logging run, and for accurate and precise
orientation of the image.

 Scientific Drilling, No. 5, September 2007

Table 1. Tectonic, sedimentary and diagenetic features usually recognized on borehole images.
Tectonic Sedimentary Diagenetic
Self-evident Structural dip Bedding surfaces Stylotites (high amplitude peaks)
Natural Fractures Drilling Laminations
induced fracture/ Cross-bedding
breakout Grading
Folds Erosional surfaces
Deformation features
Lithology changes
Ambiguous Faults Cobbles, pebbles, Breccia Nodular concretions
Detrial shales, ripples Cherts
Bioturbation Vugs
Grain size/texture
Needs Core Small fractures Bioturbation Stylotites (low amplitude peaks)
Horizontal fractures Thin lamination
Limestone textures

and fluid properties in formations ranging from fractured /
karstic carbonates to soft, thinly laminated sand/shale
sequences. High resolution and often nearly complete bore-
hole coverage images are interpreted at an interactive gra-
phics workstation. When the image is unrolled and dis-
played from 0 to 360, linear features intersecting the
borehole appear as sinusoids (Rider, 1996). Assuming that
the images are properly oriented to geographic north, the
amplitude and minimum of the sinusoids can be related to
the dip and azimuth of the associated feature, respectively,
and consequently provide fundamental information regar-
ding the encountered formation (Fig. 2). Bedding, fracture
features, faults, stratigraphic features, and many other fea-
tures can often be manually or (semi-) automatically identi-
fied and quantified (Ye and Rabiller, 1998). In addition to
identifying fractures and faults, borehole imaging tools are
routinely used in support of detailed core analysis for a
variety of other applications such as sequence stratigraphy,
facies reconstruction, stratigraphy, and diagenetic analysis
(Table 1).
N E 0 90 180 270 360
In a general manner, electrical images appear to be sensi-
tive to variations in mineralogy, porosity, and fluid content
that highlight both natural fractures and rock fabrics.
Acoustic image logs reveal a similar natural fracture popula-
tion, but generally image slightly fewer fractures and do not
reveal rock fabric due to their lower resolution. However, due
to their full coverage, acoustic images can reveal drilling-
induced borehole wall tensile fractures, breakouts, and petal-
centerline fractures (Fig. 3). Both images can record textu-
ral properties of deformed materials within fractures; these
textures can be related to variations in mineralogy, altera-
tion, or porosity using the electrical log and can be used to
infer slip history. Drilling-induced fractures, breakouts, and
petal-centerline fractures that are thought to form just ahead
of the drill bit then provide additional constraints on the ori-
entation of the minimum horizontal regional stress (Zoback
et al., 1985).
AV wo-way FMS
Amplitude
MN MN raveltime N
Paired tensile
cracks

Image log

Paired breakouts
5 ft

d N E S W N Figure 3. Borehole wall tensile fracture and breakouts in acoustic

Figure 2. Projection of a planar intersection with a cylindrical televiewer (AT V). [A] amplitude, [B] travel time images, and
borehole. Dip direction of the planar feature is given by the orientation [C] Formation MicroScanner (FMS) electrical images The ATV and
of the sinusoid minimum; dip angle = arctan (h/d) where h = height of FMS logs are oriented with respect to magnetic North (MN) and true
sinusoid and d = borehole diameter. (TN), respectively (Modified from Zoback et al., 1985).

