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Monitoring Lithology Variations in Drilled Rock Formations Using NMR Apparent Magnetic Susceptibility Contrast

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Abstract

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a powerful technique for determining the petrophysical properties (porosity, permeability, and fluid mobility) of subsurface reservoirs through well logs, laboratory core analysis, or surface measurements of drill cuttings at the rig site. In well logging, NMR is considered a lithology-independent tool, but in surface measurements, it is possible to determine the apparent magnetic susceptibility contrast between the rock and a saturating liquid from a measure of the free induction decay. The magnetic susceptibility of the rock is influenced by paramagnetic minerals (iron and manganese oxides) and provides a simple method for detecting variations in lithology, particularly shale bands. Here, NMR measurements of apparent magnetic susceptibility contrast are obtained on a selection of core plugs, powdered rock, and drilled cuttings using a commercial bench top instrument, and shown to correlate to the iron content of the samples. This rapid and robust analysis complements the standard NMR petrophysical measurements and could be used to detect formation tops in near-real-time at the rig site.

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Acknowledgements

Kaspars Karlsons is thanked for measuring the absolute magnetic susceptibility of the rock powders and core plugs. Mauro Caresta (Schlumberger Cambridge Research) organized collection of cuttings from the Cameron Test Facility. Edmund Fordham (Schlumberger Cambridge Research) is thanked for discussions on magnetic susceptibility units and measurements. Schlumberger is thanked for supporting this work.

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  1. Dr Jonathan Mitchell sadly passed away during the editorial processing of this, his last scientific paper. Proof reading was completed by Dr Edmund Fordham, whose email (fordham1@slb.com) coordinates are given for correspondence.

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  1. Schlumberger Cambridge Research, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0EL, UK

    Jonathan Mitchell

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Mitchell, J. Monitoring Lithology Variations in Drilled Rock Formations Using NMR Apparent Magnetic Susceptibility Contrast. Appl Magn Reson 51, 205–219 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00723-019-01157-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00723-019-01157-1

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