S-wave anisotropy from two dipole sonic data processing methods, confronted with fracture permeability, logs and cores

Abstract

The present paper consists in two parts, determined by the historical emerging production of Dipole Sonic Imager (DSI) measurements and results in the early 1990’s. The DSI data were processed following two methods simultaneously developed in France and in USA by Schlumberger. In the first part the early dipole sonic S-wave velocity results obtained in late 1993 are confronted with the other borehole data obtained in the scientific borehole MM-1, entirely cored and extensively logged, as part of the comprehensive scientific project named Géologie Profonde de la France (GPF), conducted by the Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières (BRGM, i.e. the French Geological Survey), in Ardèche, southern France. In 1994, José Perrin summarized and integrated all the borehole information including the preliminary results from an azimuthal “rotation scan” of S-wave sonic slowness determination method quickly developed in Schlumberger-France and aiming at detecting only the presence of S-wave velocity anisotropy in a first step. The initial results were presented to the French industrial logging community in April 1994, prior to the commercialization of any S-wave splitting computer detection routine applied to dipole sonic data. The second part focuses on the comparison of the dipole sonic S-wave anisotropy detection results from two methods produced at a later time by Schlumberger, namely: a) results from the commercial S-wave anisotropy detection routine based on cross energy minimization, obtained in October 1994, and b) principal S-wave azimuth results sorted from the “rotation scan” azimuthal method, produced in 1995 and further improved in July 1997. After discussing the discrepancies of the principal fast S-wave azimuth derived from the two methods with diverse specialists in Schlumberger, over several years, and on a spare time basis, the authors expose constructive explanations in the present paper. A limited overview of the latest dipole sonic data processing developments has also been attempted to better understand the differing S-wave birefringence results obtained in MM-1, suggesting that the rock formation in the immediate borehole vicinity, up to three times the borehole radius, may not be homogeneous along the borehole depth depending on the local geological context. Besides, the Fast Azimuth split S-wave (FAZ) fits with the strike of major regional faults and parallel to the maximal horizontal palaeo-stress, which happens to be nearly orthogonal to the local present stress direction accepted by the geologists! The present case study suggests that the S-wave anisotropy results ought to become more reliable, mainly on the accuracy and precision of the FAZ. Additionally, the efficiency of the semblance parameter for S-wave attenuation anisotropy detection is pondered, where no S-wave velocity anisotropy is detected over the dipole sonic receiver array.