Publications Details

3D EM imaging from a single borehole; a numerical feasibility study

Alumbaugh, D.L.

Often the drilling of an oil well is followed by a logging process to characterize the region immediately surrounding the well bore. The electromagnetic (EM) induction tool, which provides the formation resistivity, is among the most frequently run logs. A preliminary study has been conducted to analyze the feasibility of three dimensional (3D) electromagnetic (EM) imaging from a single borehole. The logging tool consists of a vertical magnetic dipole source and multiple 3 component magnetic field receivers offset at different distances from the source. Synthetic data calculated with a 3D finite difference code demonstrate that the phase of the horizontal magnetic fields provides the critical information on the three dimensionality of the medium. A 3D inversion algorithm is then employed to demonstrate the plausibility of 3D inversion using 3 component magnetic field data. Finally, problems associated with introducing biased noise into the horizontal components of the field through misalignment of the logging tool is discussed.