Scientific Drilling, No. 5, September 2007 

 Technical Developments
Rate (m/H) 0 to 40
Depth (m)
Pullback pressure (bar)
0 to 40
Core
Core
Torque (bar) 0 to 100
65
66
67
68
Figure 4. Integration of optical and acoustic image logs with drilling
parameters and digital line scan image of cores from IODP Expedition
310 (Tahiti sea level) Hole M0005D. Example of repositioning core to
its correct position in relation to the log-drill datasets. If no attempt
if made to position core data accurately, errors are in proportion to
the percentage of recovery per length of core drilled. Thus potential
errors increase around voids where recovery is lower, especially as
core may be collected by subsequent drill runs (Figure courtesy of
Jenny Inwood).
Wireline slim-hole imaging tools: In the framework of frac-
tured-rock and karstic aquifer studies, slim borehole-wall
imaging has undergone significant advancements since
Paillet et al. (1990) provided a state-of-the-art overview. Due
to their small diameter and advanced
focusing system (acous-
tic reflector and rotating mirror), s
limhole ATVs and optical
televiewers (OTVs) offer incredibly high azimuthal and ver-
tical resolution (e.g. Advanced Logging Technology tele-
viewers: acoustic borehole imager (ABI40) and optical bore-
hole imager (OBI40); azimuthal resolution: 1 or less, vertical
resolution: 1 mm).
ATV slim-hole tools use an ultrasonic
pulse-echo configuration with a 0.51.5 MHz transducer
(Fig. 1B). The transit time and amplitude of the reflected
 Scientific Drilling, No. 5, September 2007
acoustic signal are recorded as photograph-like images, and
the transit-time data can be used to generate high-resolution
caliper logs.
OTV tools use a ring of lights to illuminate the
borehole, a CCD (charge-coupled device) camera, and a
conical or hyperbolic reflector housed in a transparent
cylindrical window (Fig. 1C). The CCD camera measures
the intensity of the color spectrum in red, green, and blue. If
the medium is transparent (air or clean water), the reflector
focuses a 360 slice of the borehole wall in the cameras
lens.
Like industry-standard wireline imaging tools, slim-hole
OTV and ATV provide high-resolution, continuous, and ori-
ented 360 views of the borehole wall from which the charac-
ter, relation, and orientation of lithologic and structural pla-
nar features can be defined. The combined application of
optical and acoustic imaging provides critical information for
water-supply development and source-water protection, as
well as characterization and remediation of contamination of
water reservoirs (Cunningham et al., 2004). Such types of
televiewers have been successfully used in IODP Expedition
310 to image Tahiti Pleistocene-Holocene reefs (Camoin et
al., 2005). There, imaging of the borehole wall using acoustic
and optical geophysical methods complimented the sedi-
mentological work and allowed an unambiguous correlation
of cores (coral assemblages), core logs (Multi-Sensors Core
Loggers), downhole logs, and drilling parameters resulting
in a more precise depth assignation of core sections (Fig. 4)
and proper identification of macro-porosity regions and esti-
mation of true core recovery.
Logging While Drilling (LWD) imaging tools: Back to oil-
business industry standards, a major step in downhole geo-
logy includes logging while drilling, or LWD, where the for-
mation properties are measured just after they have been
drilled. Electrodes on a rotating LWD collar produce
360 images of the formation resistivity. These images can
be analyzed in real time by geologists and the driller to make
timely decisions about difficult drilling operations (unstable
hole conditions). The Resistivity at Bit (Schlumberger RAB)
tool is one of the LWD tools that can provide azimuthal-orien-
ted images of the borehole. Connected directly to the dril-
ling bit, this tool uses its lower portion and the bit as a
measuring electrode. Button electrodes provide shallow,
medium, and deep resistivity measurements as well as azi-
muthally oriented images acquired as the RAB rotates, with
a ~6 resolution. Low resolution (16 azimuthal sectors, with
one-foot axial resolution) density images can also be measu-
red by the rotating LWD collar.
Such LWD resistivity and density images were used to
estimate the concentration of gas hydrate in several boreho-
les drilled in the vicinity of Hydrate Ridge during ODP
Leg 204 (Trhu et al., 2003). Density at azimuthal positions
and formation resistivity around each borehole as a function
of depth were used to compute porosity and water (Sw) and
hydrate (1-Sw) saturation, respectively, at each azimuthal
position in these holes. The results allow for delineation of Ye, S.-J., and Rabiller, P., 1998. Automated fracture detection on high
the shape, geometrical distribution, and azimuthal orienta- resolution resistivity borehole imagery, SPE-49300, in 1998
tion of the porous sediment structures that are saturated SPE annual technical conference and exhibition proceed-
with gas hydrate as a function of depth. This 360 approach ings, v. pi, Production operations and engineering/general:
contrasts with conventional methods that use wireline logs Society of Petroleum Engineers, p. 777784.
or core data and produces a single saturation value at each Zoback, M.D., Moos, D., Mastin, L., and Anderson, R.N., 1985. Well
measurement depth. In addition, LWD data are acquired bore breakouts and in situ stress, J. Geophys. Res., 90(B7):
only minutes after the formation is drilled, limiting the extent 55235530.
of hydrate dissociation on the measured in situ properties
resulting into a significant increase of the understanding of Authors
the original spatial distribution of hydrate in these formati-
ons (Janik et al., 2003). Philippe Gaillot, CDEX (Center for Deep Earth
Exploration)IFREE (Institute for Research on Earth
References Evolution), JAMSTEC (Japan Agency for Marine-Earth
Science and Technology), Yokohama Institute for Earth
Camoin, G.F., Iryu, Y., McInroy, D.B., and the Expedition 310 Science, 3173-25 Showa-machi, Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama,
Scientists, 2005. Expedition 310 of the mission-specific Kanagawa, 236-0001 Japan, e-mail: gaillotp@jamstec.go.jp.
drilling platform from and to Papeete, Tahiti, French Tim Brewer, Department of Geology Geophysics and
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for quantification of vuggy porosity from digital optical University of Montpellier 2, France.
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En-Chao Yeh, Department of Geosciences, National Taiwan
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Related Web Links
Haggas, S., Brewer, T.S., Harvey, P.K., and Iturrino, G., 2001.
Relocating and orienting cores by the integration of electri-
http://publications.iodp.org/proceedings/310/310toc.htm
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Scientific Drilling, No. 5, September 2007